The many different therapeutic models in use today can lead to blind spots in clinical practice. This important and timely book gives a balanced synthesis, based on actual cases, evidence, practice and experience, to describe the process of psychotherapy and identify the fundamental elements that lead to good outcome across all its schools. In the course of developing a consistently reliable, effective, practical psychotherapy, Digby Tantam pinpoints four essential principles: addressing the person's concerns; taking into account their values and personal morality; recognizing the role of emotions; and binding it all into a narrative treatment for symptom relief, resolution of predicaments, release from addiction or sexual problems, and finding happiness through intimacy. This book is essential reading for psychiatrists or clinical psychologists looking for a straightforward framework for short-term psychotherapy and anyone working long-term with patients using a psychotherapy model.