Last week I was in Fort Worth, Texas, at the invitation of Mercy Heart, a nonprofit organization that “assists families and children of inmates through and beyond the transitions of incarceration.” Over two days I trained community-based service providers to use families as a resource for people who are in or returning from jail or prison.

Although Mercy Heart is experienced at assisting families in crisis, this is the organization’s first effort at a structured family-case-management program. As the training participants learned about tools and methods that would help them reach their goal, I was struck by the group’s compassion and dedication. Several volunteers used vacation days from their jobs to attend the training and learn how to better help local families. During one activity, a trainee described how she plans to gather information about family strengths, by asking, “What does your family look like at its best?”

What are the implications of asking such a question in your work?