David Yau & Associates

Robin Williams in 'Good Will Hunting' This post is to reflect on the relationship between humour and me in helping conversations.    On reflection, I used to hold a slightly negative view on producing humour in helping conversations.  It is a kind of cheat — a way to avoid the real work, or to collude with the clients, or even to entertain them for the ‘5’ rating.  Humour, I believed, was what you used when you do not want to face something important. Looking back, that beli

Our words don’t just describe reality – They create it.

A Hong Kong made movie about family as well as living and dying My training in the last 2 years is in the field what most would call ‘Systemic Family Psychotherapy’.  But what is really meant by ‘systemic’?    Can one apply such ‘systemic’ approach to non-family entities including individuals?   ‘Systemic’   It is a big word.   The more I pay attention to it in the field of therapy and coaching, the more I realize the word means different things in different practices.   When

Sun rising again over Lake Geneva..... I have paused writing on this blog for almost 2 years because of change in personal circumstances.  Among all, I have been occupied with my training in Systemic Family Psychotherapy.    Whilst I will resume to write here, one key theme is to reflect on the training especially in contrasting with practices in the non-therapeutic world.      I am aware that I will look at it as a person who worked before in the commercial world, has been p

I find myself asking this question more and more often in my coaching work.  Asking this question (with a tone out of curiosity and...

It has been a long while since I last wrote.   So much things have happened and there are a lot to reflect on. Let me first reflect on a...

I enjoy the diagnosis as much as the intervention part of my work. I always derive a lot of fun and learn a lot in working out with...

I happened to come across again these 2 movies after I wrote my last post on 'Appreciating Defense'. The main characters in the movies...

Day 55 of the lockdown. The official announcement is that the restriction is being relaxed. But …. along with many others, our compound is still under lockdown without any news when or under what condition it will end. Ironically, such discrepancy frustrates people (me included) even more. In an attempt to 'take some control back', I am trying to derive some learning out of it. In the last post 'Shanghai Lockdown like a GRC' , I reflected on how similar the experienc

In the spring of 2022, I find myself like in a Group Relation Conference (GRC) of 900+ members in Shanghai. I am talking about the...

(Photo source - https://snapshotsforsoreeyes.com/2015/06/22/light-at-the-end/) Jimmy (pseudonym) told me (as the coach), ‘I am...

It was a difficult case of intact team development. Aspiration Bridge Company (pseudonym) is a foreign-owned financial services company...

(Photo source: Flora Baker @ twitter.com) 2021 has been a busy year. With the quieter Jan, I am going to catch up with my reflection...

I reflected on the concept of ROLE in the last post – Why me again fixing the Wifi? I come across recently an unusual example in...

One day I found myself attempting to fix the Wifi at home again.  I was somehow annoyed with it.  ‘Why me again?’…. And I have already...

(Source: press.ikidane-nippon.com) An executive made a casual remark in a recent intact team development workshop, 'Smoking (together)...