Reply To: Positive Stories

[David N Jones]

Sorry that there have not been more responses to this invitation. As Sarah suggests, perhaps there is more debate around the formal presentations. I think that there is something in the culture of social work which pulls us away from telling positive stories – because we know these are not OUR stories to tell. when things go well, it is because people have seized their own destiny – whatever the challenges they face – and find personal resources to transform their futures. Social workers facilitate and enable but don’t CREATE the change. In a way that is different from many other professions and skills where there is a specific thing which can be identified as the contribution of the ‘professional’ or ‘practitioner’. But facilitating and enabling are such needed and positive qualities and skills that somehow we should find ways to describe them and feel proud when we can demonstrate them in our practice. I have shared around this observation around the world in many places and it seems to resonate with social workers. I would be interested in reflections of others on these ideas.

In essence, social workers cannot expect to be valued and supported if we do not find a language to describe the importance of what we do!