Meaning of Counselling:

It is the people in the organisation who are the most important and valuable asset. They
have emotions, feeling and a tender heart. Sometimes emotions and feelings create
problems and men and women could not overcome and lose their confidence and fail to put
their mind in the work. These problems do not necessarily relate to the work. They may be
family problems, financial problems, marital problems etc. All have a negative impact on
their jobs. They can’t work properly and can’t put hundred percent.

The need of the hour is to remove the problem and help the individual to regain his or her
self confidence and esteem and put his strength in work. Counselling can do the magic and
help an individual to overcome his lost confidence and self respect because of the problem.
So counselling is the process of helping an individual facing a problem and to regain his lost
confidence and self esteem and put his mind in his job.

The process of counselling begins with establishing relationship between counsellor and
counsellee and taking into confidence the counsellee by the counsellor and allowing him to
open his or her heart and after understanding the situation advising him to face the harsh
realities of life and society boldly and building his confidence and paving way to make the
best use of his strength by overcoming his weaknesses. B.J. Prasantham has rightly pointed
out that, “Counselling is a relationship between the counsellor and counsellee characterized
by trust and openness, in a one to one, or a small group relationship, whereby the
counsellee is helped to work through his interpersonal and or intrapersonal problems and
crisis.

The counsellor has to take him into confidence and be friendly with him. He has to console
and put him at comfort. The counsellor has to take care that the individual feels at ease and
open up his mind to him so that he knows the real problem faced by the individual. The
counsellor must exercise lot of patience and try to restore confidence in counsellee.

Counsellor:
Any person can act as counsellor. He must be a person with charming personality, caring,
should attract other persons toward himself and should be affectionate towards one and all
and should understand and interpret the behaviour of others. Counsellor commands respect
from the people and enjoys status in the entire organisation as his services help in achieving
good human relations. Manager has to act as counsellor many a times

Requirements of Effective Counselling:

Counselling is a serious job an executive has to perform in addition to his routine work. He
as a counsellor must therefore develops good relationship with the counsellee.

The counsellor should act as a friend, philosopher and guide to the counselee in the strict
sense of the phrase.

Manager can very well render the counselling service but if the manager cannot provide this
service then the organisation can hire the services of the expert. He can provide the
counselling services. Many large companies hire the regular services of counsellors. If
managers are to work as counsellor then they need to be trained in this respect. Counselling
should be treated as the basic employee assistance because it is required by many
employees as well as executives.

Most of them suffer from emotional imbalance, stress, and drug, alcohol and other such ills.
Counselling is a problem oriented interaction process with the aim of increasing learning
and changing behaviour. At the workplace employees need counselling in respect of wage
problem, absenteeism, relations with superiors.

Scope of counselling should not be limited to work related problems alone. The marital
problems, financial problems, problems with children and other psychological issues need
counselling. These problems also affect employee performance at the plant or office.

Techniques of Counselling:
The effective counselling needs counselling skills, complete information about the persons
to be counselled i.e. the information relating to his motives; experience, weaknesses,
strength, attitudes and behaviour should be collected before counselling.

After gathering complete information through various sources the counselling services be
provided to the person. The techniques of counselling cannot be uniformly adopted. They
vary from person to person and also depend on circumstances.

Counselling is not a modern phenomenon it is practiced since the evolution of mankind.

Only the need of it is very severely felt in modern times. Counselling is a two way process.
Counsellor can help the counsellee if he cooperates with counsellor and open his heart to
him, otherwise counselling becomes a difficult task. However, there are certain techniques
of counselling that can be followed and adopted as per the need of the situation and
counsellee.

The following are some of the techniques:

1. Releasing Emotional Tension:
Some people are more emotional. They become so at everything. They take things
emotionally and they come into the grip of emotions very often. The emotions are
associated with fear, respect, insult, anxiety, guilt, hostility etc. If the counsellee is under
emotional tension it is to be released.

2. Effective Communication:
Effective two way communication help subordinates to narrate their difficulties to their
superiors through which many problems get automatically solved. Supervisor can perform
the job of counselling. Effective two way communication remove fear from the minds of the
subordinates and they talk freely and open up their mind to the superior who can render
necessary advice then and there and can help him getting the tension of any kind released.

3. Clarified Thinking:
One should think positively and shun negative thinking. It is negative thinking needs to be
removed from the mind of counsellee. Negative thinking helps developing
misunderstanding, distrust and lies. Counsellor should develop new pattern of thinking.
Counsellee should be motivated and encouraged to think positively.
4. Performance Counselling:
As the name suggests it relates with the performance. If the employee is not keeping his
performance constant and it is below standard then counselling is required to maintain the
standard level of performance.

5. Counselling Against Alcoholism and Drug:

Alcoholism and drugs especially alcoholism in India is the major problem. It severely affects
the productivity and cost that affects the organisation quite heavily. Alcohol and drug users
remain absent frequently and consume more sick leaves as compared to other employees.

They feel tardiness at the workplace and make their departure early. They cannot judge
properly and cannot make decisions and very prone to accidents. Serious efforts on the part
of the organisation and the counsellors are needed to bring back alcoholics and drug addicts
on the track. They should be treated properly. Counsellor should develop friendship with
them and take them into confidence and convince them of the benefits of not drinking and
make aware against the health hazards of alcohol and drugs.

Organisations must take lead in arranging for counselling and sponsor programmes for
treatment of alcoholics and drug addicts. Alcoholics should be motivated not to drink and
lectures by experts of religious and spiritual nature will also help them to get rid of their bad
drinking habits. It is very difficult for alcoholics to get rid of his drinking habits. It is also
equally difficult for counsellor to convince him to abstain from drinking. But dark cloud has a
silver lining. If he is properly educated of the better life free from alcohol he will lead a
normal life.

Problems Needing Counselling:

The following are the problems that need counselling:
1. Inferiority Complex:
2. Drinking Habits:
3. Drug Addiction:
4. Disturbed Family Life:
5. Mental Worries:
Some employees get ill treatment from their superiors. These ill treatments also become
the cause of worries to the employee. They are the victims of injustice done to them by
their superiors. Sometimes on the basis of biased reporting by the superiors get deprived of
many benefits and rights.

Counselling is not the job of executives or employer alone, employees themselves and their
representatives in the unions should come forward for the job and help their colleagues and
themselves and keep them in good shape mentally and physically. They should develop the
skills and ability to help themselves under crisis and get out of it.

Self help is the best help. One should be able to develop sustainability so that he can stand
under any circumstances. Self development is the best development. There are many
methods of self development. One should stand on his own. Each one has an inner urge for
self development. It will help him to build confidence, competence and capability to cope up
with any circumstances and changes within and outside the organisation.
Change cannot be arrested. It is continuous. One should aware of the change and face it
boldly and courageously and should not lose confidence. For self development one should
make his/her swot analysis to know one’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities available
present and future and the possible threats in his way.