Online Course:

Introductory Motivational Interviewing Training

Course Description

Wednesdays & Thursdays
July 22–23 and July 29–30, 2026

12:30–3:30 PM EST

This 12-hour Introductory Motivational Interviewing (MI) training provides participants with a solid grounding in the spirit, principles, and core skills of Motivational Interviewing, an evidence-based, person-centered approach to supporting behavior change.

Motivational Interviewing is particularly effective in working with ambivalence, enhancing engagement, and supporting individuals in making changes aligned with their own values and goals. This training is appropriate for clinicians, case managers, healthcare providers, supervisors, and other helping professionals who want to strengthen their conversational skills and improve outcomes.

Learning Objectives

By the end of this training, you will be able to:

  • Describe the core principles and spirit of Motivational Interviewing

  • Demonstrate basic OARS skills in practice conversations

  • Understand the Four Tasks

  • Identify change talk and sustain talk in client language

  • Use reflections and affirmations to support engagement and self-efficacy

  • Respond to ambivalence in a way that reduces resistance and strengthens motivation

  • Apply MI-consistent strategies in their professional role and setting

    This foundational training is designed to build both confidence and competence, providing participants with practical tools they can immediately begin using in their work.

Training Content

You will be introduced to the foundational elements of MI, including:

  • The Spirit of Motivational Interviewing (Compassion, Acceptance, Partnership, and Empowerment)

  • The core skills of MI (Open-ended questions, Affirmations, Reflective listening, Summaries, and Offering Information and Advice)

  • The Four Tasks of Motivational Interviewing (Engaging, Focusing, Evoking, Planning)

  • The Guiding Style and how MI differs from directing or advising

  • Understanding and responding to ambivalence

  • Identifying and eliciting change talk

  • Recognizing and responding to sustain talk and discord

  • Using reflections strategically to deepen conversation and support change

  • Integrating MI skills into real-world practice settings

The training emphasizes experiential learning, including demonstrations, small-group practice, structured exercises, and reflective discussion.

Pricing and Registration

  • Early Bird, before July 1st: $200

  • After July 1st: $225

Questions or More Information

Contact Sara Schieffelin at sara@saraschieffelin.com

Register

Cancellation Policy

  • One month or more prior to the training:
    Eligible for a 100% refund, minus a $25 administrative fee.

  • Between two weeks and one month prior to the training:
    Eligible for a 50% refund, minus a $25 administrative fee.

  • Less than two weeks prior to the training:
    Registration fees are non-refundable.

  • The trainer reserves the right to cancel the training up to two weeks prior to the start date if the minimum enrollment of eight (8) participants is not met. In the event of cancellation by the trainer, all registration fees will be fully refunded.

  • All refund requests must be submitted in writing to sara@saraschieffelin.com.