Counseling Confidence: What to Say in a First Client Session (Even If You're Nervous)
===
[00:00:00] You booked your first client session, but now comes the hard part, knowing what to say if your heart races before every new appointment, and if you've ever over-prepared second guess yourself or worried that you'll sound too clinical or maybe not clinical enough, I want you to know that you're not alone.
In today's episode, I'll walk you through what to say in your very first client session from introductions to interviews, so you can build trust fast and lead with confidence. You'll also learn how dietitians inside of the library practice first sessions and a safe space before doing it live.
Start with a grounding introduction. So Melissa, a dietitian that focuses on pre-diabetes, she used to start her sessions with lab values and handouts, and she accidentally overwhelmed her clients. Let me know if that sounds familiar, but we did help her reframe her opening line to say, thanks for [00:01:00] being here.
I'm here to support you, not judge you. Let's talk about what your day looks like and what you'd like to work on. That simple shift did take her from like information dumping to partnering and clients opened up faster with her. So I want you to try this three part opener. Welcome and normalize any nerves even if you don't think they have them, because you're setting the tone.
Number two, I want you to clarify your role, right? Like that example before said, I'm not here to judge however you wanna frame that. And then third ask, if they ask what they wanna get outta today's session, that's probably the most important thing because once you're clear with what they want, you can often link back to that and ask them, take the temperature.
Are you getting what you need? How can we adjust today? Or if the session gets off to a tangent, you can gently remind them, today you said you wanted dinner ideas. What I also noticed that we're talking a lot about breakfast right now. Would you like to get back on track with dinner and we can address breakfast next [00:02:00] time?
The second step or tip would be to ask open anchored questions instead of jumping into checklists or interrogation style intake. One of our clients, a gut health dietitian, she said, can you walk me through a typical weekday from morning to evening?
And that's a really good way to frame a question about dietary intake. So the single question can help you uncover eating patterns and maybe energy dips and stress triggers just from asking this question without overwhelming the client. Now if you're wondering what to say and how to frame sessions and you want more examples inside of the library, which is our monthly membership, you'll get client rapport building prompts, motivational interviewing examples, and flexible intake frameworks that feel natural.
You also get client forms that I've designed for you, whether you're cash payer insurance, so you know what to say in an intake form, food journal feedback form, testimonial, food and mood blog, et cetera. And of course policies and procedures that you can update For [00:03:00] your business's best needs.
One of our clients a binge eating dietitian. She used to overdeliver. Offering meal plans, PDFs, and multiple goals in one session. But she mentioned that her clients would ghost her after the first call, and now she's learned how to end sessions with just one collaborative goal. she says, would it feel helpful to start with a consistent breakfast this week?
And why does something like that framing, why would that work? You might be wondering this question focuses on behavior, not perfection. It increases follow through and it can also make change feel possible. So I want you to try this like end every first session with one realistic co-created goal, not a full plan.
Co-created means it's not something that you just tell them to do. It's something that you formulate together. You're asking for their input, right? You're designing ideas. Together as a team, making them feel like you're a guide in their journey, right? But you're not dictating their journey. As a [00:04:00] bonus, I want you to use a session flow template, right?
So the key to confidence is structure and rehearsal. So what that means is I want you to think about a session flow, such as a flow chart, right? So what might you need to do first and then second, and then third, and you can design your own flow template for your sessions. So that might look like mock counseling techniques that you want to use.
You might wanna open up the session with a certain word. You might wanna introduce yourself in a certain way, like you might have certain framing that you tell them. I'm a non-judgmental dietitian. Usually my clients work with me for three to five or three to eight sessions,
Make sure you have a few go-to open-ended questions. You can tick a box and even have that in a flow chart for yourself. And design that so that you feel consistent and standardized when you're delivering sessions. Inside the library, we go beyond scripts.
We offer realistic guided simulations that show you exactly what to say and how to say it on the first session when you work with clients. You'll walk [00:05:00] through mock counseling scenarios based on actual client cases, and you'll get rubrics, prompts and frameworks to practice your responses and not just read it, but really practice it and get comfortable.
And you'll also be able to rehearse your own unique flow before doing it live so you feel ready and not panicked when the real session happens. Our simulations are designed and approved to help you build confidence through practice, improve your clinical communication skills, and get better results with your clients from day one, so they stick with you and you're able to build a sustainable business, get positive reviews, and truly help transform the lives of your clients.
I want you to join the library [email protected] because confidence does not come from guessing. It comes from knowing what to say and having a place to practice saying it.
