Academic Advising Portfolio - Division of Continuing Education ...

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important to use with Brandon because of his life as a student‐athlete, and athletes are used to
taking direction from advising (Pinkney & Tebbe, 2009).
Next, the advisor can challenge Brandon’s beliefs; namely, his seemingly unfounded
fear of failing out of his major. This can include very direct GPA guidance, showing Brandon
irrefutable proof on paper that he is at least qualified to continue as an engineer. Further, the
advisor should assure Brandon that his thoughts and self‐doubts are normal and nothing to be
ashamed of. The advisor can help Brandon identify other times when he has catastrophized
events and recognize his distorted thinking patterns (Young, 2009). In this way, the advisor can
work with Brandon to identify other areas of his life in which he may also be experiencing low
self‐esteem: in setting his career and life goals, exploring his interests, clarifying his personal
values and styles of life, and enhancing his reasoning and thinking (Creamer & Creamer, 1994).
Sue and Sue (2003) recommend conducting a positive assets search when working with
Asian American clients, and this is certainly appropriate approach with Brandon. This means
finding examples in Brandon’s life when he has solved a problem and identifying the steps and
skills he gained in doing so; in other words, engage in strengths‐based advising (Hagen &
Jordan, 2008). This conversation can also be a good time to work with Brandon on identifying a
way in which he may be able to prioritize a list of “back‐up” majors and investigating his
commitment to his career choice. A mutually‐developed list of pro’s and con’s can also be
created for helping Brandon identify whether or not he may continue on the swim team.
Mayhall and Burg (2002) recommend evaluating past abilities and strengths to assist Brandon in
feeling more comfortable making his own, independent decisions. Furthermore, strengths‐