When a therapist moves from a ‘sophisticated’ to an ‘unsophisticated’ base, much more preliminary work in the dyad may be essential before ongoing psychotherapy can be established. In the case of Mr Taylor months of sporadic meetings were a sine qua non. To emphasise that there are no simple generalisations to be drawn, different examples are given However the main thesis explored is that as therapists we may too readily assume that because someone is approaching us professionally, we should quickly proceed to implement ‘therapy’. To achieve cooperation for the task is however more subtle, difficult and interesting.