If some of the basic skills of counselling were used by more of us in our normal everyday conversations, the effect would be revolutionary. That’s the view of Professor Gerard Egan, one of the most influential figures in the world of psychotherapy. His seminal work, The Skilled Helper, is a core text for the profession and has been in print continuously since its publication in 1973 – it’s currently in its eleventh edition.

Gerry has been a big influence on our work from the outset, and we were delighted to be able to sit down with him in London recently, and catch up on his current passion…

The idea of talking to someone who’s caused us immense pain is always hard to imagine and sometimes impossible. But people like Marina Cantacuzino and Jo Berry are proving that well-handled conversations can lead to not just to reconciliation, but to transformation. In this episode we ask them about their approach.

Marina is the founder of The Forgiveness Project, which gives a voice to survivors and perpetrators of crime and conflict who have rebuilt their lives following hurt and trauma. Jo is best known for her work on reconciliation with Pat Magee, the former IRA member who in 1984 planted the bomb at the Grand Hotel in Brighton that killed five people – including her father, Sir Anthony Berry MP.

Open, productive conversation can easily be stifled when there’s a difference, real or perceived, in the status of those involved. This is one of the many problems outlined in  ‘Somebodies and Nobodies’ the excellent book by  the American academic, writer and campaigner Robert W. Fuller.

It’s a passionate exposé of one of the last great ‘isms’ – rankism – which, like racism and sexism, deserves a special place in the dustbin of history. Anybody who’s ever felt the sting of being made to feel a ‘nobody’ by a (supposed) ‘somebody’ will instantly recognise the picture he paints – and maybe even want to do something about it…