Day One
10:30 am - 12:30 am
1. The Theory of Rational Living Therapy
a. How thoughts are acquired and how to utilize thought acquisition theory to develop psychotherapeutic techniques.
b. Cause of normal and abnormal emotional and behavioral response.
c. Myths and misconceptions of cognitive-behavioral therapy
d. Psychotherapeutic characteristics of Rational Living Therapy??
a. How thoughts are acquired and how to utilize thought acquisition theory to develop psychotherapeutic techniques.
b. Cause of normal and abnormal emotional and behavioral response.
c. Myths and misconceptions of cognitive-behavioral therapy
d. Psychotherapeutic characteristics of Rational Living Therapy
12:30 pm - 12:45 pm Break
12:45 pm - 2:00 pm
2. Rational Living Therapy Assessment Techniques
a. Differentiating learned vs. not-learned emotional / behavioral problems
b. Determining core beliefs utilizes the vertical arrow technique
2:00 pm - 3:00 pm Break
3:00 pm - 4:30 pm
3. Conversational Persuasion Techniques
a. How to indirectly suggest that the client will succeed and indirectly encourage a desired outcome.
b. A variety of conversational persuasive techniques will be presented, including: Truisms, embedded commands, illusion of choice, positive label bind, Non-sequitur double bind, time bind, apposition of opposites
4:30 pm - 4:45 pm Break
4:45 pm - 6:00 pm
4. ABC’s of Emotions and Reflexive Thoughts
a. Attendees will learn the RLT definition of emotions and how to teach clients the cause of their emotional / behavioral problems.
b. How to teach clients how to assess reflex or automatic thoughts
c. How to encourage an internal locus of control
Day Two
10:30 am - 12:30 am
5. Rational Questions
a. The Three Rational Questions and how to teach them to clients so that they can determine for themselves whether or not their thoughts/ behaviors are rational for them.
6. Thought Disputing Techniques
a. How to dispute thoughts with clients.
b. Techniques presented: didactic, Socratic, indirect, physical, self-disclosure
12:30 pm - 12:45 pm Break
12:45 pm - 2:00 pm
7. Common Mental Mistakes
a. The 25 Common Mental Mistakes, including:
All or none thinking, overgeneralization, discounting the positive, mental filter, irrational should statements, confusing
needing with wanting, confusing possibility with probability, relying vs. depending, irrational definitions
b. How to teach the common mental mistakes to clients
8. The Stages of Emotional Re-education
a. How to teach the stages of emotional re-education to clients
b. Excellent examples of how to demonstrate the experience of cognitive-emotive dissonance
c. How to emphasize to clients the importance of practicing their new thoughts.
2:00 pm - 3:00 pm Break
3:00 pm - 4:30 pm
9. Rational Action Planner
a. How to teach clients how to complete a Rational Action Planner
10. Rational Hypnotherapy
a. Attendees will learn what hypnotherapy is and why it is utilized in Rational Living Therapy?
4:30 pm - 4:45 pm Break
4:45 pm - 6:00 pm
11. Practicing Techniques
a. How to teach clients various thought and behavior practicing
techniques, including Simple script rehearsal, rational
visualization, self-hypnosis, systematic desensitization
12. Therapy Termination
a. Attendees will learn how to determine when it is appropriate to end therapy.
Day Three
10:30 am - 12:30 am
13. Resistance
a. How to identify and help clients overcome over twenty causes of resistance in therapy, including:
Fear of discomfort, fear of disclosure / shame, symptom stress,
suppression, reactance / rebelliousness, severe disturbance,
secondary gain, hopelessness, guilt / shame, cognitive-emotive
dissonance
b. How to help clients identify their own reasons for resistance
c. How to engage poorly motivated clients with excellent Rational Living
Therapy goal producing strategies
12:30 pm - 12:45 pm Break
12:45 pm - 2:00 pm
14. Persuasive Techniques
a. How to help clients to at least consider new thoughts utilizing
various persuasive techniques, including:
Creating a mind-set, changing physiology, providing a two-sided argument, changing parameters of behavior
2:00 pm - 3:00 pm Break
3:00 pm - 4:30 pm
15. Application of Rational Living Therapy
a. Attendees will develop an introductory understanding of the mental
mistakes associated with various disorders / problems, and how
to overcome those mental mistakes.
b. Disorders covered include:
Depression, anxiety, anger, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, guilt, low self-esteem, compulsive behavior, drug / alcohol abuse.
4:30 pm - 4:45 pm Break
4:45 pm - 6:00 pm
16. Advanced Rational Living Therapy Techniques
a. Attendees will learn advanced behavioral techniques utilized in RLT,
including:
Contingent reinforcement, reinforcement of incompatible behavior, classical conditioning, rational reminders, positive /negative imagery, tour-through-the-future technique