I may be biased, but I think Quit Coaches are an elite crew. We’re creative, caring, good question-askers and good listeners. We are able to respond to changing situations as they unfold in every call.

Quitting smoking is a challenge. Figuring out how to help people quit smoking is a challenge, too. Quit Coaches meet this challenge. Not only are we naturally great people (please see first paragraph), we’re trained in the most up-to-date methods for helping participants implement positive behavior changes.

Recently, our training department announced a series of workshops for Quit Coaches to increase cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) skills.

Is it nerdy to admit learning about CBT is fun? I like thinking about thinking. I like helping people become more self-reliant. I like encouraging participants to ask themselves questions:

“Why do I smoke?”
“What keeps me from quitting?”
“What would happen if I had a strong craving…but I didn’t smoke?”

A few weeks ago I went to the first advanced CBT training: “Building Alliance with Participants.”

So…what is alliance? And why is it important?

Alliance means creating a warm, empathic, and genuine relationship. In my job an alliance is achieved when a participant feels that I will help him quit tobacco—without judgment, clinical-detachment, or condescension. Therapeutic research has shown that creating an alliance increases the client's likelihood for change, insight, and action.*

I love how alliance is described: “warmth, empathy, genuineness.” If I’m looking for help with a problem, I want to work with a person like that. I want to talk to a person who cares; a person who asks questions and tries to understand me. I want advice from an expert—but not in a clinical way.

I’ve always tried to be friendly and respectful in calls. But learning how to build alliance carefully and conscientiously gives me a higher level connection with participants.

It’s exciting to hear the skills we learned in training in practice on the phones. Right now I’m in awe listening to the Quit Coach sitting next to me. She just said, “Thanks for sharing that challenge with me, I think it will help us build a better quit plan for you.”

On the other side I hear a Quit Coach express warmly, “It sounds like you’re discouraged. But it seems like the part of you that wants to quit is stronger than the part of you that wants to smoke, because you keep trying to quit. What do you think?” I hear a lot of: “hmm, that makes sense,” and “I’m with you,” as well as occasional laughing. Laughing?!? She must have set up a solid alliance with this participant.

Reading a book about quitting smoking or picking up a medication can surely help a person. But because we know most people have challenges, fears, and anxieties about the process—it’s important for them to talk about quitting, too. Quit Coaches (ahem) are the key to creating a safe and comfortable space for participants to share these feelings and then create a plan to overcome them.

*There are many resources online regarding working alliance; please see the following for more information:

Journal of Counseling Psychology
Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology
The American Journal of Psychiatry