Welcome to Social Work Stories, a podcast exploring social work practice through stories and critical reflection.
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For now, on with the episode.
We'll just have a relaxed summary conversation.
Let's do it. What are we talking about?
We did this really cool thing a couple of weeks ago, Liz.
Do you remember we sat in on these storytelling circles with these British social workers?
You remember it was just amazing just to sit in that cross-cultural space and see how different practice really is.
It was mind-blowing. Apart from anything, even the time lag, they were heading off to work.
And we were ending our day.
I'm heading off to bed. I know you were pretty sleepy at one point.
But what was really interesting I found was this idea of storytelling in social work practice and education, right?
What's the place that it holds?
And this idea of practitioners sharing their stories from practice.
I guess I've been thinking a little bit, Liz, about where that might fit in the supervision space and how different is it to a case analysis we might usually do?
Well, or something you'd hear and say, group supervision, where someone would present a case.
But you were talking about perhaps what we tried to do in this podcast?
Yeah, just that. Talk me through it.
Talk me through it. Well, you know how on this podcast, when a social worker provides us with a story, and then you and I talk about that story, we don't really sit in judgment on those stories, right?
And we try to think of it as we don't interrogate the practice on this podcast.
People will often say to us, what if someone gives a story that they would consider poor practice, right?
And we don't really sit in that judgment space because we are here to honour the practice.
So if there's practice that is not, doesn't align with practice standards or code of ethics, right?
It wouldn't even be a question about airing it because our job here is to honour the social work practice that is being heard, yeah, that is being told.
So for me, this podcast and what we do is much more about deep listening and about really reflecting on what we can learn for our own practice from the story.
Whereas if I transfer that into a supervision space, often what we do in supervision is we interrogate the practice.
Yeah. Even the free user reflective model, we would still be thinking about it from the perspective of what was done.
Well, what could have been done differently?
What was your thinking behind that?
But we don't do that. Actually, no, we don't do that at all.
We really, deeply listen.
And for me, that would take the pressure off.
Like if I could just listen to a social worker come to supervision, yeah, until their story, without all of that internal dialogue that can go on for a supervisor, yeah.
That's quite a different headspace for me.
It really is. And I'm just listening to how you've stepped it out there.
I was thinking about how heavily we teach to Gibbs model, for example, or Jan Fuchs model.
And the emphasis really is on that emancipatory practice at the end.
How do I do this better? Right?
How do I improve my practice as a result of the gaps or the weaknesses or however you want to phrase it?
And I think that's a really different space to this.
I think this is very much more about what is the practice that has occurred, sitting in an honoring space for that practice.
And what does that mean for me?
And my practice involvement, that's not a word, is it evolution?
So wait a minute. So that's interesting.
You're actually talking about it.
What does it mean for me?
So that's very different to a supervisory model too, right?
Where would the supervisor...
Yeah, the supervisor doesn't do that.
No, the focus would be on the supervisory.
Yeah, interesting. By your actually saying, I'm reflecting on it in relation to myself and my practice.
And I think that develops a community of practitioners, a community of learning from each other in a completely different way.
Okay. So I come to you as a supervisory, and I bring a practice piece, a story.
I sit down, I tell my story, then what happens?
Like what would it look like in your room?
So in my mind, what happens next are some of those critical questions that we raise in our discussions, but that don't center on the learning for the practitioner.
So the critical questions might be things like what was your thinking at these moments in time and what other reflective lessons that would be broader than just your practice?
Yeah, so what might be the lessons for the context in which the practice is happening in?
What might be the lessons for other practitioners in that space?
What might be the lessons about the systemic influences in the case that's being talked about?
Do you know what I mean? I do know that.
I do. And it's interesting.
I probably have put you on the spot because the other thing that I think we do when the four of us listen to the story is what's come up for you as a result of listening to that is often our starting point.
That's right. And it'll be someone will say, well, the thing that stuck out for me was this.
Now, if we go back to your point about your own practice, maybe that's saying so much more about that's me.
That's what I'm walking away with.
Justa might have something quite different.
You might, Ben might. But if it's through the lens of our own practice and our own thinking for that moment in time, it can look quite different.
So I think that's also, for me, a good starting point.
Like what emerges as a result of listening to that story for me?
Yeah, I think it's the differences between the speaker and the listener.
So in a classic supervision session, the speaker is the emphasis.
Whereas I think in a deep storytelling circle or situation, the listener is just as important.
Right? Well, I mean, our podcast systems are probably nodding because if you listen to an episode, you listen to that what you'd be reflecting on.
I know. And when I talk to, when I give talks and presentations about podcasting and social work content podcasting, what I always say is, why do social workers like podcasts?
And it's because of the two senses that we use the most.
It's the listening and the speaking.
Right? And I think that there's the double there that happens for us as social workers.
See, I would also interweave in that the emotional reaction.
Yeah, 100%. Yeah, and that's often what's missing.
There is a slight emphasis in the Gibbs model on emotional reaction, but it's one of many points.
And I feel like it gets lost.
And that's the bit, I think, the storytelling, that's the gift of the storytelling, gives social work.
I think is that capacity to sit really heavily in the emotional response and take some responsibility for your emotional response, right?
Like own it. Because I think a lot of social workers often are pushing that emotional response away under titles like boundaries.
Right? They're saying, well, I have to be professional now.
And I actually think sitting in your emotional response is really, really important.
This was a good conversation, Liz.
It was great. It's been a great conversation.
I know a nice summary, go with a flow kind of conversation.
Yeah. No, I've really enjoyed it.
And I think it's made me rethink some of the, I guess, a supervision that I'll be taking into 2023.
Yeah. Maybe trialing something a little different with students and staff around bringing the story, honoring the story, let's just see what happens in relation to that.
And maybe listening to a few podcast episodes just as to help with the shape of that.
What would it be if we didn't come to the end of the year without a few thank yous me?
I know. There's so many people actually to thank this year, Liz.
Where do we begin? I want to thank our two producers.
Yes. Ben and Justin, thank you so much for everything, for bearing with us all year and for doing such amazing work.
We want to thank Maddie.
Maddie is the brains behind the social media.
Explosion that we've had this year, Liz.
Indeed. Our listeners will have probably seen on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, all those incredible posts.
And we want to really do a shout out to Maddie.
She's done an amazing job.
Thank you, Maddie. For our students that have worked with us this year.
Rommie and Raman Deep. I got to see them graduate, Liz.
Oh, congratulations. About a month ago, now.
Congratulations. It's always, always incredible to see students come through our podcast and then become social workers.
And I guess that's a shout out in the future if there's a social work student out there who's wanting a placement on our podcast.
Well, get on the waiting list because I think we've got a few students starting with us next year.
I know. So, you know, but always let us know.
Thank you to all those listeners, Liz, who voted for us in the Australian podcast awards.
We were not successful in 2022, but we are aiming for 2023.
Here we come. Wow. Let's do it.
Let's do it. We're going to do it.
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We're going to do it. Thanks for listening to the Social Work Stories Podcast.
All of the stories we share are de-identified to respect and protect the people involved.
We create this podcast because we're passionate about building the global social work community and strengthening our practice, no matter the context.
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The Social Work Stories Podcast is made by Liz Murphy, Dr.
Mim Fox, Justin Stesch, Dr.
Ben Joseph, and Maddie Stratton.
Thanks so much for listening.
