Many years ago now, the Guardian ran a brilliant advert depicting an angry looking skinhead running toward a well-dressed be-hatted business man, as if he were about to attack him. As the camera takes another view we see the anger is actually distress as the ‘mugger’ sees what we didn’t see, and the man didn’t see: a huge pile of bricks about to cascade on top of him. The skinhead throws himself on the man, saving him and risking his own life in the act. He moves from mugger to hero in seconds.
Therapy isn’t about moving muggers to heros, but some of it is about exploring these different points of view. Being able to move from our own view to that of others (or indeed other parts of ourselves) can often be helpful, as it can create some new ways of thinking that can get us un-stuck….To see it again, click here.