What is an outcome you’d like to achieve in your life right now?
What if therapy could help you get there, without having to dig too deeply into your past?
For those seeking an outcome-oriented, time-efficient, and evidence-based therapeutic approach, Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT) offers a refreshingly practical and empowering way forward.
Whether you’re a mental health professional, a wellbeing coach, or simply curious about therapeutic approaches, this article will walk you through how SFBT works, where it shines, and how it fits into Singapore’s broader ecosystem of mental wellbeing.
What is Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT)?
SFBT is a strengths-based modality that helps individuals build on what’s working, rather than dwelling on problems. Grounded in the belief that people already have the inner resources to create meaningful change, this approach is especially suited to those who want focused support, clear direction, and a greater sense of personal agency.
By shifting the spotlight toward what can be done differently from now on, SFBT supports individuals to envision a better future and take small, achievable steps to move in that direction, making it a valuable approach within Singapore’s evolving mental health landscape.
Origins and Development
Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT) emerged in the 1980s through the pioneering work of Steve de Shazer, Insoo Kim Berg, and their colleagues at the Brief Family Therapy Center in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
It was deeply influenced by systemic and family therapy traditions, which focus on relationships and the broader context of individuals’ lives. SFBT evolved as a response to the problem-focused approaches of the time, offering a new question: “What’s already working, and how can we build on it?”
Key conceptual foundations came from the strategic therapy model developed by Watzlawick, Weakland, and Fisch (2011) at the Mental Research Institute, which emphasised the potential for change without needing to fully understand the origins of a problem. These ideas laid the groundwork for SFBT’s signature focus on present and future possibilities, rather than past causes.
Since its development, SFBT has consistently maintained its identity as a goal-oriented, client-led, and strengths-based approach over the decades (Jerome et al., 2023). Beyond its theoretical consistency, SFBT is also supported by a growing body of evidence. It is recognised as an evidence-based practice on the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s (SAMHSA) National Registry of Evidence-Based Programs and Practices in the U.S.
Research studies, such as those by Fraser, Richman, Galinsky, and Day (2009) and Gingerich and Peterson (2013), have further demonstrated SFBT’s effectiveness in reducing psychological distress and improving client outcomes across diverse populations. SFBT has been effectively applied in settings ranging from clinical therapy and coaching to healthcare, education, and social services, underscoring its adaptability and relevance within today’s resource-constrained mental health systems (Jerome et al., 2023).
What Makes SFBT Different from Other Psychotherapy Modalities?
SFBT stands apart for its focus on building solutions, not solving problems. While other modalities may explore a client’s past or unconscious patterns, SFBT asks: “What do you want to be different, and what’s one small step you can take today?”
Key features that set SFBT apart include:
-
Focus on the Desired Future
: Clients are invited to articulate what they want to be different in their lives. Sessions revolve around constructing a clear picture of the client’s preferred future. -
Brevity
: Therapy is intentionally short-term, with many clients experiencing meaningful progress within just a few sessions. -
Client as Expert
: SFBT therapists adopt a “not-knowing” stance, approaching each session with genuine curiosity and trust in the client’s ability to identify what works best for them. -
Strengths-Based
: The approach seeks to amplify what’s working, no matter how small, and encourages clients to intentionally do more of it. -
Solution-Building Rather than Problem-Solving:
: Unlike traditional models that analyse problems in depth, SFBT focuses on co-creating solutions.
In contrast to therapies that diagnose or treat dysfunction, SFBT supports clients in moving toward what they want, often without needing to deeply analyse the past. This makes it especially suitable for settings where time, accessibility, and clarity of goals are critical, such as schools, community clinics, coaching environments, and workplace wellbeing programmes.
This future-focused framework shares much in common with positive psychology approaches, which also emphasises strengths, resilience, and the pursuit of meaningful goals. Both approaches view individuals as capable and resourceful, focusing on what gives life energy and direction rather than what holds people back.
Solution-Focused Brief Therapy in Practice
Overview of Session Structure
Unlike more open-ended therapeutic approaches, SFBT is structured around clarity and momentum. Treatment plans are typically brief, often between 3 to 10 sessions, and each conversation is focused on moving the client closer to their desired outcome. While clients often arrive with a problem or a sense of stuckness, SFBT does not disregard these concerns. Instead, it reframes the process by asking: “Where do you want to be instead, and how will you know when you’re getting there?”
Each session is centred on the client’s concerns and what they care most about. Who and what are important to them? What changes would they like to see? What might a preferred future look like? The conversation revolves around meaningful goals as defined by the client.
Therapists guide clients to reflect on their own experiences to uncover what’s already working, even in small or subtle ways. This might include identifying exceptions: moments when the problem was less intense or didn’t occur at all. For example, if a client is struggling with anxiety, an exception could be a time they felt calm or were able to manage a stressful situation effectively. By exploring what was different in those moments – what they did, thought, or who was around – clients begin to see that change is already happening, and that they have more control than they may have realised.
As sessions progress, clients are encouraged to imagine how these inner resources could be applied more broadly in their life. Scaling tools may be used to monitor shifts in perspective, motivation, or progress, offering clients a visual and reflective way to track their journey and stay engaged in the change process.
Overall, each SFBT session is focused on possibility, progress, and collaboration, helping clients take manageable steps toward their desired future.
Basic Tenets of SFBT
At its core, SFBT is guided by a few foundational beliefs that shape how therapy unfolds:
Clients are the experts of their own lives.
The therapist does not interpret or analyse the client’s story from a clinical distance. Instead, they work co-constructively, trusting that the client has the resources needed to create change.
Change is inevitable and already happening
SFBT operates on the assumption that change is constant. Therapists help clients notice and build on even the smallest signs of progress, often using a language of change, highlighting improvements, reinforcing strengths, and framing conversations around what’s working and what’s possible.
Focus on the future, not the past
While clients can certainly talk about their problems, the focus is always on where they want to go next, what life would look like without the problem, and what steps they can take to get there.
Small changes lead to big results
Rather than aiming for dramatic transformations, SFBT helps clients take small, manageable steps. These can then snowball into significant and sustainable improvements.
If it's working, do more of it
SFBT encourages clients to identify what strategies or behaviours have been helpful and to intentionally build on them, rather than starting from scratch.
Together, these tenets create a hopeful, practical, and empowering therapeutic experience that helps clients work towards their goals and build towards their potential.
Key Techniques used in SFBT
At the heart of Solution-Focused Brief Therapy is a set of simple yet powerful techniques designed to help clients shift their focus from problems to possibilities. These tools help individuals notice what’s working, tap into their own resources, and move toward change.
Here are five core techniques commonly used in SFBT:
The Miracle Question
This iconic SFBT tool invites clients to imagine a future where their problem has been resolved. A typical phrasing might be:
“Suppose tonight, while you were asleep, a miracle happened and the problem you’re facing disappeared. When you wake up tomorrow, what would be the first signs that something had changed?”
This question helps clients clarify their goals, define what “better” looks like, and begin thinking about small actions they can take in that direction.
Scaling Question
To help clients assess their current state and track progress, therapists often use scaling questions such as:
“On a scale of 0 to 10, where 10 means things are exactly as you’d like them to be, and 0 means the opposite, where are you today?”
Clients might then be asked what has helped them get to that number, or what one small step might move them forward. These questions help externalise the issue and make change feel more attainable.
Finding Exceptions
Rather than digging into when problems occur, SFBT looks at when they don’t. These are known as “exceptions”, times when the issue was less intense or absent altogether. By exploring what was different in those moments, clients uncover useful patterns, coping strategies, or environmental factors they can build upon.
Identifying Resources
A defining feature of SFBT is its emphasis on the strengths and capacities clients already possess. Rather than introducing new coping strategies from the outside, the therapist helps clients uncover existing resources, such as personal qualities, supportive relationships, past successes, or even habits that have helped them get through tough times.
By shining a spotlight on what’s already working, clients often realise they are more capable than they think. This not only builds confidence but also provides practical tools they can draw upon immediately. In sessions, therapists may ask questions like, “What helps you get through a difficult day?” or “Who in your life supports you when things are hard?
Complimenting
Compliments in SFBT are a way of affirming the client’s strengths and reinforcing helpful behaviours. These can be delivered directly (“That sounds like a really thoughtful step you took”) or indirectly through appreciative questions like, “How did you manage to do that despite everything going on?”
By acknowledging effort and resilience, therapists help clients internalise their own resourcefulness. Compliments also reinforce change and build confidence, laying the foundation for more hopeful and empowered action moving forward.
Applications of SFBT
One of the key strengths of Solution-Focused Brief Therapy is its flexibility. Originally developed for family therapy, SFBT has since been adapted to a wide range of settings and populations. It’s used by mental health professionals, coaches, educators, and healthcare providers in both clinical and community-based environments.
SFBT has been effectively applied in:
-
Counselling and psychotherapy
: for anxiety, depression, stress, and adjustment challenges -
Schools and youth services
: supporting students with behavioural or emotional concerns -
Workplace wellbeing
: in coaching, employee assistance programmes (EAPs), and team interventions -
Healthcare settings
: particularly in primary care and nursing, where time is limited -
Social services
: working with families, individuals in crisis, and vulnerable populations
Because it’s brief, practical, and forward-looking, SFBT is especially suited to environments where time and resources are limited but the need for positive change is urgent.
How SFBT Fits Singapore's Mental Health Landscape
In recent years, Singapore has seen growing public attention on mental health, with initiatives emphasising early intervention, community-based care, and personal agency. SFBT aligns well with these priorities.
For instance:
-
Time-sensitive support
: With long waiting times in public mental health services, a therapy that can offer results in fewer sessions is particularly valuable. -
Empowerment over pathologising
: SFBT's strengths-based philosophy resonates with the rising preference for client-led care, one that focuses on capabilities, not just conditions -
Cultural adaptability
: As a non-diagnostic and goal-oriented approach, SFBT fits well within Singapore's multicultural context, allowing individuals to define success in ways that are meaningful to them. -
Applications beyond therapy
: SFBT's techniques are also gaining traction among coaches, educators, and HR professionals looking to support mental wellbeing without taking a clinical route.
Whether used in a school counselling room, a corporate coaching session, or a polyclinic setting, SFBT offers a nimble, hopeful approach that helps people move toward change without needing to dig deep into diagnostic labels or long histories.
Strengths and Limitations
Like all therapeutic approaches, Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT) isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution. While its practical and empowering nature makes it a great fit for many, it may not be the best approach for every individual or situation.
Who benefits most from SFBT?
SFBT is particularly suitable for individuals who:
- Are looking for short-term, goal-oriented support
- Prefer to focus on solutions and future possibilities rather than analysing past problems
- Possess some level of motivation and agency, even if they feel stuck
- Appreciate concrete strategies and incremental progress
- Are navigating mild to moderate challenges, such as workplace stress, life transitions, or interpersonal issues
It also works well in settings like schools, coaching, and primary care, places where brief but meaningful support can make a lasting impact.
When might SFBT be less suitable?
There are situations where SFBT may need to be supplemented or replaced by other approaches, especially when:
- The person is experiencing severe trauma, complex mental health diagnoses, or acute distress that requires deeper therapeutic work
- There is a need for extensive emotional processing, such as grief, abuse, or unresolved past experiences
- A client struggles to imagine a preferred future or is not yet ready to engage with forward-looking questions
- Risk factors, such as self-harm or suicidality, require comprehensive assessment and longer-term care
That said, SFBT principles, such as focusing on strengths and building small wins, can still be integrated into broader care plans. And as research shows, its collaborative, respectful stance often complements other modalities in multi-disciplinary settings.
Ultimately, the best outcomes occur when the therapy matches the client’s needs, context, and readiness for change. SFBT offers an empowering pathway forward, but it works best when it’s the right fit.
The Road Ahead for SFBT
Globally, one in eight people experience mental health challenges such as anxiety, depression, or substance use disorders. Yet, the shortage of trained mental health professionals means many go without the support they need. This gap has profound implications for healthcare, quality of life, workplace productivity, and societal wellbeing (WHO, 2021; 2022). In light of this, there is a growing need for effective, accessible, and low-cost interventions that can make a difference in the short term.
Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT) offers a practical, future-oriented, and efficient way to foster change. Whether applied in community clinics, schools, workplaces, or coaching settings, it enables people to harness their inner resources and take meaningful steps forward.
If you’re looking to explore SFBT in greater depth, whether as a practitioner, educator, or someone passionate about mental wellbeing, The School of Positive Psychology (TSPP) offers training in counselling and psychotherapy, including in modalities like SFBT and Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT). These accredited programmes are designed to equip learners with practical, evidence-based tools to support others and to grow through the process themselves.
At its heart, therapy doesn’t have to be a last resort. It can be a proactive act of clarity, courage, and self-discovery. And SFBT is one such empowering path, built not around what’s broken, but around what’s possible.
References
Fraser, M. W., Richman, J. M., Galinsky, M. J., & Day, S. H. (2009). Intervention research: Developing social programs. Oxford university press.
Gingerich, W. J., & Peterson, L. T. (2013). Effectiveness of solution-focused brief therapy: A systematic qualitative review of controlled outcome studies. Research on social work practice, 23(3), 266-283.
Jerome, A., Lethem, J., & Sharry, J. (2023). Solution-focused brief therapy: A conceptual review of its core components and implementation. Journal of Contemporary Psychotherapy, 53(1), 35–47. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10879-022-09538-6
Watzlawick, P., Weakland, J. H., & Fisch, R. (2011). Change: Principles of problem formation and problem resolution. W. W. Norton & Company.
World Health Organization. (2021). Guidance on community mental health services: Promoting person-centred and rights-based approaches. https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240025707
World Health Organization. (2022). World mental health report: Transforming mental health for all. https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240049338
