As a social worker you have to be able to demonstrate a variety of traits and skills. These include; courage, empathy, flexibility, openness, confidence, critical thinking, professional purpose and many more. I do believe I not only demonstrate many of these characteristics, but I bring many other valuable attributes as a learning social worker.
As a social worker, being empathetic, courageous, and sympathetic are all necessary traits. According to Karen Healy (2012), “Empathy refers to a willingness to imagine, and in that imagining, experience some of the pain or difficulty of the service user” (Healy, 2012: 41). This allows the social worker to identify and understand what their service user is going through. When I worked for Peterborough
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Being open and communicative shows a trustworthy, safe zone for service users. According to Healy (2012), to communicate and be comfortable being open, one should use S.O.L.E.R (Sitting squarely, Open body posture, Leaning towards the other, Eye contact, and Relaxed) (Healy, 2012: 27-28). This allows the service user to feel that the worker is there and ready to communicate, listen and be non-judgmental. At CCRC, when talking to the children I always made sure that I was attentive, eye contact was made, and that the children felt they were being heard and understood. I used key indicators to let them know I was listening, this way they were comfortable talking to me and opening up. The children seen me as approachable which allowed them to be open with me, and feel safe in what they said. One little girl confided in me on a daily basis. She told me a personal stories involving herself and the shelters she lived in at times, it was from those moments on I knew I was meant to be a social worker. I knew then I wanted to help better the lives of people. For me being a social worker is not about changing the world, but about changing the lives of the people I touch in a positive …show more content…
When in a social work profession, a social worker must use their own experiences, social location, and many other factors to relate with and assist service users. This allows for the social worker to place their self into their service users’ situation. All of my past, current and future life experiences; employment (Symposium Café – server, CCRC – youth social worker), volunteering (BBBS), education (Trent University) and social location (middle class, white, adolescent, female), and everything else to come, will be put towards building my professional purpose. This will allow me to provide my service users with the necessary assistance and compassion they
Social workers address people’s problems every day, but it’s the identification of people’s strengths that provides clues for how to solve their problems and improve their life situations (Saleeby, 2013, pp.17-20).
The National Association of Social Workers, NASW, considers the following as its six most core values; service, social justice, dignity and worth of the person, importance of human relationships, integrity, and competence. The value of service is considered to be a core value because offering help to those in need is a crucial goal for all of those looking to practice in the field of Social Work. These services can include, but are not limited to, addressing social problems, helping those in need, and volunteering their knowledge to those who cannot otherwise afford such help. Social Justice is also an important core value for a Social Worker to develop. As a Social Worker one will encounter many people from several different walks of life, no two cases will ever be exactly the same. Some of these walks of life can leave a client vulnerable, defenseless, exploited, oppressed, and troubled. Therefore it is important to learn what Social Justice is, and how to help people from falling victim to injustice. Dignity and Worth of the Person is one of the most important values that one should uphold. People who need the help of a Social Worker many, but not all, times feel powerless, embarrassed, and worthless because they feel as though they cannot control aspects of their life an...
Kris became a social worker because she has a passion and needs to help people. Her passion comes from years of abuse and neglect when she was younger. She stated, “It feels right to be a social worker. Although there is no thank you cards and the work may be meticulous at times, seeing smiles is a great reward”. I have learned most social workers enter this career due to personal experiences and they were to help make a change. I am one of them. Although I know I cannot change the world, I know I can make a difference in the lives I touch. I too will find the smiles of my clients
I learnt that the use of words or expressions such as ‘that’s brilliant’ can be misinterpreted by some clients to mean that you agree with what they have done. I often use expressions like that in conversations. I am now aware that it can be misunderstood and would like to guard against it. We watched a Youtube video, two social workers called out to a service user flat for an initial assessment. They were refused entry by a friend because he had bad experience with social workers in the past and his child was taken away.
My strengths definitely stem from my passion about helping others and social work. Becoming a mother and overcoming tough challenges is also a strength of mines. That experience made me stronger and shaped who I am today. I definitely intend to encourage my clients that anything is possible and you can do anything that you set your mind to do. Being around my family and the obstacles that we have overcome has definitely gave me a broader perspective of life and the situations that current that can impacts us in many ways. As a social worker it is important to listen, communicate, build rapport with boundaries with our clients in order to be an effective social worker. Being a social worker requires certain core skills. Many of these I learn during my education and internships, others I have learned from different areas of my life. You are required to orient yourself to the ethical codes for social work in order to provide top-notch services to the people you treat in therapy. You may also find it helpful to understand common elements of good therapy. Certainly there are many different skills and traits that you help you succeed as a social worker. Some of the main skills that will help you in the counseling profession include,
My first obstacle in becoming the social worker I envision is myself. As a Southern woman, I was taught to pray, have good manners, to cook, not to display behaviors in public unbecoming of a lady, to honor my word, and that it was my duty to help those in need. These principles speak to the social work values of service by helping others, integrity in being honest and ethical in the things I say, and dignity and worth of a person, by treating others in a respectful manner.
These skills included having the ability to communicate well with their clients. Active listening is another skill that is very important. Social workers need to have ability to understand people’s reactions, and service orientation. Critical thinking, complex problem solving, judgement and decision making and monitoring are amongst those essentials skills that all social workers should have ( carreeronestop.org nd ). Another important quality that is specifically important for child, family,and school social workers is the ability to feel empathy for their clients, interpersonal skills, and being patience (U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics
As an upcoming social worker I understand there are certain traits I portray that are strengths in the social work field. I also understand that were there are strengths, there are weaknesses. I did not realize what my strengths and weaknesses were until I began to practice in the field. Some strengths I have found in myself are good listening skills, ability to handle stressful situations, and time management skills. Along with those strengths I have found my weaknesses are speaking what I believe about a situation, procrastination, and taking on too much responsibility.
Social workers must have a certain level of integrity in their field of practice. This characteristic is important because it helps a person be true to their own beliefs and allows them to set their own boundaries. Integrity can show a social worker what types of clients they are comfortable working with and what types of professions they should not be in. Social workers who have integrity are able to put their energy into cases that they are capable of handling and will have less opportunities of harming the client in any way. When a person is able to show integrity, they stay true in what they believe in and work
My reasons for wanting to become a Social worker are quite varied, the main one being to assist people in realising their potential and helping them reach their goals, and at this stage of my life I believe the experiences I have gained are extremely transferable in terms of working with the general public; but overall I can now offer the Social work profession and its clients a committed and caring attitude. I am a people’s person. I am passionately interested in listening to people’s problems and finding strategies to help solve them.
From the very being the client needs to feel like they will be able to trust you and be comfortable enough with you to share things with you. Social workers must demonstrate core facilitative skills, such as unconditional, positive regard, warmth, empathy, and genuineness when working with clients. Without these skills, premature termination, disengagement, and resistance are likely to occur with the client. Demonstrating these course skills without any intervention has been demonstrated to assist clients towards goal
The personal qualities that I equip for the social work profession is the ability to work effectively with people from diverse populations. I was born and raised in a community composed of diverse populations which has given the training/knowledge to become a social worker. During the internship and the volunteering, I learn to be empathy with other people. I have what I takes to be a social worker because I want to help
In order for social workers to be consider excellent in their practice, they must have the following five characteristics; compassionate, committed, collaborative, creative and competent. In my opinion, it is crucial for social workers to establish a therapeutic relationship with their client. In doing so, the social worker will be show genuine concern and sympathy for their client. A social worker is very passionate and able to put themselves in the client’s shoes to better understand what they are going through.
Social workers are described as “helpers,” because they help others resolve problems, obtain resources, provide support during crises, and facilitate social responses to needs. In my opinion, to be a social worker, you need to have a passion for helping others. Having personal experiences in the field of social work you want to work in is also good to have.
One thing that I have learned that has had an impact on myself is that being a social worker requires great empathy. You must be willing to take someone else’s issues and truly make them your own and be able to demonstrate self-awareness (SGS, 2015, p. 161). In fact, I think this could greatly apply to my own life whether I decide to go in this field or not. Empathy is a powerful trait for both