Being A Catalyst For Change On Your Client's Health Journey

The more we learn about what is preventing someone from changing, the easier it is to help.

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For many people trying a complementary healthcare treatment is something new. And like it or not, us humans don’t usually like newness or change. But in healthcare it’s a bit different of course as there can be negative effects to not changing. While people (myself included) walk around with health symptoms that keep getting worse and worse without stopping to listen to their bodies and doing something, at some point they will be stopped in their tracks to take action and find support to heal. I’m sure you know from experience already that if we try helping people when they don’t want help, it’s a waste of energy as the pushback will only be bigger. With this approach, the distance between a current state of dis-ease and taking action to get to better health will grow. And we’ll have to accept that everyone is where they are on their own journey. But what if there are catalysts for change that can nudge people on their health journey? And what if these catalysts can be actioned by you to support people in making healthy changes and take action in getting supportive care?

So today we take a look at the motivations, psychology and behavioural science behind your clients’ actions, or rather their inaction, and this article also ensures you that you’re not alone in experiencing these roadblocks with clients, as this is a challenge all practitioners (or actually, all humans) face. The more we learn about what is preventing someone from changing, the easier it is to help.

I did a deep dive into the topic of being a catalyst for change from Circe’s perspective, as we’re building a platform that takes people on a journey of discovery into the richness of complementary healthcare that’s available to them but which might be new, and to foster a new culture of health too - one where we’re open to new approaches, focus on empowerment of each person in their health journey, and foster connections. I strongly believe we’re in the early days of a seismic shift in healthcare to more nature-based therapies, complementary treatments and integrative models. And in this movement I like to emphasise that it’s about health in community, not health that’s being sold to consumers as an external product.

So, my research included reading the brilliant book Catalyst by Jonah Berger in which he shares that ‘reactance, endowment, distance, uncertainty and corroborating evidence can be called the five horsemen of inertia. Five key roadblocks that hinder or inhibit change.’ Berger uses a whole array of examples to translate his research findings into real-life case studies, and it’s absolutely worth implementing his insights to your situation as a complementary healthcare practitioner too. Berger’s insights are relevant when considering the underlining motivations, or lack thereof, for your clients to make dietary, lifestyle or other wellbeing changes that actually help them get to better health, as well as when it comes to taking the step to come and see you for treatments (and continue treatment).

You can repeat the same message over, and over, and over again in conversation, your newsletters, on social media or your website - but if the obstacle remains there for clients they’ll never take the leap of faith and give it a go. As Berger says, great negotiators don’t push harder ‘instead, they identify what’s preventing change from happening and remove that barrier. Allowing change to happen with less energy, not more’. Which reminds me of the Daoist concept of Wu Wei - effortless action, not pushing for change or to influence others. So to put this in practice, rather than asking what might convince someone to change, you can start with a more basic question: why hasn’t that person changed already? What is blocking them?

So to cover a few highlights from the book, the first point of reactance alludes to what happens when we tell teens to stop smoking; they’ll do more of it as a rebellious act. Berger points out here that ‘restriction generates a psychological phenomenon called reactance. An unpleasant state that occurs when people feel their freedom is lost or threatened.’ Giving clients agency over their actions is very important here. For example, asking someone to formulate their reason to get healthier, feel stronger and be more energised can be a very powerful motivation to stick to new habits.

Endowment refers to the fact that people are wedded to what they’re already doing. Berger brings up this example that will resonates will all of us: ‘[…] when a severe injury occurs, people take active steps to speed recovery. They consult physicians, undergo surgeries, and take medicines. They talk to physical therapists, devise treatments, and sketch out rehabilitation plans. All in an effort to get better fast. But lesser injuries tend not to marshal the same resources. […] Serious injuries surpass a critical threshold, triggering major steps to resolve them. But things that aren’t painful enough don’t generate such significant responses, which means they never end up getting addressed. […] when things aren’t terrible, or are just okay but not great, it’s harder to get people to budge.’ This is the case for many symptoms, where the impetus to change is not big enough. And to ease endowment, Berger argues that we need to surface the costs of inaction. In the health context, you could be highlighting what might happen if lifestyle changes aren’t made and as a result someone’s health might deteriorate, or their ill health remains.

In some cases cost is a barrier to access care on a regular basis, or people need corroborating evidence from different sources to convince them to change their habits. This is where Berger highlights uncertainty as a block. And when it comes to complementary healthcare many people will feel uncertain about what a treatment will be like or if the outcomes will bring them meaningful results, if they haven’t tried them before. Rather than waiting for people to come to you, can you drive discovery in these cases? A few suggestions are to offer free consultations to drive discovery, share a free article or other resource to give people a low-cost entry point to your offering, and highlighting testimonials from other clients as proof. It’s also worth including information on your website about the benefits of your treatments and any relevant lifestyle changes, while including research references as corroborating evidence.

So to finish let me give you this thought exercise: How can you lower the barriers to entry for your prospect clients to seek continued treatment with you. And how can you remove the blocks preventing your clients to follow your lifestyle or diet recommendations?

I’d be great to hear about any catalysts you’ve found to support people in making changes that promote health and wellbeing. Let me know in the comments below, or reply to this email - I love hearing your stories!