Berne called this script pattern “Over and Over”. However, later writers have pointed out that all the patterns are lived over and over and so the title “Almost” has been adopted instead.

1. Almost Script

2. Prepared By
Manu Melwin Joy
Research Scholar
School of Management Studies
CUSAT, Kerala, India.
Phone – 9744551114
Mail – manu_melwinjoy@yahoo.com
Kindly restrict the use of slides for personal purpose.
Please seek permission to reproduce the same in public
forms and presentations.

3. Almost Script
Sisyphus was another
character to fall foul of the
touchy Greek gods. He was
condemned to spend
eternity pushing a huge rock
up a hill. Every time he
almost got to the top, he lost
his grip on the rock and it
rolled all the way down to
the bottom again. Like
Sisyphus, the modern day
person with an Almost script
says: “ I almost made it this
time.”

4. Almost Script
Fred borrows a book from
his friend. Giving it back, he
says: “Thanks for the book. I
have read it all except the
last chapter.” When Fred
cleans his car, he gets it
almost clean, except for a
few patches of mud which
he missed.

5. Almost Script
Living his Almost pattern over
the longer term, Fred has
almost been promoted at
work. But though he got near
the boss’s chair, he is not quite
made it in there. Each time he
gets to the short list, and each
time he somehow fails to
perform at the interview.

6. Almost Script
Berne called this script
pattern “Over and Over”.
However, later writers have
pointed out that all the
patterns are lived over and
over and so the title
“Almost” has been adopted
instead.

7. Almost Script
Taibi Kahler has suggested
that there are two types of
Almost pattern. He calls the
one we have discussed
“Almost type I”. In his
“Almost type II”, the person
actually does make it to the
top of the hill.

8. Almost Script
But instead of parking his
rock and sitting down with
a sigh of relief, this person
hardly even notices he is
got to the top. Without a
pause, he looks around for
an even higher hill to push
the rock up, and off he
goes. At the top of that one
in turn, he looks around to
spy a still higher mountain
to tackle.

9. Almost Script
The person with Almost type II
will often be a material high
achiever, Janet, for instance,
sailed through her examinations
in school. She went straight on
to win a scholarship to college.
By the time she graduated with
a first class degree, she had
already decided to begin her
PhD studies.

10. Almost Script
Now holding her doctorate,
she his working hard for a
Fellowship to her learned
society. Though the envy of
her colleagues, Janet herself
does not feel she had made
it. Once she is a fellow, she
tells he friends, she got her
eye on a professorship. Of
course, it will mean still
more hard work, and she
never seem to have time to
socialize.

11. Almost Script
There are two different
sentence patterns that signal
the Almost script. The speaker
may start a sentence, then go
off one tangent which he
finishes. “What I am lecturing
to you about today is – oh, by
the way, I have a page of notes
which I will give you.”

12. Almost Script
Alternatively, the person with
an Almost script may come out
with a string of positives
followed by a single negative.
“Aren’t the trees lovely in
Autumn? It is really warm, too
and such bring sunshine. Mind
you, the air is cold.”

13. References

14. Thank You

15. Other TA topics available on slideshare
1. Strokes - http://www.slideshare.net/manumjoy/strokes-24081607.
2. Games People Play - http://www.slideshare.net/manumjoy/psychological-games-
people-play.
3. Structural Analysis - http://www.slideshare.net/manumjoy/the-ego-state-model.
4. What is TA? - http://www.slideshare.net/manumjoy/what-ta-is
5. Cycles of Development - http://www.slideshare.net/manumjoy/cycles-of-developement-
pamela-levin-transactional-analysis.
6. Stages of Cure - http://www.slideshare.net/manumjoy/stages-of-cure.
7. Transactions - http://www.slideshare.net/manumjoy/transactions-33677298.
8. Time Structuring - http://www.slideshare.net/manumjoy/time-structuring.
9. Life Position - http://www.slideshare.net/manumjoy/life-position.
10. Autonomy - http://www.slideshare.net/manumjoy/autonomy-33690557.
11. Structural Pathology - http://www.slideshare.net/manumjoy/structural-pathology.
12. Game Analysis - http://www.slideshare.net/manumjoy/game-analysis-33725636.
13. Integrated Adult - http://www.slideshare.net/manumjoy/integrated-adult.
14. Stroke Economy - http://www.slideshare.net/manumjoy/stroke-economy-
33826702.