NARM Training Institute

In this webinar, Wanting to Be Liked by Your Kids and Clients, NARM Master Therapist Sherri Sharkins and NARM founder Dr. Laurence Heller explore the tension between authenticity and attachment. They discuss how the desire for acceptance can lead us to prioritize being liked over being grounded in ourselves, and the survival strategies that develop as a result of prioritizing this. Through a NARM lens, they discuss how these adaptations shape our sense of self, our relationships, and the choices we make in adulthood.

The webinar applies these concepts directly to both clinical practice and parenting. For clinicians, the need to be liked affects countertransference and often manifests as difficulty setting boundaries, undercharging, avoiding necessary confrontation, or taking on clients who are not a good fit. For parents, it can make setting limits for one's children more challenging as well as contribute to reenacting familiar relational patterns. The teaching from this webinar offers practical NARM perspectives for recognizing these dynamics, cultivating greater self-awareness and self-compassion, and making more conscious choices that support authenticity, connection, and healthy relationships.