Self-Inventory of Major Concerns as a Beginning Counselor

Take the self-inventory below and write a minimum of 250 words in response.

Issues for Personal Reflection – Self-Inventory of Major Concerns as a Beginning Counselor

Much of Chapter 2 in the textbook deals with common concerns facing beginning counselors. The following questionnaire is built from the statements I often hear in supervision sessions with counselor interns (and often from experienced professionals in training workshops).

Apply each statement to yourself, and determine to what degree this is a concern you face as you think about beginning to counsel others. Use
the following scale:

1 = This is rarely a concern of mine. 3 = This matter concerns me quite often.
2 = This is a concern I sometimes have. 4 = This issue almost always concerns me.

1. I am concerned that my anxiety will keep me immobilized, and that I will be very passive as a counselor, lest I make mistakes.

2. I fear that I will be so concerned about being appropriate that I will forget to be myself.

3. I might say too much about myself, and in doing so I will burden the client and also take the focus off of him or her and put it on myself.

4. I think that I should be pretty near perfect, and that if I blunder I could really mess up my client.

5. I wonder about how honest I should be with a client.

6. I will feel threatened during moments of silence, thinking that I am expected to do or say something.

7. It will be difficult for me to deal with demanding clients.

8. I will feel helpless with clients who are not committed to working or with involuntary clients.

9. I will probably demand instant results as a way of avoiding getting discouraged.

10. I have an expectation that I should be able to help every client.

11. I anticipate I will worry a lot about whether I am intervening appropriately.

12. I worry that I might over-identify with certain clients to the extent that I will take their problems on as my own.

13. I think that I might be inclined to give too much advice.

14. I can see myself trying to persuade clients to value what I value.

15. I have trouble in deciding how much responsibility is mine and how much is my client’s.

16. I have real doubts about my ability to help someone who is in a crisis.

17. I worry that I lack the knowledge and skills to meet the needs of clients from diverse cultures.

18. A concern of mine is that I will get burned out.

19. I am concerned about giving everything I have and then not getting any appreciation in return.

20. I wonder if I can do what I believe is important as a counselor and still work within the system.

Suggestions for Using This Inventory:

Go back and circle the few items that you find are your greatest concerns.

Do you have other concerns that were not mentioned above?

How can you prepare yourself now so that you will be able to deal successfully with your concerns?