The Australia Counselling Podcast

For the 100th and final episode The Australia Counselling Podcast, we invited psychotherapist Bill O'Hanlon back, who had one of the most downloaded episodes of all 100 episodes. Bill's solution-oriented approach is a powerful approach to working with clients that can help discover their own abilities and dissolve their resistance to change. In this interview Bill discusses: how he came to create the Solution-Oriented Approach.  the basic premises of the Solution-Oriented Approach some of the methods used in the Solution-Oriented Approach the difference between Solution-Focused Therapy or Solution-Focused Brief Therapy and the Solution-Oriented Approach how this approach combines with hypnosis. The premises of his solution-oriented approach are: people have resources, strengths, abilities and solutions they may not be aware of what you focus on tends to expand people are more than their diagnosis focus on the present towards the future Get the show notes with all the links and resources mentioned in this episode at http://australiacounselling.com.au/100

The Australia Counselling Podcast has come a long way since I published the first podcast on September 8, 2013. In just over 2 years the podcast has been downloaded over 63,000 times and listened to in 98 countries across the world. So for episode 99 I decided to go back through the archives and check out which of our podcasts were the most downloaded episodes of all time. In this compilation podcast, you can hear highlights from our most popular episodes of all time. The top 10 Australia Counselling Podcasts of all time (based on downloads) are: #10 077: Coming Out: What Therapists Need to Know When Working with LGBTI Clients - an interview with Matt Glover #9 063: What is Narcissism and Why is it Becoming an Epidemic? - an interview with Dr Jean Twenge #8 020: Positive Psychology: Powerful Interventions for Helping Clients Change - an interview with Dr Kate Lemerle #7 004: Gestalt Therapy: A Relational (Re)turn - an interview with Dr Michael Reed #6 080: The Neuroscience of Resilience - an interview with Linda Graham, MFT #5 073: Overcoming Shock: Healing the Traumatised Mind and Heart - an interview with Diane Zimberoff and David Hartman #4 078: The Challenges of Working with High-Conflict Couples - an interview with Jacqueline McDiarmid #3 064: The Lived Experience of Borderline Personality - an interview with Sonia Neale #2 075: The Yalom Interview: Creatures of a Day and Other Tales of Psychotherapy - an interview with Irvin D. Yalom #1 072: Out of the Blue: Six Non-Medication Ways to Relieve Depression - an interview with Bill O'Hanlon Get the show notes with all the links and resources mentioned in this episode at http://australiacounselling.com.au/99

The end of the year and the start of the New Year is the perfect time to reflect on the wins and challenges from the year just passed, as well as your goals for the coming year. As a therapist, one of your goals for the coming year will likely be to earn more income. There are a number of ways you can use your skills and knowledge as a therapist to generate more income. In this episode of the Australia Counselling Podcast I share 5 strategies that will help you make more income from your therapy practice in 2016. The 5 strategies I discuss are: Raise your fees the New Year (or start of your new financial year) is a good time to raise fees raise fees for all clients from January 1 separate out the GST (or your tax) from your main fee in case GST goes up Clients excpect that fees will raise over time - you are a business and you have rising costs, so operate like a business Add new services can you add coaching as a service? eg coaching for singles can you start a therapy group? - funnel existing/ending clients into your therapy group think outside the box and get creative with new services - e.g. offer phone support packages so clients can pre-pay for phone support and use as needed have you learned a new skill/technique such as EFT, hypnosis or EMDR and are you marketing? Don't forget to do marketing of any new techniques and skills Create joint ventures can you form a partnership with someone you know or would like to work with? put together a group/workshop/PD event share the load of the marketing and administration work joint ventures can be fun, reduce the isolation of working in private practice and help you earn more income Get more clients (is your marketing up to scratch) getting more clients is always the quickest way to increase your income is your marketing following best practices? is your website professional with compelling copy on your that speaks to the core issues of your clients? are you following best practices on social media? are you collecting email addresses through your website and sending an email newsletter? are you doing community marketing and networking on a regular basis with other professionals in your local area? Create a product  it’s never been easier to create a product and start to earn a passive income can you sell a meditation series? -  record meditations and guided relaxations and sell them online can you put your intellectual property into an ebook and sell it through your website or the Amazon marketplace? do you want to create a membership site or an online community where you provide ongoing support and content? Get the show notes with all the links and resources mentioned in this episode at http://australiacounselling.com.au

Have you ever considered starting a podcast? If you want to start a podcast, now may be the perfect time to catch the wave of the podcast revolution taking the world by storm. Never before in our history has it been so easy to reach a worldwide audience via podcasting. This is the perfect vehicle to get your message out to new people and raise awareness of you, your ideas, your services and products. Podcast growth has been enormous over the last few years. The Pew Research Centre has found that: podcast listenership has more than doubled since 2008 awareness of podcasts has more than doubled since 2006 podcast creation is rising with more than 22,000 podcasts hosted on Libsyn, one of the most popular hosting companies for podcasters in 2014 over 2.5 billion requests for podcast downloads were processed In this episode of The Australia Counselling Podcast I talk you through how to start your own podcast from scratch. After producing almost 100 episodes with 61,000 downloads to date, I've got some idea of what's involved and some great tips for you as well. Here's what I cover in this episode: Why start a podcast? you can expand your reach of people and expose your ideas and your business to countless people across the world The Australia Counselling Podcast has to date 96 episodes, 61,000 episodes and has been listened to in 98 countries 50% of our listeners are from Australia, 25% from the USA, 10% from the UK and the remaining from other countries podcasting is great for networking and building relationships with other therapists - on this podcast I’ve interviewed world-renowned therapists Michael Yapko, Sue Johnson, Harville Hendrix, Bill O’Hanlon, Rick Hanson and Irvin Yalom, just to name a few You get more attention from the media - I’ve been interviewed for numerous media outlets, magazines and radio stations - plus I’ve secured media interviews for Australia Counselling members you can improve your confidence as a speaker you can build the know, like and trust factor with your listeners it can assist if you want to create products for sales or promote your services to a wider audience What’s involved in podcasting? the most import thing is the commitment - be aware it’s a huge commitment of time and resources if you’re not willing to commit to podcasting on a regular basis, don’t start! securing interviews can be time consuming and challenging with negotiating time zones recording of episodes need to be either batched or done in advance editing episodes takes time, especially if your guest is not a confident speaker you may need to create blog posts for the show notes of each episode after editing you need to upload the audio to your audio hosting once your episode is published it's important to do marketing so new audiences can listen to your episodes this is a slow marketing strategy - results take time How podcasting works every episode is an mp3 audio file you need to tag the file with 'meta data' before uploading to your hosting you need a server to host your audio you need to create a feed - I use Libsyn - which is the gold standard in the industry (I pay USD $20 a month) the feed is what goes into iTunes and every time you upload a new audio, iTunes gets the audio on the feed Questions to ask before you start a podcast what are you going to podcast about? are you going to do interview style or just you speaking? what is the purpose or end goal of your podcast? what is your podcast title? what is your podcast subtitle? what is your podcast description? (this goes in iTunes) what will be on your artwork? - look at other top podcasts in iTunes and what graphics they have (I recommend 99designs for getting your iTunes artwork) do you want a professional intro and outro (try fiverr.com for voice-over artists) is your music royalty free? Podcasting equipment and software needed to start a podcast sound quality is the most important part of recording - invest in a great microphone cost effective solution: Audiotechnica ATR 2100 USB microphone about $60 pop filter and a stand and shock mount my own high end podcasting microphone: Rode podcasting microphone with studio boom and shock mount about $400 Call recorder for Mac (Skype plugin) - for interviews Pamela Call Recorder for Skype (PC) Hindenburg Journalist - for audio editing (about $100) alternatives: Garage Band (Mac), Audacity freeconferencecall.com for free recording on the phone post-production - auphonic.com to even out the sound levels How to record a podcast episode for interviews I use Call Recorder if I'm doing an interview, I record directly into Hindenburg Journalist I drag audios into Hindenburg - then edit then export the file from Hindenburg as a wav file add tags in auphonic upload to auphonic to even out sound levels if not using auphonic, add tags using ID3 editor software upload into Libsyn and add description and schedule or publish immediately once your feed is ready in Libsyn, then create your show in iTunes upload your artwork to iTunes for the first time and add a description once you’re up and running, submit your podcast to free podcast directories Tips for recording a podcast get ahead in your recordings so you're not scrambling to record your episode each week create a system around requesting interviews to save time don’t get obsessive about editing - you don't need to remove every "um" and "ah" work out the structure of your episodes so you can rinse and repeat prepare your interviewees - create an information document to give them before often interviewees are nervous so let them know it’s okay if they make a mistake and you can edit out mistakes listen to the most popular podcasts in iTunes for format/structure and interview style have a call to action in each episode - what do you want your listener to do?    

Have you ever considered starting a podcast? If you want to start a podcast, now may be the perfect time to catch the wave of the podcast revolution taking the world by storm. Never before in our history has it been so easy to reach a worldwide audience via podcasting. This is the perfect vehicle to get your message out to new people and raise awareness of you, your ideas, your services and products. Podcast growth has been enormous over the last few years. The Pew Research Centre has found that: podcast listenership has more than doubled since 2008 awareness of podcasts has more than doubled since 2006 podcast creation is rising with more than 22,000 podcasts hosted on Libsyn, one of the most popular hosting companies for podcasters in 2014 over 2.5 billion requests for podcast downloads were processed In this episode of The Australia Counselling Podcast I talk you through how to start your own podcast from scratch. After producing almost 100 episodes with 61,000 downloads to date, I've got some idea of what's involved and some great tips for you as well. Here's what I cover in this episode: Why start a podcast? you can expand your reach of people and expose your ideas and your business to countless people across the world The Australia Counselling Podcast has to date 96 episodes, 61,000 episodes and has been listened to in 98 countries 50% of our listeners are from Australia, 25% from the USA, 10% from the UK and the remaining from other countries podcasting is great for networking and building relationships with other therapists - on this podcast I’ve interviewed world-renowned therapists Michael Yapko, Sue Johnson, Harville Hendrix, Bill O’Hanlon, Rick Hanson and Irvin Yalom, just to name a few You get more attention from the media - I’ve been interviewed for numerous media outlets, magazines and radio stations - plus I’ve secured media interviews for Australia Counselling members you can improve your confidence as a speaker you can build the know, like and trust factor with your listeners it can assist if you want to create products for sales or promote your services to a wider audience What’s involved in podcasting? the most import thing is the commitment - be aware it’s a huge commitment of time and resources if you’re not willing to commit to podcasting on a regular basis, don’t start! securing interviews can be time consuming and challenging with negotiating time zones recording of episodes need to be either batched or done in advance editing episodes takes time, especially if your guest is not a confident speaker you may need to create blog posts for the show notes of each episode after editing you need to upload the audio to your audio hosting once your episode is published it's important to do marketing so new audiences can listen to your episodes this is a slow marketing strategy - results take time How podcasting works every episode is an mp3 audio file you need to tag the file with 'meta data' before uploading to your hosting you need a server to host your audio you need to create a feed - I use Libsyn - which is the gold standard in the industry (I pay USD $20 a month) the feed is what goes into iTunes and every time you upload a new audio, iTunes gets the audio on the feed Questions to ask before you start a podcast what are you going to podcast about? are you going to do interview style or just you speaking? what is the purpose or end goal of your podcast? what is your podcast title? what is your podcast subtitle? what is your podcast description? (this goes in iTunes) what will be on your artwork? - look at other top podcasts in iTunes and what graphics they have (I recommend 99designs for getting your iTunes artwork) do you want a professional intro and outro (try fiverr.com for voice-over artists) is your music royalty free? Podcasting equipment and software needed to start a podcast sound quality is the most important part of recording - invest in a great microphone cost effective solution: Audiotechnica ATR 2100 USB microphone about $60 pop filter and a stand and shock mount my own high end podcasting microphone: Rode podcasting microphone with studio boom and shock mount about $400 Call recorder for Mac (Skype plugin) - for interviews Pamela Call Recorder for Skype (PC) Hindenburg Journalist - for audio editing (about $100) alternatives: Garage Band (Mac), Audacity freeconferencecall.com for free recording on the phone post-production - auphonic.com to even out the sound levels How to record a podcast episode for interviews I use Call Recorder if I'm doing an interview, I record directly into Hindenburg Journalist I drag audios into Hindenburg - then edit then export the file from Hindenburg as a wav file add tags in auphonic upload to auphonic to even out sound levels if not using auphonic, add tags using ID3 editor software upload into Libsyn and add description and schedule or publish immediately once your feed is ready in Libsyn, then create your show in iTunes upload your artwork to iTunes for the first time and add a description once you’re up and running, submit your podcast to free podcast directories Tips for recording a podcast get ahead in your recordings so you're not scrambling to record your episode each week create a system around requesting interviews to save time don’t get obsessive about editing - you don't need to remove every "um" and "ah" work out the structure of your episodes so you can rinse and repeat prepare your interviewees - create an information document to give them before often interviewees are nervous so let them know it’s okay if they make a mistake and you can edit out mistakes listen to the most popular podcasts in iTunes for format/structure and interview style have a call to action in each episode - what do you want your listener to do?    

Constellation work is a powerful way of resolving issues within systems that keep individuals, couples, families and organisations stuck. Constellation work allows people to experience a completely new view of a system so they are aware of the patterns in a system and respond in healthier ways. It’s a powerful way to work in a group setting that involves choosing representatives from the group and setting up the system so it can be understood better. While there is still much we don’t know about constellations because it’s a new field, we do know that they are powerful agents of change that can affect how people can handle their personal and professional lives. In this interview Jan discusses: what is constellation work, how and why it works how constellation work is set up in a group setting what settings can constellation work be used in his work with organisational change the most difficult family dynamics to shift in organisations what is a double bind and why they are so challenging in systems the most powerful impact family/organisational constellations have had on his personal and business life why rituals are important in constellation work case studies of how constellation work has opened up greater possibilities for an organisation Get the show notes at http://australiacounselling.com.au/session96

Have you ever wondered why someone chooses one therapist over another when searching online? Believe it or not, there's a whole psychology behind choosing a therapist online. And when it comes to online counselling directories, visitors often have hundreds of therapists to choose from. So we spoke with Vancouver-based marketing coach and copywriter Juliet Austin about how to create a compelling counselling directory listing that gets you clients. In this interview Juliet shares: What people care about when choosing a therapist online Why it's important to spend some time creating a compelling directory listing What psychological factors influence the decision making process of a website visitor choosing one therapist over another The elements and must-haves of a compelling directory listing The most common mistakes therapists are making on directory listings How to write your copy when you have a limited word count Whether clients care about qualifications, degrees and specialised training Get the show notes at http://australiacounselling.com.au/session95

Have you ever had the experience of doing great work with a client, but then for some reason progress stalls? You've reached a therapeutic impasse and no matter which direction you go, you can't seem to make headway. It's not uncommon for clients to get stuck in therapy, but the key is knowing what to do once the therapy stalls. So I spoke with U.S. therapist Courtney Armstrong who is the author of the book The Therapeutic "Aha!": Strategies for Getting Clients Unstuck. In this interview Courtney discusses: where clients often get stuck in therapy why you need to engage the emotional brain of your clients how you can strengthen the therapeutic alliance when your clients are stuck how to create exciting goals with your clients how to locate the root of emotional conflict her 5-step memory reconsolidation framework to reverse trauma why it's essential to activate experiential change in your clients some of her best tips for helping clients get unstuck   Get the show notes with all the links and resources mentioned in this episode at http://australiacounselling.com.au/session94

In this episode of The Australia Counselling Podcast, listen to founder Clinton Power share his thoughts on why he thinks the Australian psychotherapy industry is in crisis. The seven reasons the Australian psychotherapy industry is in crisis are: Our professional psychotherapy associations have let us down. Psychotherapy training institutions are spreading propaganda about the profession Therapists are not promoting themselves effectively People don’t understand what psychotherapy is  We have taught people to go to a G.P. when they have a mental health issue We have created a culture of quick fixes for mental health issues There is still a lot of stigma for seeking treatment for mental health issues Get the show notes with all the links and resources mentioned in this episode at http://australiacounselling.com.au/session93

Gestalt therapy is an effective and powerful relational therapy that helps clients raise their awareness about how they are in the world so they can self-regulate and move towards health. Gestalt therapy is also synonymous with the 'empty chair' technique made famous by Fritz Perls, the founder of Gestalt therapy. However Gestalt therapy is much more than this technique and has a rich tradition and evolution to become the modern relational psychotherapy it is today. So we spoke with world-renowned Gestalt therapists Drs. Bob and Rita Resnick from Gestalt Therapy Training Associates Los Angeles (GATLA) about what Gestalt therapy is and why it is such an effective therapeutic approach for working with individuals and couples. In this interview Bob and Rita discuss: What Gestalt Therapy is about and how it works Why Gestalt Therapy became synonymous with the empty chair technique What is character and how it is formed How Gestalt Therapy works with interruptions to self-regulation in the present What Gestalt Therapy has that other theories and methodologies lack The relevance of Gestalt Therapy today in a culture of governments and consumers expecting effective outcomes in limited sessions The biggest mistakes people, including therapists, make about understanding Gestalt Therapy Get the show notes at http://australiacounselling.com.au/session92

As a therapist in private practice, you're probably not excited when it comes time to do your bookkeeping and accounting. You came into this field because you love working with clients and changing people's lives and likely don't have a background in finance or economics. However, if you don't stay on top of your numbers, your therapy business is flying blind without clear goals and strategy for increasing your income over time. So we spoke with accountant and financial expert Amanda Fisher, who has recently published a book called Unscramble Your Numbers: Unlock the Secrets to Your Business Cashflow about how therapists can start to manage their finances better and get their business on track for financial success. In this interview Amanda discusses: why the numbers get scrambled for so many therapists what numbers should we be looking at in our business what are the biggest mistakes she see therapists make around their numbers what can happen in business when we are not on top of our numbers why you need to use cloud accounting like Xero.com to streamline your business whether writing down our financial goals really makes a difference what business metrics we should look at on a regular basis whether therapists really need a budget and cashflow forecast the key numbers and reports therapists should be looking at and when the benefits of investing most your profits back into a business that is trying to grow how to interpret the numbers and indicators your business is in trouble Get the show notes at http://australiacounselling.com.au/91

Website design is one of those fields that is in constant flux. What was cool and cutting edge two years ago is now obsolete and out of fashion.   And when it comes to websites for therapists, it's critical your website reflects current trends so your professional face to the world looks up-to-date and attracts your ideal clients.   So we spoke with accomplished website designer Kat Love, who specialises in creating website for psychotherapists. We asked her about the current trends you need to know and some of the biggest mistakes she sees therapists make in their websites.   In this interview Kat discusses:   changes in website design over the last few years why she only recommends WordPress self-hosted as a website platform some of the biggest mistakes therapists make on their websites the top website trends we should all know about why mobile responsive is no longer an option - it's essential what is website conversion and why you want to build a website that converts some simple tips you can do today to improve your website conversions where she sees the future of website design Links and resources mentioned in this episode   Get the show notes at http://australiacounselling.com.au/session90

Psychotherapy and counselling in the United States is vastly different from Australia in terms of the culture and the development of the industry as a whole. Yet there are many valuable lessons Australian therapists can take from U.S. therapists in how to build a successful private practice. So we spoke to an Australian therapist Roby Abeles who has lived and worked extensively in the U.S. and Australia to find out more and get tips for building a successful private practice. In this interview Roby shares: the fundamental differences in how U.S. therapists approach marketing a private practice how the mindset of U.S. therapists differs from Australian therapists the unique challenges facing Australian therapists today lessons we can apply from U.S. customer service to therapy clients in Australia the benefits of taking a collaborative approach to working with peers the truth about what it really takes to go into full-time private practice in Australia the importance of education, supervision and clinical hours before opening a private practice why you need social and clinical support from your psychotherapy peers   Get the show notes with all the links and resources mentioned in this episode at http://australiacounselling.com.au/session89

Most psychotherapists today will agree it’s essential to include the client’s body in the therapeutic process for therapy to be effective. The mind-body connection has been reinforced by emerging research over the last decade, which shows the mind and body are inseparable when it comes to how we operate as human beings. Hakomi therapy, which is a form of mindfulness-centred somatic (mind-body) psychotherapy emerged in the 1970’s from founder Ron Kurtz. Hakomi means “how do I stand in relation to all things?” and is a good description of how Hakomi works. So we spoke with Australian Certified Hakomi practitioner Carol Perry about what Hakomi is and why this mind-body therapy approach is so powerful. In this podcast Carol discusses: •what is Hakomi therapy and where it came from •an outline of the Hakomi approach •how to track your clients non-verbal behaviour and use therapeutically •when using Hakomi might be contraindicated •why is it important to include the body in psychotherapy •the place for disclosure in Hakomi therapy •how her mindfulness and meditation practice has influenced her work •a successful case study demonstrating the use of Hakomi therapy Get the show notes with all the links and resources mentioned in this episode at http://australiacounselling.com.au/88

Online therapy refers to a wide range of therapy services that are provided by therapists to clients that are sometimes thousands of kilometers apart, thanks to the power of the Internet. But online therapy is a potential minefield with lots of ethical issues that can arise with practitioners that are providing online therapy without specific training or knowledge of this field. So we spoke to Dr Kate Anthony, co-founder of the Online Therapy Institute about the promises and pitfalls of online therapy. In this interview Kate shares: •what is considered online therapy today •how far has online therapy come in the last 5 years? •some of the most common approaches to online therapy •what is Omnichannelled Therapy and why it's good for clients •her thoughts on how secure Skype is as an online therapy delivery platform •which platform she now recommends therapists use when delivering online therapy •the importance of clear therapist boundaries in online therapy •what is the 'online disinhibition effect' •what should therapists do when things go wrong with online therapy •training she recommends for mental health practitioners wanting to become provide online therapy   Get the show notes with all the links and resources mentioned in this episode at http://australiacounselling.com.au/session87

Clinical hypnosis is an effective technique for helping your clients manage pain, stress, phobias as well as a broad range of other issues our clients present to us.   Clinical hypnosis can be easily integrated with Gestalt therapy, NLP, Person-Centred Therapy, Solution Focused Therapy and many other therapy approaches. So it's a wonderful technique to add to your clinical skills to help your clients who present with many different issues.   The mechanisms of suggestion are powerful in calling upon the subconscious mind to assist our clients in the process of change and positive therapeutic outcomes.   So we spoke with Leon Cowen who is a clinical hypnotherapist and clinical hypnotherapy educator, with over 40 years as a therapist.   In this episode Leon discusses:   The difference between clinical hypnosis and clinical hypnotherapy What clinical hypnotherapy and psychotherapy have in common Some of the most common myths about hypnosis Why our clients are often in a hypnotic state when they first contact us on the phone Issues clinical hypnosis can effectively treat Issues where hypnosis is contraindicated How clinical hypnosis and psychotherapy techniques are similar What are induction techniques, susceptibility techniques and deepening techniques Successful case studies where clinical hypnosis was used   Get the show notes with all the links and resources mentioned in this episode at http://australiacounselling.com.au/session86

When it comes to navigating ethical issues as a therapist, most of us like to think we have a pretty good handle on what's good ethical practice.   But the data says otherwise.   We have all heard of stories of colleagues who have breached ethical guidelines, or have had complaints made against them. And still our professional associations regularly receive complaints relating to a breach of ethics or worse, sexual transgressions between client and therapist.   On top of that, it appears our professional associations in Australia aren’t keeping up with the development of technology and social media. So Australian therapists are left to make their own guidelines when it comes to interacting with clients online and on social media.   So we spoke to ethics expert Dr Elizabeth Riley, who is the Ethics Chair of the Psychotherapy and Counselling Federation of Australia (PACFA) about some of the most common ethical dilemmas that therapists face today.   In this interview, Dr Elizabeth Riley discusses:   the most common ethical issues she sees in new therapists the most common ethical issues she sees in experienced therapists why we still have cases of therapists involved in sexual transgressions with clients what are the signs that a therapist may be grappling with an ethical issue? what she recommends be the first step for a therapist experiencing an ethical dilemma what an Australian therapist should do if they have a complaint made against them how can a therapist decide what is ethical behaviour online if the professional associations haven’t created a code of ethics in this area the ethical issues related to the delivery of online counselling and therapy her thoughts on the state Australian ethics and where we will go in the future Get the show notes at http://australiacounselling.com.au/session85

Have you ever had the experience of trying to remember all the things you need to do in your life and therapy practice, but you struggle to keep on top of your paperwork, tasks and To Dos? Well the hugely popular app Evernote is an incredible tool that can become your 'digital brain' where you will never have to search for an email or lost paperwork again. In this interview, technology coach Helen Crozier from Keyboard Karma returns again to the Australia Counselling Podcast to share how you can use this powerful tool to improve your productivity. In this interview she discusses: The new tiered subscriptions: Free, Plus, Premium and Business Workchat: How to use this powerful collaboration and sharing tool and how it works Presentation Mode: Why you can now do away with Powerpoint/Keynote Scannable App: How this app links to Evernote for quick, accurate scanning Business Card Scanning: (premium feature): How it connects directly to Linkedin and populates profile pic, url and job title/description, requests to connect and send contact details Evernote Clipper Update: How to start clipping text and images from the Internet and upload to Evernote Helen’s Top Five Tips for using Evernote are: Don’t go overboard with creating lots of notebooks - it's preferable to use tags wherever possible. Having lots of notebooks is the same as having too many email or file folders. After a while you don’t have the energy to file things into the right place and it all becomes a bit of a mess. Essentially notebooks are great if you want to share just some of your notes and collaborate with someone. I advise clients to start using evernote first - then decide on the structure if they are unsure how to start. It’s very easy to change at any time so just dive in Use the shortcut bar to store notebooks, notes or even saved searches. The shortcut bar speeds up finding critical information. Shortcuts will synchronise over all devices which is a bonus. Try using audio. If you have your phone turned off all day you can create a note called voicemail with today’s date. Then record your messages into that note and type in any action reminders to go back to later. That way you can delete the voicemail knowing the message is safe to listen to later. Use your email address to subscribe to newsletters. This is great for cutting down on emails by using your Evernote email address to subscribe to newsletters. They never come to your inbox and are all stored in Evernote. Learn how to forward emails into Evernote. If you add an @ sign followed by the notebook in the subject of the email Evernote will automatically file the email into the correct place. You can even add # hashtags and reminders.   BONUS TIP! This is a tip for Kindle users who read lots of books and make use of highlights and notes. In the past it was not possible to get those precious highlights, notes and comments off the Kindle very easily but I’m pleased to say that now we have the tool for that. It’s called Clippings and is incredibly useful for those researching their field.   Get the show notes with all the links and resources mentioned in this episode at http://australiacounselling.com.au/session84

It seems that affairs and infidelity are on the rise, particularly with the rise of websites like Ashley Madison, which has the tagline "Life is Short. Have an Affair." And the recent hacking of Ashley Madison has  brought the topic of affairs and infidelity back into the spotlight. So we spoke to Dr. Tammy Nelson, who is a sex and relationship expert, an international speaker, an author and a licensed psychotherapist who has written extensively about infidelity and what she calls the "continuum of monogamy." In this episode Tammy discusses: Her thoughts on why affairs and infidelity are on the rise Whether couples can recover from an affair What is "the new monogamy" and how it can apply to any couple What is “erotic recovery” and why it's essential for couples who want to recover from infidelity Questions to ask partners to help them understand the affair and start to heal How to help partners look at their monogamy and redefine their monogamy One thing couples can do today to prevent an affair or change their sex life Open marriages: can they really work? Or is an open marriage a recipe for disaster? What heterosexual couples learn from gay couples when it comes to open relationships Get the show notes with all the links and resources mentioned in this episode at http://australiacounselling.com.au/session83

Have you ever considered going on a silent retreat? Perhaps you're terrified at the idea of not speaking and disconnecting from technology for a week. Or maybe you can't comprehend what would be the purpose of meditating for day after day. Or perhaps you already have a meditation practice, but think you're not ready for a week of mindfulness and meditation. However, a silent retreat can be deeply rejuvenating and is a deep form of self-care. And as therapists, it's essential we take care of ourselves so we can be in the best state to provide care and attention for our clients. I recently went on a silent retreat and reflected on the numerous personal and clinical benefits. In this episode I share 5 compelling reasons why every therapist needs to experience a silent retreat. The 5 reasons are: A silent retreat helps you learn to tolerate difficult sensations and feelings A silent retreat helps you grows your capacity for holding others A silent retreat helps you improves your personal resilience A silent retreat helps you feel part of the human race A silent retreat gives you a deep sense of self-care, recovery and rejuvenation. I also interview three Australia Counselling members who have been on silent retreat with me to ask them about their experiences. Get the show notes at http://australiacounselling.com.au/session82