Step two, you recognize the feeling. Some often fail to recognize client's feelings or acknowledge empathetic opportunities, and empathetic opportunity is a direct explicit expression of feeling or concern by the client. However, clients frequently express their feelings indirectly through hints or nonverbal cues. Noticing these indirect hints and cues provides you an opportunity to further explore the client's underlying feelings. However, simply noticing indirect emotional cues does not mean that those cues are correctly interpreted. Avoid making assumptions.

Verify the accuracy of interpretations by verbally acknowledging the cues and asking the client to clarify their thoughts and feelings when asking clients to clarify their perspective questions phrased with when, what or where can be helpful, but questions phrase with Why should be avoided as they can imply judgment and provoke guilt or defensiveness from the client. For example, asking, what are some of the reasons that you stopped giving Jackie's medication conveys less judgement about the client's decision than asking, Why did you stop giving Jackie's medication? direct questions about feelings may be overwhelming or uncomfortable for some clients. An alternative approach to clarifying the client's perspective involves using third person language to bring up potential concerns. For example, you suspect that a client is uncomfortable sharing the concerns about spaying their dog, you could say many clients have concerns about spaying their puppy, and then allow a brief silence to invite the owner to share their concern.

If the client remains reluctant to address the issue, you can then follow up with More specific third person statements such as some people worry about complications from the surgery. phrasing statements this way allows the owner to save face and elaborate on their concerns without having to bring it up themselves.