ABSTRACT
In the development of solution-focused therapy, there was a move away from identifying and working with the client's 'exceptions' to the problem to identifying and amplifying instances of the solution already happening. This chapter discusses the case of Rita. She was scared of being criticised at work, and her goal was to be able to handle criticism better from her boss. Rita's case shows a number of things in view. People often do enact instances of their goal. They are often unaware of the fact but can gain access to it when asked to by the therapist. Even if they are aware that they are already meeting their goal, albeit in a different area of their life, they often need help to generalise from one area to the next. In relating the instance, the client often reveals additional information that helps account for the problem which needs to be addressed if the goal is to be realised.
