Why You’ll Love Supervision Outside Your Workplace
I work with people both 1:1 and in group supervision, and regularly supervisee’s tell me that it feels different having supervision that’s external to their workplace.
That they didnt expect it, that it was more useful and even more freeing than they thought it would be.
You can just say things how they are
“I can just say things as they are” is exactly what someone said recently and it stuck with me, and we had a laugh as we launched into a discussion and she reflected on the systemic issues at play in her workplace. There is no filter needed in external supervision.
You can use the space to organise your thoughts, talk things through as they actually are, and even test out ideas, concepts and approaches before trying them in practice.
You just need a different perspective (and maybe not always the one you want to hear!)
Seeing a supervisor external from your organisation and in group supervision having exposure to other practitioners, gives you different perspectives. And yes, sometimes they are not the one you were hoping for.
In workplaces, we can fall into group think. Our thinking can be shaped by the system we’re in, the culture, or the way things have always been done.
External supervision helps you step outside of that.
You get new ideas, different ways of seeing things, and opportunities to put theory into practice in a more intentional way. My supervisee’s know I love a good model or theory to reflect on and organise our thinking.
A place to untangle your thoughts
A lot of people come into supervision with A LOT going on in thier heads- different clients, workplace dynamics, ethical questions, managing team dynamics to name a few. External supervision gives you the space to slow down and actually untangle that.
We don’t rush to solutions, but to really slow our thinking.
You realise it’s not just you
One of my supervisee’s was recently discussing feeling alone in the work and questioning whether they were cut out for the work. You know what I said to them, you are not alone in thinking this. It is a common feeling in our work and I have felt it too. Cue tears because the weight of feeling alone and questioning your work feels horrible and while we didn’t ‘fix’ anything in the session, sometimes realising that it is not just you is freeing.
Talk to someone who dedicates A LOT of time to supervision and is passionate about it
When you’re in external supervision, you’re talking to someone who dedicates a lot of time to supervision and is genuinely interested in it. In reality I live and breath supervision and I blimin love it and believe in it.
I think for a lot of people external supervision becomes the place where they can actually think.
Where they can do the untangling of all of their thoughts and really slow their thinking.
Once you’ve experienced it, it’s hard to go without.
If you are seeing 1:1 supervision you can book directly here here
or check out group supervision options here.