This one, this question we’re answering today, is a bit of a weird one. Are there good therapists and bad therapists? If so, who can even make that call?

It’s not easy to define what makes a good therapist, but the best way to evaluate a therapist is by evaluating them objectively and subjectively. Objectively, there are certain standards that every therapist should hold themselves to, and subjectively, each client will have different needs that their therapist should adapt to.

I wish this question was simple, but like most things, there aren’t just two categories “good therapists” and “bad therapists.” In reality, there are no rankings of therapists, but there are some ways to figure out if a therapist can provide what you need.

So there’s two ways to spot a good therapist, because there’s objective and subjective skills we as therapists should have.

Objectively, no matter the case, every therapist should do these things:

• They should be professional and take their job seriously. They can, of course, be friendly and relatable, but they be primarily concerned with helping you improve your life, not just chatting about random things. Furthermore, communicating well about scheduling and billing is a must.
• They should have good boundaries with you. That means that they shouldn’t put their emotional baggage on you, but they can relate to you as a fellow human with emotions and life challenges. You should feel like your therapist can understand you, but you shouldn’t feel responsible for your therapist’s emotional well-being.

Subjectively, therapists need to adapt to what their client needs, and means doing these things:

• First, moving at the right pace for each client. Some clients want to move quickly towards their goals in therapy, and some clients want to incorporate therapy to their life for a longer period of time. For the first group of clients, their therapist should work on goal-setting and making tangible progress with them, while the second group of clients needs a therapist who moves at a slower pace to allow time for processing and exploring their thoughts and emotions.
• Similarly, finding the balance between empathizing and challenging their clients. If I have a client whose confidence is really low or has just been through something traumatic, we’ll spend a lot of time helping them verbalize their emotions and feeling safe again. And if I have a client who is in a more stable place, and they’re ready for it, I’ll challenge them to make the changes that will lead to a really better life.

So there it is, my best attempt at providing a way to evaluate a therapist whom you’re working with. And, I’ll say that you should take this article with an extra large grain of salt, because therapy is a soft science, with few measurables for what makes a good, or great therapist.

But, if you start seeing a therapist, I strongly encourage you to talk through some of these points in your first session. Then, you can find a therapist who is both a caring professional, and a good fit to help you along your way.

Thank you for reading my practice’s blog, my library of all the random thoughts that would make a terrible book but make a halfway-decent blog. To request a session or contact me, head to my Scheduling page to get in touch with me today!