Once the therapist facilitates the establishment of rapport bespeaking "directly, simply, and honestly" (see first item, previous section), he or she can facilitate more sophisticated understanding by using images and metaphors to communicate important but complex points.
For example, a therapist wanted to discuss the patient's tendency to isolate himself from others, including those who purported to love him and to want to help him. The therapist conceptualized the patient's problem in terms of the patient's fear that he would inevitably hurt anyone who got close to him. Further, the patient saw himself as being very attractive and powerful, thus making his efforts to isolate himself from would-be admirers all the more difficult.
The therapist used the following metaphor in order to explain this formulation, while also appealing to the patient's narcissism:
"Joe, you're like a shiny new Porsche with no brakes. You're coming down the road looking as cool and swift as you can be, and everyone wants to come up close to you to get a better look. Meanwhile, you know that you have no brakes. Therefore, you're afraid if that people get too close, you're going to run them down, and you're not sure you can live with yourself if that happens, so you drive away from everybody. Joe, I think we need to get you some brakes. What do you think?"
Then the therapist elicited feedback from the patient, who said he felt both understood and complimented.
This facilitated the continued discussion of the important issue above.
