The Combined IDL Interviewing Protocol
Combined Dream and Life Issue
IDL Interviewing Protocols
Joseph Dillard, LCSW., Ph.D.
What are three fundamental life issues that you are dealing with now in your life?
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If a dream or a nightmare is the subject of the interview, continue as follows. If not, skip to the bold, below:
Tell me a dream you remember. It can be an old one, a repetitive dream, a nightmare, or one that you’re sure you understand.
Why do you think that you had this dream?
These are the characters in the dream, beside yourself…
If one character had something especially important to tell you, what would it be?
Now remember how as a child you liked to pretend you were a teacher or a doctor? It’s easy and fun for you to imagine that you are the shape that took form from your color and answer some questions I ask, saying the first thing that comes to your mind. If you wait too long to answer, that’s not the character answering – that’s YOU trying to figure out the right thing to say!
(Character,) What is your name? How would you like to be called?
(Now skip to (Character), would you please tell me about yourself and what you are doing?
If a life issue is being interviewed instead of a dream, skip the above after naming three life issues and begin here:
Which issue brings up the strongest feelings for you?
What feelings does this issue bring up for you?
If those feelings had a color (or colors), what would it be?
Imagine that color filling the space in front of you so that it has depth, height, width, and aliveness.
Now watch that color swirl, congeal, and condense into a shape. Don’t make it take a shape, just watch it and say the first thing that you see or that comes to your mind: An animal? Object? Plant? What? If this is your first interview, what animal does this color/feeling most remind you of?
Now remember how as a child you liked to pretend you were a teacher or a doctor? It’s easy and fun for you to imagine that you are the shape that took form from your color and answer some questions I ask, saying the first thing that comes to your mind. If you wait too long to answer, that’s not the character answering – that’s YOU trying to figure out the right thing to say!
(Character,) What is your name? How would you like to be called?
(Character), would you please tell me about yourself. Where are you in relation to your human? In front of, behind? Above? Inside? Where? What are you doing?
(Character), what do you like most about yourself? What are your strengths?
(Character), what do you dislike most about yourself? Do you have weaknesses? What are they?
(Character), what aspect of _____ do you represent or most closely personify?
(Character), if you could be anywhere you wanted to be and take any form you desired, would you change? If so, how?
(Character), if you want to stay the same, that’s OK! If you want to change, are you sure that is YOU that wants to change and not just your human wanting you to change?
(Continue, answering as the transformed object, if it chose to change.)
(Character), are you sure that is YOU that wants to change? Only change if it’s what YOU want!
(Character), how would you score yourself 0-10, in each of the following six core qualities: confidence, compassion, wisdom, acceptance, inner peace, and witnessing? Why?
Confidence, 0-10. Why?
Compassion, 0-10. Why?
Wisdom, 0-10. Why?
Acceptance, 0-10. Why?
Inner Peace, 0-10. Why?
Witnessing, 0-10. Why?
(Character), how would _______’s life be different if s/he naturally scored like you do in all six of these qualities all the time?
(Character), if you could live _____’s life for him/her, how would you live it differently?
(Character),if you could live _____’s waking life for him/her today, would you handle ____’s three life issues differently? If so, how?
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(Character), what life issues would you focus on if you were in charge of ______’s life? The same or different?
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(Character), in what life situations would it be most beneficial for ____ to imagine that s/he is you and act as you would?
(Character), do you do drama? Do you get into playing the Victim, Persecutor, or Rescuer? If not, why not?
(Character), What is your secret for staying out of drama?
(Character), you are imaginary. Why should ______ pay attention to anything you say?
(Character), how is _______ most likely to ignore what you are saying to him/her?
(Character), what would you recommend that he/she do about that?
Thank you, (Character!) Now here are a couple of questions for _______:
Look back over the interview and list the specific recommendations that were made. What were they? List them below:
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Pick at least one of these recommendations to test in your daily life for the next week.
Before bed, score yourself in how you did, 0-10, with 0 means “failed, or badly,” 5 meaning “OK,” and 10 meaning “beyond expectations.” Or, if the item is something you either remember to do or forgot, just give yourself a √ if you remembered to do it!
If this experience were a wake-up call from your life compass, what do you think it would be saying to you?
If what was said in this interview was a message for humanity as a whole, what would it be telling us?
How would the world be different if we took this message to heart?
