How to

MOTIVATIONAL INTERVIEW
TO CREATE DEEP CONNECTION
+
INSPIRE PROGRESS

NSTITUTE
OACHING I
ITIONAL C
NUTR
 5
Key Principals of

Motivational

Interviewing
Listen reflectlively
Listen to listen, not to respond. Listening this way

allows you to be empathetic.

Develop Connections
Develop a connection between client goals and

current actions, habits, and behaviors.

Allow Clients to Make Decisions

Allow the client to decide if, when, and how to

change and what is realistic for them on all of these

fronts.

Embrace Resistance
Roll with resistance, rather than confronting or

opposing it.

Support Your Client's Optimism

Support your client’s optimism to change and self-

efficacy (the perception that they are able to

change), and talk through pessimism.

 Understanding OARS Technique

for Motivational Interviewing

Description Purpose

O
Ask open-ended questions Establish a safe environment
Allow the client to reflect and
Build a trusting and respectful

elaborate in response to
relationship
questions Learn about the client's past

Let the client do most of the

experiences, feelings, thoughts,

talking beliefs, and behaviors

Gather information
Open Questions

A
Celebrate wins Build rapport
Express a positive statement
Explore the client's word
about what the patient has
Affirm the client's past

already done or a personal

decisions, abilities, and healthy

strength or ability behaviors

Show empathy for their
Build the client's confidence
situations
Affirmations

R
Reflect the client's thoughts,

Mirror what the client is saying feelings, and behaviors

Rephrase what the client says
Demonstrate that you're

in your own word ("So, what I

listening and trying to

heard was..." understand the situation

Offer them the opportunity to

hear their own words and

behaviors reflected back at

Reflective Listening them

S
Make sure you're ending the

Apply reflective listening when

call "on the same page"
closing the conversation or
Close the conversation with a

transitioning plan of action

Paraphrase or pull out key
Help them see the bigger

points from the conversation picture

Highlight the most important

Summarizing elements to the conversation

 Example Questions + Statement

In Motivational Interviewing
Examples

O
Share with me some of your successes this week. What were

some of your wins — no matter big or small?

Where do you need more support?
What else would you like to discuss?
How would you like things to be different?
How have your stress levels changed since we last talked?
What have I asked you to do that you're finding really difficult to

follow through with? Why?

Open Questions What would it take to increase your commitment to X thing?
I noticed you prefer to downplay your successes. How does it feel

when we celebrate them instead?

I'm interested to hear the answer you gravitate towards...what

feels right to you?

A
I appreciate your efforts despite the discomfort you're in.
Despite your difficulties, you're still willing to try.
You're clearly a very resourceful person.
I can see how bad you want to accomplish this goal.
You handled yourself really well in that situation.
I appreciate your openness and honesty today.
That's a good suggestion.
That was a lot of work.
Affirmations You pulled it off.

R
So you feel....
It sounds like you....
You're wondering if...
For you, it's like...
From your point of view...
You believe...
You figure...
In your experience...
Reflective Listening You think...

S
Let me see if I understand so far…
Here is what I’ve heard. Tell me if I’ve missed anything.
Okay, so you struggled with X and X last week, so the focus this

week is doing Y so that those things become a little easier to

accomplish. Does that work?

Is there anything you want to add or correct?
Let me stop and summarize what we just talked about.
I want to make sure I'm understanding exactly what you're telling

Summarizing me.
 Sample Script
COACH: Hey Ms. Jones, thank you so much for submitting everything we need

for your check-in and making the time to have this call with me. How are you

feeling about your progress this week? [open-ended question]

CLIENT: I did everything right this week and the scale didn't move.

COACH: I hear that you're not happy with the fact that you didn't see the scale

go down this week. What frustrates you most about that? [reflective listening +

exploring]

CLIENT: I just feel like I did everything right and It's getting me nowhere. I'm

worried this program just won't work for me.

COACH: I can understand that concern given your experience so far. Is it okay if I

go over my analysis of your food logs and the biofeedback you reported in your

check-in this week? [affirmation + offering information with permission]

CLIENT: Yeah.

COACH: Thank you for letting me share. From what I'm seeing in your food logs,

your food quality was great and you hit the calorie goal we set for you. That was

a lot of work given how busy your kid's schedules have been this week. What I

also noticed is that you really picked up your workouts, committed to drinking

more water, and are feeling pretty sore. That soreness you're feeling from your

workouts is Inflammation as your body works to repair and grow the muscles

that you broke down In your workouts. That, along with the fact that you've

been drinking more water and are naturally carrying some extra water weight,

could very well be the reason that you didn't see a change in the scale this week

despite all your amazing efforts. [affirmation + information with permission]

CLIENT: Oh, I didn't realize that. That's interesting.

COACH: The way the body works is truly amazing. What would it take to stop

you from dictating your progress solely on scale weight? [open ended question

to explore].

CLIENT: I'd be open to; I just don't know how else to.

COACH: I understand that. We've been so conditioned as a culture to be hyper-

focused on the scale. But how amazing would it be if we considered using

measurements or progress photos, or even your favorite pair of pants to assess

the changes happening week to week? [empathy, summarizing the

conversation, keeping the door open for further conversation]

CLIENT: I'd like to give that a try. Thank you.