Helping Clients Imagine What's Next: Narrative Change and Possibility

Helping Clients Imagine What's Next: Narrative Therapy Practices for Change and Possibility

Presenter: Chris Hoff, Ph.D.

​Description

In times of uncertainty, clients often find themselves stuck in stories that limit their sense of possibility. Narrative therapy has long emphasized how people live through and with stories, yet the question of time and future remains undertheorized. This workshop introduces two vital concepts for contemporary practice: futuring, practices that help people imagine and author futures worth living into, and chronotopes, the time–space patterns that shape how life stories are organized and experienced.

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Drawing from Michael White’s work on liminal space, Pierre Wack’s scenario planning, and Mikhail Bakhtin’s chronotopes, we will explore how therapists can scaffold imaginative practices with clients who face impasses, transitions, or crises of meaning. Participants will leave with practical maps and questions to help clients move beyond the pull of the known past toward more spacious and hopeful futures.

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​Workshop Objectives:

By the end of the workshop, participants will be able to:

1. Define and describe the concept of chronotopes and their significance for narrative therapy practice.
2. Identify how futuring practices can support clients navigating liminal spaces and life transitions.
3. Apply at least two narrative therapy exercises (scenario mapping, chronotope mapping, or “what if” questioning) to clinical conversations.
4. Develop strategies for integrating speculative imagination into therapeutic work while remaining grounded in narrative principles.

About the Speaker

Chris Hoff, PhD, LMFT is a narrative therapist, educator, and founder of the California Family Institute in Orange County, CA. He is host of The Radical Therapist podcast and teaches widely on poststructural, relational, and creative practices in therapy. His current work explores chronotopes and futuring as new resources for navigating liminal spaces and composing lives otherwise. Chris integrates philosophy, futures thinking, and Zen practice into his approach, helping therapists expand their imagination and craft practices that are poetic, political, and relational.

Online and/ or Access to Recording

Registration allows for participation online and/or access to the recording for three weeks following the workshop. The registration process and price are the same for all options.

First register here, then email caspersentraining@gmail.com to let us know you would like access to the recording. A few days after the event, you will be emailed with the link to the recording and workshop materials/ instructions.

CE Information

This program is approved for 3.5 CEs according to the licenses below. Following the workshop, live participants will email their completed evaluation to Caspersen, LLC. Participants who view the workshop as a recording will email their evaluation and the recording post-test to Caspersen Inc. CE's will then be emailed to participants.

PROFESSIONAL COUNSELORS: This activity consists of 3.5 clock hours of continuing education instruction. Approved by the Minnesota Board of Behavioral Health and Therapy. Credit requirements and approvals vary per state board regulations. Please save the course outline, the certificate of completion you receive from the activity and contact your state board or organization to determine specific filing requirements.

SOCIAL WORKERS: Caspersen, LLC. Provider #:1324, is approved as a provider for social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB), www.aswb.org through the Approved Continuing Education (ACE) Program. Caspersen, LLC. maintains responsibility for the program. ASWB Approval Period: 9/17/2023-9/17/2026. The Minnesota Board of Social Work approves ASWB sponsored CEs. In other states, Social workers should contact their regulatory board to determine course approval for continuing education credits. Social workers participating in this course will receive 3.5 (Clinical) continuing education clock hours in participating in this beginner/intermediate course.

MARRIAGE AND FAMILY THERAPISTS: This activity consists of 3.5 hours of continuing education instruction. Approved by the Minnesota Board of Marriage and Family Therapy. Credit requirements and approvals vary per state board regulations. Please save the course outline, this certificate of completion and contact your state board or organization to determine specific filing requirements. Some states such as California accept our ASWB CE provider status.

PSYCHOLOGISTS: Caspersen, LLC is an approved CE sponsor for the Minnesota Board of Psychology. Caspersen maintains responsibility for this program and its content. This program awards 3.5 credits to participating professionals. Full attendance is required. No partial credit will be offered for partial attendance.

OTHER PROFESSIONS: This activity qualifies for 3.5 hours of instructional content as required by many national, state and local licensing boards and professional organizations. Retain your certificate of completion and contact your board or organization for specific filing requirements.

Accommodations

Individuals can request accommodations by contacting John Stillman at jstillman@caspertx.com.

Grievance and COI Policy

Please refer to Caspersen's website: caspersentrainingcenter.com for current grievance policy. If you have questions or concerns, contact John Stillman at jstillman@caspertx.com.