What is solution-focused brief therapy (SFBT)?

SFBT is a future-oriented, strengths-based approach developed by Steve de Shazer and Insoo Kim Berg in the 1980s. Rather than exploring problem origins, SFBT focuses on what you want different, what is already working, and building steps toward your preferred future. Research supports SFBT (Gingerich & Peterson, 2013; Kim, 2008).

SFBT shifts the conversation toward solution building using the miracle question (imagining your preferred future), scaling questions (rating progress), and exception finding (discovering times the problem is less severe). You are positioned as the expert on your own life.

What issues can SFBT help with?

Depression, anxiety, relationship difficulties, family conflict, substance use, work performance, self-esteem, life transitions, and behavioural challenges. Particularly suited for people who want practical results in a shorter timeframe (Kim, 2008).

Is SFBT evidence-based?

Yes. Gingerich and Peterson (2013) found strong evidence of positive outcomes across settings. Kim (2008) meta-analysis found positive treatment effects for internalizing problems like depression and anxiety.

What is the miracle question in SFBT?

The therapist asks you to imagine a miracle solves the problem overnight. 'When you wake up, what would be the first small sign things are different?' This clarifies what you actually want and reveals achievable steps. It is a tool for vision and motivation, not magical thinking.

How brief is solution-focused brief therapy?

Research typically involves 3 to 8 sessions. Many people experience meaningful progress within that range, but the number is guided by your needs. At Introspectus, SFBT principles are often integrated with ACT and narrative therapy.

What should I expect in my first SFBT session?

Your first 50-minute session focuses on what you want to be different, what is already working, and what a good outcome looks like. You may leave with a specific task to try between sessions. The tone is collaborative, optimistic, and practical.

How is SFBT different from CBT?

CBT identifies and restructures distorted thought patterns. SFBT spends less time analysing the problem and more time building the solution. CBT uses worksheets targeting cognitive distortions; SFBT uses the miracle question, scaling, and exception finding. Both are evidence-based.

Can SFBT help with serious issues like trauma or depression?

Yes, though often most effective when integrated with other approaches. SFBT identifies resilience, clarifies outcomes, and builds on strengths. For complex trauma, your therapist may integrate with ACT or mindfulness.

Does SFBT ignore problems or painful emotions?

No. SFBT acknowledges the pain while redirecting attention toward strengths, exceptions, and preferred future. Your feelings are always validated. As de Shazer said, 'The problem does not always have to be understood for the solution to be found.'

Solution-Focused Brief Therapy

Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT) starts from what is already working. We build on your strengths and the small steps that move you toward change.

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A short 15-minute call to discuss your goals, no commitment.

Solution Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT)

SFBT starts with what you want to be different, then explores when pieces of that preferred future are already happening, even in small ways. Through careful questioning together, we identify what’s working, what you’re already doing that helps, and how to do more of it. This approach respects that problems are real, but you don’t need to fully understand why something’s wrong to start moving toward what you want. The work is collaborative, concrete, and built on small steps forward.

A short 15-minute call to discuss your goals, no commitment.

What is solution-focused brief therapy?

Solution-focused brief therapy (SFBT) is practical and goal-directed. Instead of digging through everything that is wrong, we get clear on where you want to go and build on what is already working to get there. It tends to be shorter-term. Introspectus Counselling offers solution-focused therapy with Sean Lewis, a Canadian Certified Counsellor, in Colwood, BC and online across BC.

What makes solution-focused therapy different?

You are not looking to spend a year unpacking your childhood. Something is stuck, you want it unstuck, and you would rather walk out with a plan than with more questions. You are practical. You fix things.

Solution-focused brief therapy is built for exactly that. It is goal-directed, concrete, and usually shorter than open-ended therapy, without skipping the part where things actually change.

Most therapy spends its time on the problem: where it came from, why it is here, how deep it runs. Solution-focused brief therapy spends its time somewhere more useful, on where you want to go and what is already moving you there.

The premise is straightforward. You are not a blank slate or a broken machine. You already have strengths, and there are already times when the problem is smaller or absent. The work is to notice those times, understand what is different about them, and do more of it on purpose.

That makes it a good fit if you are action-oriented and a little sceptical of just talking. You will not be asked to relive things you would rather leave alone.

How does solution-focused therapy work?

The approach, developed by Steve de Shazer and Insoo Kim Berg, uses a handful of practical tools.

A clear goal. We start by getting specific about what you actually want to be different, in terms you would notice in daily life.
The exception question. We look for the times the problem is already less of a problem. What is different then? Those exceptions are the blueprint.
The miracle question. We picture the problem solved, in detail, so the goal becomes concrete and you can see the first small signs of it.
Scaling. We rate where things stand from zero to ten, then ask what one point higher would look like; small, doable, measurable.

The next step is always small and concrete, because small steps are the ones that actually get taken.

A substantial evidence base supports this approach. A systematic review and a meta-analysis find solution-focused brief therapy effective across a range of concerns, often in fewer sessions than longer-term therapy.

What can solution-focused therapy help with?

It works best when you have a goal in mind and want momentum.

Stress and burnout. When you are overloaded, SFBT cuts to concrete steps that lighten the load rather than adding to it. More on stress and burnout.
Relationship goals. Specific, workable changes in how you communicate and show up, without months of excavation. More on relationships and connection.
Getting unstuck. A decision you keep circling, a rut you cannot get out of, a change you keep putting off.
A practical, lower-commitment start. If full-length therapy feels like too much, this is a focused way in.

Ready to talk? A 15-minute conversation, no obligation.

How does solution-focused therapy fit with the rest of my work?

Solution-focused work pairs naturally with Acceptance and Commitment Therapy: one clarifies what matters to you, the other turns it into the next concrete step. I fit the approach to you, and if a goal turns out to need deeper work, we can go there together. Read more about how I use ACT.

What does a session look like?

It is focused and practical. A first session is about understanding what brought you here, getting clear on your goal, and whether we are a good fit. From there we work in concrete steps, and many people need fewer sessions than they expect. Sessions are 50 minutes. You set the pace.

Frequently asked questions

How is this different from regular therapy?

It spends less time on the history of the problem and more on the solution: your goal, your strengths, and the times things already work. It is practical and tends to be shorter.

Do we just ignore the past and the hard stuff?

No. We do not pretend problems away. We just do not assume you have to excavate everything to move forward. If the past needs attention, we give it attention.

How many sessions will I need?

Often fewer than open-ended therapy; some people get what they came for in a handful of sessions. There is no fixed number, and you decide when you are done.

Is solution-focused therapy evidence-based?

Yes. A systematic review and a meta-analysis support it across a range of concerns, frequently in fewer sessions than longer therapies.

Looking for a solution-focused therapist near the West Shore?

I am Sean Lewis, a Canadian Certified Counsellor (CCC) practising in Colwood, in Greater Victoria, and online across British Columbia. If you want less talking-in-circles and more forward motion, this is a practical place to start. Book a free 15-minute consultation and we can talk it through. You can also read about how I use ACT or more about me.

References

de Shazer, S., Dolan, Y., Korman, H., Trepper, T., McCollum, E., & Berg, I. K. (2007). More than miracles: The state of the art of solution-focused brief therapy. Haworth Press.
Gingerich, W. J., & Peterson, L. T. (2013). Effectiveness of solution-focused brief therapy: A systematic qualitative review of controlled outcome studies. Research on Social Work Practice, 23(3), 266-283. https://doi.org/10.1177/1049731512470859
Kim, J. S. (2008). Examining the effectiveness of solution-focused brief therapy: A meta-analysis. Research on Social Work Practice, 18(2), 107-116. https://doi.org/10.1177/1049731507307807
Franklin, C., Zhang, A., Froerer, A., & Johnson, S. (2017). Solution-focused brief therapy: A systematic review and meta-summary of process research. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 43(1), 16-30. https://doi.org/10.1111/jmft.12193