The Soul of Ethical Service: Seven Qualities to Embrace in Your Professional Healing Relationships

By Kathy Ginn

"The Soul of Ethical Service" is one way of bringing clarity to the complexity of our professional role, as we journey deep within ourselves, our ethical nature and inner landscape. What type of practitioner do you want to be? How do you want your clients to receive you? Who are you being as you enter relationship? What do you know about your power? How do you honor your own needs while serving another? This book invites each reader into contemplative inquiry. Kathy expands the study of ethics from a simple - intellectual tone to a path of deep transformation. This book takes you beyond a requirement. It is written for those who are seeking a broader and deeper experience of ethics education. Perhaps like truth, The Soul of Ethical Service is not simply something to know, but something BE!

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: Jun 30, 2022
• ISBN: 9781667851198

Book preview

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The Soul of

Ethical

Service

Seven Qualities to embrace in your

professional healing relationships

A Unique and Engaging Guide to

Ethical Awareness

Kathy Ginn

© Copyright 2021 by Kathy Ginn

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any other form of information recording, storage, and retrieval system without prior written permission of the publisher. Limited use of quotations in critical reviews and certain other non-commercial may be permitted by copyright law. For permission, contact the publisher.

Dedication

For my mother and father,

Leroy and Mabel Zastrow

Thank you for your guidance and love. You offered me a sense of belonging. You modeled for me hard work, integrity, perseverance, listening presence and gentle strength. You instilled in me to always say, Thank you.

Gratitude

I offer my deep gratitude to my husband Tom, for his continuous encouragement, support, and never ending belief in me.

Special Acknowledgments

Many thanks to the following:

Nina Shoroplova for proofreading and editing my manuscript.

Laura Antonioli for layout and type setting.

Angie from FIVERR for Cover design.

Chris Natzke, founder of Black Belt Leadership

for his ever ready guidance, answering my many,

many questions regarding self-publishing.

And to all my students who have been some of my greatest teachers.

Table of Contents

Introduction

Meet the Author

Who This Book Is For

Foreword

Chapter 1: The Soul of Deep Roots

Developing an Internal Frame of Reference

How Do We Develop This Internal Frame of Reference?

Ethical Inquiry

The Practice

Chapter 2: The Soul of Integrity

The Pearl of the Therapeutic Relationship

Ethical Inquiry

The Practice

Chapter 3: The Soul of Service

How May I Serve?

Do I Help Too Much?

Is Helping Ever the Wrong Thing to Do?

Will You Fix Me?

Moving Toward

How May I Serve?

Ethical Inquiry

The Practice

Chapter 4: The Soul of Power

The Dance of Power and Heart

Power Differential

What Amplifies the Power Differential?

Framework Basics: Stepping into Your Power Role

Role-Dependent Factors

Tendencies Related to Power

The Dynamic of Impact and Intention

The Soul of Soft Power

A Most Beautiful Story

Source of Our Power

Ethical Inquiry

The Practice

Chapter 5: The Soul of Being

A Profession like No Other

Creating Space

Ethical Inquiry

The Practice

Chapter 6: The Soul of Listening Presence

Listening Presence Is Not Known without Practice

We Listen with Our Hands

We Listen Therapeutically

We Listen with Our Heart and Soul

Begin Listening to Yourself

A Healing Listener Meets the Client Where They Are

A Healing Listener Mindfully Stills

A Healing Listener Listens with the Body

Ethical Inquiry

The Practice

Chapter 7: The Soul of Gratitude

Heartfelt Sincerity

Gratitude Beyond Conditions

Ethical Inquiry

The Practice

A Personal Closing

An Ethic of Love

Bonus Chapter

Resources/Bibliography

About the Author

Educational Offerings

Reviews

Introduction

Ethics is experiential knowledge that is known

with the Mind, Body, Heart, and Soul.

The study and exploration of ethics reaches far beyond a professional requirement. It is more than good intentions: knowing and following, to the best of one’s understanding, an external code of ethics and regulatory laws. Ethics has to do with the most interesting parts of human life: intimacy, authenticity, spiritual nourishment, inner leadership, service, gratitude, fear, values, character, humility, power, and love.

Ethics education is—can be—the terrain of personal development and transformation. Our work becomes a spiritual practice that reflects our inner journey. As holistic practitioners, we have chosen a vocation that requires constant renewal of mind, heart, and soul—if we want to avoid burnout, take joy in our work, and grow in service to others. Yes, we learn many skills and techniques along the way. We study and gain knowledge. Probably the worthiest skill is the ability to offer our clients our best self; perhaps our higher self.

I have attempted over the years to offer a unique and meaningful approach to ethics education, to inspire others to explore the elements of healing that go beyond technique. Ethics education is much more than reviewing our code of ethics and having discussions on sexual misconduct and boundaries. Ethics education offers more than simply guiding others into what to do and how to do it. Ethics education can be an invitation to travel within, to sit quietly in the questions, and discover the self who steps into the session room. These are the deep roots of ethics education!

My personal journey of planting deep roots has been and continues to be inspired by the words of His Holiness the fourteenth Dalai Lama: We must be on the journey of repairing our own hearts and actions before we can offer healing to others.

I approach this topic of ethics from my years of experience as a massage therapist, body-centered Hakomi practitioner, teacher, and mentor. Our touch connects us deeply with our clients, whether we work in a spa, clinic, group practice, or private setting. No matter what our style of work is, our touch establishes an intimacy with clients that is unique among the helping professions. As a result, the client-practitioner relationship is often a delicate and complex matter. Yes, the relationship between client and practitioner is delicate and complex. It is this understanding that is crucial to our ethical conduct, the decisions we make, and how we show up in the session room.

Perhaps the first and fundamental questions you can ask yourself are these: What type of practitioner do you want to be? How do you want your clients to receive you? Who are you being as you enter the session room? What do you know about your power? How do you honor your own needs while serving another? Pause for a moment and notice what arises within you.

Working in this profession as both a body-centered practitioner and teacher of ethics has afforded me the gift and opportunity to consistently learn, grow, make mistakes, and start all over again. I have continued over the years to develop my understanding of how our practice with clients becomes reflective of our inner life and supports our spiritual journey. Our profession has a code of ethics; however, this is often not enough. Many situations that arise daily in our work require a decision that is based on something much deeper.

There are multiple dynamics to the work we offer as holistic care practitioners. The Soul of Ethical Service is one way of bringing clarity to the complexity of our professional role, while taking us deep within ourselves. I have written this book from my experience and perspective as a body-centered practitioner. However, I invite each of you who works one-on-one with clients as a therapist, counselor, life coach, holistic practitioner, grief companion, or end-of-life professional, along with all those who serve in other capacities, to jump into the river with me and explore what is common to us all as we seek to care for others. I offer this book with deep respect and gratitude for the work each of you is already offering.

This book is intended to invite you into contemplative inquiry along with lived practice. It is a unique and engaging approach to ethical practice and inner transformation. This book is written for those who are seeking a broader and deeper experience of ethics education. It can be read passively as if you were sitting at the river’s edge enjoying the sounds of the river, or you can jump in and experience the multiple currents of awakening, empowerment, and healing. I invite you