General ingredients

Respectfully copied from the SFBT treatment handbook:

General Ingredients of Solution Focused Brief Therapy

Most psychotherapy, SFBT included, consists of conversations. In SFBT there are three main general ingredients to these conversations..

First, there are the overall topics. SFBT conversations are centered on client concerns; who and what are important to the clients; a vision of a preferred future; clients’ exceptions, strengths, and resources related to that vision; scaling of clients’ motivational level and confidence in finding solutions; and ongoing scaling of clients’ progress toward reaching the preferred future.

Second, as indicated in the previous section, SF conversations involve a therapeutic process of co-constructing altered or new meanings in clients. This process is set in motion largely by therapists asking SF questions about the topics of conversation identified in the previous paragraph and connecting to and building from the resulting meanings expressed by clients.

Third, therapists use a number of specific responding and questioning techniques. that invite clients to co-construct a vision of a preferred future and draw on their past successes, strengths, and resources to make that vision a reality.