People often do not know how to choose a psychologist correctly, by what criteria, and therefore put off solving their psychological issues until later. Until the situation in their life becomes completely unbearable, for example, fears intensify, panic attacks appear, conflicts begin in the family, irritability and anger towards others, apathy and depression develop. All this could have been avoided if you had chosen the right psychologist in time. Today you will learn 7 criteria for choosing the RIGHT psychologist. And also, at the end of the article, I will share with you an important secret, how psychological help differs, for example, from medical help. And why is it so important to choose your own psychologist. Of these 7 criteria, some are standard (formal), and some will be creative (unusual).1. The first criterion is higher psychological education. Strange as it may seem, most people don’t even think about asking a psychologist about this, but in vain. After all, there are people who have completed short-term psychological courses, where they were taught some methods of helping people. But such people cannot be considered psychologists, because they are not have a deep understanding of the mechanisms of the human psyche, which means that at best they will be ineffective, and at worst, they can unknowingly cause harm. Therefore, always ask the psychologist if he has a higher PSYCHOLOGICAL education, confirmed by a state diploma. Therefore, on his website, or on his social network page , or on special psychological portals his education documents should be freely available. If this specialist is not on the Internet, then ask him to show you these documents live. And believe me, a real psychologist will not strain at all, and even with joy and pride will show you his evidence of professional achievements. You can quickly learn about the criteria for choosing a psychologist by watching this video: 2. The second criterion, oddly enough, is precisely those additional advanced training courses where they teach practical techniques for helping people. After all, after college, although a person is familiar with psychological laws, he does not know at all what to do with it in order to help a person . For example: how to cope with depression, how a person can overcome fear, or how to stop being irritable. This is what is taught in additional courses. Therefore, in addition to a higher education diploma, inquire about additional advanced training programs. It is desirable that they be confirmed by certificates, diplomas, attestations, or some kind of papers. I foresee the objection that papers are easy to buy these days. But believe me, psychology is not a field in which a person will bother so much as to forge documents. After all, scammers usually work in areas where you can quickly get a lot of money without much effort. And psychological work is quite labor-intensive, and a non-professional is immediately visible here. These were formal signs for choosing a psychologist, and now we move on to more complex parameters. 3. It is important that the psychologist himself is pleasant to you. You can see his photo on the Internet, or watch his videos, or read his articles, or chat with him in person. It is important that you do not experience any kind of emotional rejection towards him. Often the person himself cannot even explain this feeling. But we don’t need to explain this to anyone. If some unpleasant feeling arises, then it is better to turn to another psychologist. Of course, this does not mean at all that he is a bad specialist. And perhaps for others it will be more suitable. But it is important for you to trust your inner voice. And here you don’t need to be particularly fascinated by this person, just a neutral attitude is enough. And just the feeling of rejection will speak of unconscious blocks that will prevent a positive solution to your psychological topic. Therefore, the psychologist you choose should be pleasant to youor at least neutral. Now let’s move on to ways to determine the professional qualities of a specialist. Usually, at the first consultation everything becomes clear.4. The fourth criterion is your interaction with him at the first meeting. A real psychologist is a person who is sincerely interested in your inner world, gives you the opportunity to talk a lot about yourself, creates a trusting atmosphere that makes you want to open up more and more. He respects your opinion, treats you as an equal, like an adult to an adult. And at the same time, it allows you to be a “weak child” who needs care and attention. Therefore, if at the first meeting I constantly interrupt you, do not allow you to express thoughts and feelings that are important to you, are treated down to you, like a child, they say that “ you don’t understand and should listen to what they tell you,” then there will be little benefit from such communication. You can safely complete your work with such a “specialist” without any explanation. And the most important thing here is the feeling that you are accepted for who you are. This is what will indicate the right person.5. The fifth criterion is the psychologist’s ability not only to listen, but also to work correctly with your problem, so that you ultimately get the desired result, and not just talk. And therefore, the psychologist should formulate your goals together with you, so that both he and you understand what exactly are you striving for, and how will your joint work help achieve this. If a specialist starts working with you without clearly stated goals, then most likely such work will not lead you anywhere. Therefore, it is natural for a good psychologist to work with goals that you understand.6. The sixth criterion is the psychologist’s sincere interest in your personality. This will be clear from your first communication. And, by the way, it is not at all necessary to immediately schedule a paid consultation. I’ll tell you one little life hack: Ask a psychologist to conduct a trial or diagnostic consultation for you for just 15 minutes, so that he can show himself in action, and you can evaluate how comfortable you are in trusting your emotional moments to this particular person. And, if it turns out, that the specialist does not have time for such communication at all, this may well be because he is overloaded with consultations. And then you can easily turn to a psychologist who is not overloaded, and who has time for you and interest in your personality.7. The seventh criterion is the “stardom” (fame) of the specialist. There is an opinion that if a psychologist is shown on TV, or his name is widely known, then he is definitely the best and will certainly be able to help you. But practice shows that the fame of a specialist only affects the cost of his services. Therefore, when choosing a psychologist, focus more on his personal qualities, which can be understood either by communicating with the person in person, or by reading his articles and watching his videos. You may have a question Why, when choosing a psychologist, is it his human qualities that are so important, and not his knowledge or experience? Well, firstly, because assessing the professionalism of a psychologist is not so easy. After all, his main working tool is his own soul (his personality). For example, if doctors have blood tests, various devices: ultrasound, x-ray, MRI, then a psychologist often has only his own feelings for diagnosis, which, thanks to experience and knowledge are tuned to the perception and interpretation of the data necessary for work. And secondly, the healing process itself occurs not so much thanks to psychological techniques, but even more so from the fact that the client receives new experience of interacting with a living person in a special atmosphere of trust, where he becomes it is possible to live difficult moments for him in a new way. That’s why no electronic substitutes for psychologists work. After all, the human brain and soul are so complex that even powerful computer programs cannot even come close to comparing with a living professional. Let's summarize: Now you know 7 criteria for the right)