1. Partnered Reflective Practice will only focus on the negatives: 

• “I was surprised that this process helped me not only identify areas to work on, but also celebrate and lean into my strengths as a therapist! I think the word “reflection” can be scary because no one likes staring their imperfections in the face, but working with Andrew on reflection is so much more about celebrating your wins and learning about the unique outlook of each of your client. I have found myself using what I’ve learned about reflective practice to serve ALL clients, from nonspeaking clients working on engagement to an older clients working on executive function and reading skills. It has also been an amazing tool to use when supervising graduate students or new clinicians.” – Laura, SLP

2. Partnered Reflective Practice is “instructive” with someone else directing and telling me what to do differently:

• “I [thought] I would be receiving objective feedback about things I’d “done wrong” or be instructed to improve or expand upon an idea or strategy in a session. What I realized throughout the process was that reflection is a guided experience, not a dictated one. To be able to reach my full potential as a therapist, I did not need someone else’s perspective to tell me what to do, but to inspire me to dig deeper into my own ideas.” – Emily, OT

3. Reflective Practice will take up too much time:

• While a partnered reflective practice will take up some time on your schedule, some therapists find creative ways to fit in reflective time such as taking a walk with their reflective partner over lunch.  Some therapists find that scheduled reflection-on-action is needed but can then be faded back as their reflective muscles grow.  Laura, who has done partnered and individual reflection said she was initially worried about the amount of time it would take.  Check out her current reflection routine: 
• • “I often build reflection into my car ride home. When I get home, I brain dump any ideas that I had on a piece of paper, as writing things down helps me remember and implement ideas.” – Laura, SLP