According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Facts of 2009, "Each year, an estimated 443,000 people die prematurely from smoking or exposure to secondhand smoke, and another 8.6 million have a serious illness caused by smoking." Motivating someone to make a behavior change like quitting smoking can be extremely challenging. The best method is to help your loved one find it in themselves to quit smoking. By asking the right questions and truly listening, you'll assist your loved one in figuring out why they smoke and what barriers they may be up against trying to quit. This technique is often known as motivational interviewing and is clinically proven to motivate behavior change.
Step 1
Listen to the smoker's thoughts about quitting and do not stand in judgement. When someone has the courage to talk about their smoking addiction, he is asking for help. The first step is to listen carefully.
Step 2
Reflect his thoughts about smoking. People smoke for different reasons, some quite surprising. If your loved one says it's hard to quit because all his friends smoke respond like this: "I hear you telling me all your friends smoke, that must be hard when your trying to quit." Reflection shows you are listening and you care.
Step 3
Use a ruler. Ask your loved one "On a scale of one to 10, how motivated are you to quit smoking"? If his number is less than "10" ask him what it would take get to a "10." Repeat the ruler with the question: "On a scale of one to 10, how important is it for you to quit"? Probe them as to what it would take to make the importance factor a "10."
Step 4
Assess their stage of change: Stage 1. Not contemplating quitting; Stage 2. Contemplating quitting; Stage 3. Making plans to quit; or in Stage 4. In the process of quitting. Again, ask him what it would take to move him forward from one stage to another.
Step 5
Reward him. Depending on your relationship, think up appropriate long- and short-term rewards you can offer for quit efforts. For example, maybe you take him out to a movie for not smoking all weekend or treat your loved one to a coffee or smoothie for making it through the day without a cigarette. Even non-monetary things like massages, taking on chores and running errands can be seen as a motivating reward depending on your relationship .
