your nlp training survival -...

YOUR NLP TRAINING

SURVIVAL GUIDE:

HOW TO CHOOSE THE RIGHT NLP TRAINING...

Matt Caulfield www.mattcaulfield.co.uk

© Matt Caulfield www.mattcaulfield.co.uk 1

© 2010 Matt Caulfield

This entire document is copyright to Matt Caulfield. You have permission to

post this, email this, print this and pass it along for free to anyone you like, as

long as you make no changes or edits to its contents or digital format. The

right to sell it as a book or ebook, however, is strictly reserved. While we’re at

it, I’d like to keep the movie rights too…


Authors Note: In the interests of transparency and honesty, I have to mention

before I begin that I am an NLP trainer who runs regular NLP training courses.

I am a member of the Society of NLP and the Association of NLP.

However this report is not a thinly veiled attempt to try and convince you that

the courses I offer are better than everyone else. I have made every effort to

remain as unbiased as possible and have drawn on my years of experiences

in the NLP field.

This report is not designed to offer advice or suggestions about who to train

with. It is written to gather together and try and explain in a clear and concise

way what can be quite a confusing topic. There is also guidance of how to go

about choosing an NLP training company. In no way do I endorse one training

company/qualifying body over another.

I am in a unique position that I have run an NLP practice group for a number

of years. This practice group was open to anyone that had trained in NLP and

I have spoken to people who have trained in the majority of NLP training

companies and are qualified by the big NLP qualifying bodies.

I have sited examples where possible from my own experience and

experiences of others.

Also please note that this guide is not designed to tell you what NLP is (or

isn’t) and assumes that you are already aware of NLP’s broader points. This

report is intended to help you take that first step on your training in NLP.


Contents

Introduction The 3 Most Common Misconceptions About NLP Training The Qualifying Bodies The Society of NLP...................................................................................... The American Board of NLP........................................................................ The International NLP Trainers Association................................................ The International Training Academy of NLP................................................ Members Organisations............................................................................... Types of Trainings and Qualifications Introduction or Taster Course...................................................................... Diploma or Foundation................................................................................ Practitioner................................................................................................... Master Practitioner....................................................................................... How to choose an NLP Training or Trainer 1) Start with the outcome in mind................................................................ 2) Do Your Homework!................................................................................ 3) The Structure of the Training................................................................... 4) The Price of the Training......................................................................... 5) The Most Important Element: The Trainer.............................................. 6) Finding a Trainer..................................................................................... 7) Create a Shortlist..................................................................................... A Checklist of things you need to know before the training About the Trainer/s...................................................................................... About The Qualification............................................................................... About The Booking Process and Cost......................................................... About the Training....................................................................................... About Practical Issues................................................................................. About After the Training............................................................................... What To Expect During the Training What to do if you are Unhappy with Your Training Conclusion Appendix 1: Checklist Template

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Introduction

Back at the start of 2009 I did a survey of my mailing list to understand why

people chose the NLP training that they did.

The results shocked me!

The three main reasons that people used to pick the training that they went on

were:

1. Location

2. Price

3. Date

Very few gave much thought to reputation, qualification or ability and

experience of the trainers and (probably not unsurprisingly) a lot of people

admitted to being unhappy with their training as a result.

Quite a few people who I have spoken to were shocked to realise that they

didn’t actually have a valid or recognised NLP qualification.

All things being equal, the 3 things listed above probably would be sensible

things to base a decision on. Sadly NLP training isn’t equal and there is a vast

difference in quality in training between different NLP training companies.

The NLP training field has exploded over the last few years with many new

companies entering the market place offering NLP training. This is a good

thing and a bad thing. It has increased choice but it also means, with the

increased number of people offering trainings, that the quality of these

trainings has, in some places, suffered, with a broader range of quality of the

trainings.

Sadly it is all too easy to set yourself up as an NLP trainer with little or no

experience.


With the increased competition and every training company shouting to get

your attention it is becoming increasingly confusing and difficult to find the

right course for you, with all the training companies offering different styles of

training and different qualifications, all claiming to be the best or, in some

cases, the ONLY authentic NLP training course out there.

This guide is designed to cut through the jargon and the hype and help you to

choose the NLP course that is right for you.

You shouldn’t dive into NLP training lightly and it is your responsibility to

educate yourself in order to get the best and most relevant course or you.

For the right person at the right time (and choosing the right trainer and

course), NLP training will have significant positive impact for them and their

lives. For this reason, it’s important that you choose your NLP Trainer with

care. Here are some important aspects to consider when choosing an NLP

Trainer.


The 3 Most Common Misconceptions About NLP Training

Misconception Number 1: The longer the course the better the course.

Some NLP training course can go on for weeks unnecessarily due to the

limiting belief of the trainers that it HAS to take a long time to learn. Some

training organisations judge the success of their training on how long it takes.

There is a common misconception that a LONG training = a GOOD training.

This is complete nonsense. The quality of the training has NOTHING to do

with how long it is. I have heard that an NLP Practitioner training HAS to take

120hrs, this is simply not true.

Many NLP trainers (including Richard Bandler) have been running very

successful trainings of a much shorter length than this since the early 90’s.

We will talk more about the length of a training in later sections.

Misconception number 2: The more expensive the course the better the

course.

I have seen training organisations charge you thousands of pounds. I saw one

course that was teaching NLP and charging in excess of £3000! What added

value do you think you get from paying that much?

Do you really think the cost a course is a good indicator of the quality of the

course?

There are many factors that affect the cost of training, very few of which are a

direct indicator of the trainings.

Sadly, unless there is a very, very good reason for it, I would carefully

consider whether the more expensive courses may just be ripping you off by

tapping into this common misconception.


Misconception Number 3: The more delegates the better the course.

Some training courses available today have large numbers of participants.

While initially this seems impressive, the result is often that there is a lack of

personalised attention to each individual.

With larger trainings, support for delegates is often the responsibility of a

“training team”, which are usually volunteer trainers and practitioners. So, with

larger trainings it is doubtful you will get any assistance from the lead trainers

and the quality of the course is directly associated with the quality of the

“training team”.


The Qualifying Bodies

It is important to remember that NLP is very lightly regulated. On a whole this

is a good thing, as it allows the field to be creative and to develop without

being strangled by excessive regulations, however this can mean that the

quality of the training and the experience of the trainers can vary wildly.

The other thing you have to remember is that the qualifying bodies are

commercial organisations in themselves, that are making money from

qualifying trainers and practitioners in NLP and therefore they have a vested

interest in qualifying as many people as possible.

The money making element of the qualifying bodies means that they often

have conflicting interests in keeping the quality high and making money from

qualifying people.

This is in no way meant to disparage any qualifying body or suggest that they

are cynical money making machines, far from it, there has been an ongoing

debate about quality between qualifying bodies for years and all of them

recognise the possible damaging effect to NLP as whole of appearing to just

be a commercial exercise.

It is interesting to note though, that in the 12 years I have been involved in

NLP, The Society of NLP is the only organisation I am aware of that has taken

steps to strip unprofessional or incompetent trainers of their training licence.

So, although looking for membership of a recognised qualifying body is

essential when choosing a trainer, it is not the guarantee of quality you might

expect. Don’t get sucked in by claims made a trainer or qualifying body and

make sure that you research each training company in detail. It’s critical that

potential you are able to find out the calibre and quality of the trainer before

commencing your training.


Saying all that, choosing a trainer from a recognised qualifying body is

essential in NLP. The “big 4” are:

The Society of NLP (SNLP)

www.nlptrainers.com

What they say:

“Established in 1978, the Society of Neuro-

Linguistic Programming is a worldwide organisation

set up for the purpose of exerting quality control

over those training programs and services claiming to represent the model of

Neuro-Linguistic Programming™(NLP™).

It is the first and largest NLP certification, training, validation and quality

control organisation in the world.

The Society seal indicates Society Certification and is usually advertised by

Society of NLP - Richard Bandler approved institutes and centers. We highly

recommend that you exercise caution as you apply the techniques and skills

of NLP™. We also urge you to attend only those seminars, workshops and

training programs that have been officially designed and certified by The

Society of Neuro-Linguistic Programming™. Any training programs that have

been approved and endorsed by The Society of Neuro-Linguistic

Programming™ will display a copy of the certification mark(s) of the Society of

Neuro-Linguistic Programming™ - Richard Bandler.”


The America Board of NLP (ABNLP)

www.abh-abnlp.com

What they say:

“The American Board of NLP was founded in

1995 by Dr. A. M. Krasner as an adjunct to the

American Board of Hypnotherapy and has

functioned as its sister organization since then.

We have a convention every February on President's Day weekend in

Newport Beach with the ABH. Today we have over 500 institutes worldwide

approved at the Trainer Level of NLP, and thousands of members. We believe

in NLP and we believe in Hypnosis as being most excellent ways of creating

our own personal growth and development.”

The International NLP Trainers Association (INLPTA)

www.inlpta.co.uk

What they say:

“The International NLP Trainers Association

(INLPTA) was formed in late 1993 by Wyatt

Woodsmall (NLP Master Trainer and Master

Modeler, USA), Marvin Oka (NLP Master Trainer, Australia), and Bert Feustel

(NLP Master Trainer, Germany) in response to a growing need amongst NLP

Trainers around the world for the establishment of a unified accreditation body

based on a consistency of quality in the accreditation standards, professional

conduct and ethical applications of NLP technology.”


The International Training Academy of NLP (ITANLP)

www.itanlp.com

What they say:

“John Grinder, Carmen Bostic St Clair and

Michael Carroll formed The International

Trainers Academy as a way to ensure that NLP Trainers have the highest

standard of training, before offering NLP courses to the public. By selecting an

ITA trainer you have the assurance that your trainer has been trained and

awarded certification as a trainer personally by NLP co-creator John Grinder,

new code co-developer, Carmen Bostic St Clair and Michael Carroll.

John Grinder, is keen to ensure his intentions when co-creating the field are

maintained and the integrity of NLP is preserved for future NLP generations to

be build upon. This is what John has to say about his personal motives in

forming the ITANLP and says “I as the co-creator of NLP and the New Code

and Carmen as the co-developer of the New code have carefully selected

Michael Carroll our partner to establish and operate the International Trainers

Academy of NLP. The present existing organizations and associations

purporting to represent quality standards in NLP are from my point of view

seriously lacking in precisely that avowed purpose – namely, the setting and

maintenance of quality requirements in the training and transfer of the

patterning of NLP to students seeking mastery in the field.””

Other Organisations

I have come across several smaller qualifying bodies, none of these seem to

have the recognition or credibility of the above qualification bodies.


Membership Organisations

There are 3 “members organisations” in the NLP field. It is important to

understand that these are NOT qualifying bodies. Anyone can join, some

training organisations offer membership to these organisations as part of their

training. It is worth considering joining once you are qualified. Do not trust any training organisation that claims to offer qualification through one of these bodies only.

The Association for Neuro Linguistic Programming (ANLP)

www.anlp.org

What they say:

“The Association for Neuro Linguistic

Programming is a Social Enterprise (Community

Interest Company) which exists to represent an impartial and independent

voice for NLP. Our aim is to maintain standards and encourage best practice

amongst NLP Professionals and inform the public about the benefits and

applications of NLP.

We offer a service to both NLP Professionals and the General Public who

want to know more, and we are our dedicated to raising the profile of NLP,

making it more accessible to the general public, and promoting our Members

services.”


The British Board of NLP (BBNLP) or The Global Organisation of NLP

(GONLP)

www.bbnlp.com

What they day:

“Kate and Toby McCartney set up

BBNLP in 2002, when they were both

newly-qualified practitioners. They wanted to create an independent support

system for the NLP community - something they felt was lacking at the time.

The BBNLP changed hands in June 2008 and was relaunched as the New

BBNLP in January 2009. Dan Bradbury is the Chairman and Kevin Hall the

Managing Director. Both Dan and Kevin are qualified as Trainers of NLP. Our

aim is support those that are qualified in NLP that wish to create or improve

their existing business and to unite potential clients with qualified Practitioners

of NLP and other related therapies.”

The Professional Guild of NLP

www.professionalguildofnlp.com

What they say:

“The Professional Guild of NLP is an association for

like-minded professional NLP Training Organisations

and Individual practitioners who have been trained

by them. Non-commercial and not for profit, the Guild seeks to provide an

interface between quality NLP training and the public at large. Completely

independent of any one school, lead trainer or mindset, its strength lies in

attracting members who share the same values of integrity, skills and quality,

whilst promoting the differences that make each member organisation

unique.”


Conclusion

As you can see, there are a number of different qualifying bodies and they all

claim to be the best body to get qualified with. Remember these are

commercial organisations and have a financial incentive to get you to train

with one of their training companies, so their marketing is going to be

somewhat biased.

I have experienced and worked with people who have trained and qualified

with all these qualifying bodies and, to be honest, the variety of the abilities,

competence and confidence of the trainees has very little to do with the

qualification they sort. I have seen exceptional and appalling practitioners

from all these qualifying bodies. So, although it is important to choose a

recognised qualification and a company that offers that qualification, it is more

important to research and choose the right trainer for you. We will talk

much more about how to do this in the “how to choose a training provider”

section below.


Types of Trainings and Qualifications

There are a lot of spurious qualifications out there in NLP that you can do, so,

in the interests of clarity and simplicity, below is a list of the most common

(and most recognised) qualifications and types of trainings.

Although the titles are often the same across the qualifying bodies and

training companies, the content, length and style of delivery of these courses

vary wildly depending the bias of that qualifying body and trainer. We will talk

about that in more detail as we go along.

Introduction or Taster Course

This can be as short as an evening or last a number of days. Introduction

courses provide you with a way to find out if NLP is for you and whether you

like the trainer’s style.

“Are Introduction Events worth it?” Introduction events are often little more than a sales pitch for the company

running them. So expect the day to consist of a lot “selling”. They are often

high energy with lots of impressive demonstrations of NLP, the idea is often to

get you hyped up into a level of excitement that you associate with that

company so that you sign up for their courses at the end of the event.

They are still worth attending though, if only to get a feel for the trainers style,

but don’t expect to learn a lot about NLP other than a flavour, and they often

teach much less than can be picked up in any decent NLP book.


Diploma or Foundation

This is usually a four-day course although this is dependant on the training

company. A foundation course often covers some of the basic methodologies

of NLP, including the management of your emotional state, an introduction to

language patterns, creating and maintaining rapport and other useful tools.

You may receive a certificate at the end of the course - evidence that you

have demonstrated an understanding of the content.

It is questionable whether a diploma is a necessary step in your NLP

trainings or whether it is best to just start with a Practitioner training.

At the moment the only qualifying body that offers the NLP diploma is the

INPTA.

Practitioner

The Practitioner is the “benchmark” NLP training and will most probably be

the one you attend when you decide you want to learn NLP. It being the most

popular training offered, I am going to take some time to go into a bit more

detail about this type of course.

There are a variety of different training formats available today depending the

training company and qualifying body. Some are intensive trainings, others

are modular; some expect you to do pre-work; some expect you to sit an

exam to qualify; some will last 6 days, some more than 20. It can be very

confusing and hard to decide which is the “right” course.

It is important to remember that there is no “standard” way of teaching

the Practitioner training and what style of training you book depends on your

interests and needs (we will talk more about that later).


Although the content, length and style of training can differ from training

company to training company (even within the same qualifying body), there is

an almost universally recognised syllabus of “minimum content”, i.e. what

every NLP Practitioner course should cover. This is:

• Rapport Establishment & Maintenance

• Verbal & Nonverbal Pacing & Leading

• Verbal and Nonverbal Elicitation of Responses

• Calibrating through Sensory Experience

• Representational Systems (Sensory Predicates and Accessing Cues)

• Milton Model,

• Meta Model

• Elicitation of Well-Formed Goals, Direction, and Present State

• Anchors

• Submodalities

• Timelines

• Reframing

• Creating & Utilizing Metaphors

• Strategies

Don’t worry if this all sounds like utter mumbo jumbo at the moment, it will all

make sense once you have attending a training! The list above is just so you

can check it against any advertised training content to make sure you are

getting the minimum standard content. If you are training with one of the

established qualifying bodies listed above, this content will be (or at least,

should be) included.

You may come across the following NLP trainings:

• Business Practitioner of NLP

• Coaching Practitioner of NLP (or NLP Coach)

These are at the same “level” of qualification as the Practitioner training.

However, they are clearly focused on specific applications of NLP. If you are

interested in these specific applications, it may well be worth considering one

of these course. Be sure, however, to check that the trainer has had

experience in the field they are teaching (more on this later).


“I heard it takes 120 hours to qualify as an NLP Practitioner. Is that True?” Some training companies and qualifying bodies maintain that it takes 120

hours to learn NLP.

This myth comes from the olden days of NLP, where, for a course to qualify

as a CPD (continued professional development) course for therapists, it had

to be a minimum of 120 hours in length. So no psychologist or therapist would

book on a course shorter than this. In the early days of NLP it was largely sold

as a professional training to psychologists and therapist (before it found it’s

broader appeal in the 80’s). So John Grinder and Richard Bandler built the

early NLP courses around that timeframe, and Richard Bandler has admitted

on trainings that the early courses included a lot “padding” to fill the time!

It is simply not true that there is “time limit” on NLP training. The length

of an NLP Practitioner course can vary from 5-days (the shortest I have

found), to 25-days split over several months. Some course (particularly the

ABNLP courses) provide “pre-learning” packages of DVD’s and CD’s that you

must watch and listen to before the training.

Richard Bandler (the co-creator of NLP) has been running 7-day NLP

Practitioner trainings since the early 90’s.

The length is the least important part of the course. The more important

elements of the course are the content, style and bias. It is important that you

choose a course that suits you, your needs, interests and preferred learning

style.


Master Practitioner

The Master Practitioner of NLP is a much more fluid training than the

Practitioner training and can vary much more wildly (if that is possible!) from

training company to training company.

Generally the Master Practitioner builds on the Practitioner material in far

more depth, especially modelling, language, and new material, as well as

revising the skills you learned on the Practitioner training.

Other Qualifications

Certain organisations offer a raft of differently titled trainings, such as “Meta

Master Practitioners” or “Premier Practitioner trainings”. These are not

“standard” trainings and often offered by a training company to differential

themselves from other training companies. These courses can often be little

more than marketing ploys and I would suggest you stick to one of the more

recognised trainings initially.

A Word on Distance Learning:

A worrying trend that has recently developed is that some companies are

offering distance learning courses and qualifications in NLP.

Although this may seem a tempting, easy and low cost option NLP is a practical subject and CANNOT be learned at a distance, to fully

understand the subject you need to attend a “live” training.

There may well be distance learning element to some trainings (particularly

ABNLP accredited courses) and this is fine as long as you have “classroom”

time as well to practice what you have learned in a safe and supportive

environment.


How to choose an NLP Training or Trainer

We have looked at the most popular qualifying bodies and the most common

NLP training courses and qualifications to give you a background. Now we are

going to look at the process of actually choosing a trainer and a training

course.

1) Start with the outcome in mind: What do you want to get out of your NLP

training.

It is important that you have an idea of what you want to achieve from your

training. Having a purpose will help you get the most out of NLP and help you

to find the right NLP course for you – one that will help you to get what you

want.

Each NLP training course will have a particular bias depending on the

experiences of the trainer and the qualifying body. This may be an obvious

bias that they mention in their literature, or it maybe a subtle bias that they

don’t talk about overtly.

Some will focus on business (these are often sold as “NLP Business

Practitioner” trainings – for obvious reasons!), some on therapy, others on

personal development.

So, you need to decide what you want to get out of the training. Do you want

to use NLP predominantly in a business setting? Are you interested personal

development? Do you want to start your own coaching or therapy practice (or

already involved in coaching or therapy and want to add NLP to your skill

base)?


2) Do Your Homework!

It’s useful to understand something about NLP in advance of looking for a

trainer. Having a basic knowledge of the subject will make it easier to select

the trainer that can deliver what you want to get out of NLP. There are a

number of very good books (and some rubbish ones, so be careful which you

choose) available about NLP, so take the time to read around the subject

matter. However don’t be concerned if they don’t make total sense. NLP is a

‘live’ rather than ‘theoretical’ discipline and to many people it only makes

sense after they’ve experienced a training. Also, be careful to avoid “making

up your mind” about what NLP actually “is” just by reading a few books before

you attend a training. It is much harder to undo a misconception and keep an

open mind (which is essential during an NLP training – see later) and you may

miss out on valuable information because it does not match your

preconceptions.

3) The Structure of the Training

What style of training do you think will suit you?

As I stated early, there is no “standard” way to train NLP and each qualifying

body (and training company) will have a different delivery style. It is important

that you decide what style suits you best.

The great thing about there being so many different styles of training is that is

much easier to find one that suits you, so it is worth the time finding out and

deciding what style you would prefer.

Don’t pay any attention to a training company that says their style of delivery

is the best (or, worse, only) way to teach NLP. This is simply not true (and

goes against the fundamental principles of NLP for that matter!).


These are just some of the things you want to consider:

• Do you like the idea of watching DVD’s and listening to CD’s before

you attend the course, or does the idea of having to do all that pre-work

turn you off?

• Do you want to learn lots of prescriptive techniques or do you prefer a

free-form training where you will be able to develop your own ideas,

techniques and processes?

• Do you want to get the training done in “one hit” or do you think you will

be better suited spreading (Maybe your diary doesn’t allow one of

these options)?

• Do you want to attend a larger group training where you will be able to

remain somewhat anonymous or you do you want a smaller training

with lots of hands on support?

4) The Price of the Training

What is your budget? There isn’t a fixed price for NLP training and you can

find training courses that offer exactly the same qualification for wildly different prices!

You will often pay more for an experienced trainer, but that is not strictly the

case. I have seen two very experienced and respected NLP trainers offer their

practitioner training for £999, and I have seen unknown, inexperienced

trainers charge in excess of £2000.

There is no correlation between the training fee and the quality of the course. So get rid of that idea straight away (some training companies seem

to charge what they think they can get away with!)

Often the price of the course will be affected by things outside of the training -

cost of the venue, how much the company spends on marketing, etc.


I would suggest that, for the Practitioner training, at the moment, anything over £2500 is overpriced, unless there is a very good reason for it, and

most Practitioner trainings seem to be in the region of £1,000 to £1,900.

For a Master Practitioner you will be looking at £1800 to £2700 depending

on the length of the course, etc.

For a Diploma or Foundation the average fee seems to be around £500.

Introduction Events are usually free or a nominal charge (£25ish)

Once you have decided why you want to train in NLP, the qualification you

want (and the qualifying body) and the style of training you think will suit you

best (and your budget), it is time to find an NLP trainer...

5) The Most Important Element: The Trainer.

As we have discovered, there is not just one standard way to learn or qualify

in NLP. Therefore, in NLP, the most important part of the training is not the

qualification, or the qualifying body, or the length, cost, location or date of the

course. It is the trainer.

Sadly, it is quite possible to do your Practitioner, Master Practitioner and

Trainer qualification and set yourself up as an NLP trainer in as little as a few

months, without every gaining any real practical NLP experience. So it is

important to check the trainers experience and credentials to teach what they

do!

Don’t just believe the marketing blurb on their website. Although it is illegal to

lie about what you have done, can do and offer, it is common for NLP trainers

to embellish such things as a their experience and length of time they have

been training.


Make sure they have actually USED NLP in the setting in which they train it.

For example, I have known several “Business NLP trainers” who have little or

even no business experience...

If you are really serious, contact the qualifying body that they are a member of

and get their opinion.

Ask around, see if you can find people who have trained with them (even ask

the training company if they can supply some referrals.)

6) Finding a Trainer

The obvious starting point for any search nowadays is the internet; you go to

your favourite search engine and type in the criteria that you want.

The problem with relying on the internet is that the training companies who

appear at the top of the search engines, aren’t necessarily the best trainers,

they are just the ones that have spent the most money on marketing.

However, it is still probably the best place to start and, just don’t give in after

page one, take your time to look through some of the listings further down as

well. Armed with the information we have covered so far in the report, you

should be able to create a reasonably short list of “possibles”...

7) Create a Shortlist

Hopefully this will be obvious now, but don’t just choose the first person that

you find on Google, instead make a short list of potential trainers (using the

information we have covered so far). Compare their approaches and speak

with them via telephone or email. Assure yourself that you are making the

right decision and the best investment of your time and money.


A Checklist of things you need to know before the training.

Make sure you have answered (at a minimum) the following questions (you

may have others that you want to know the answer to). The answers to most

of these questions should be on their website, but don’t be afraid of ringing

the company to gain clarification on any issue.

If possible speak to the trainer. With smaller training companies, this should

be very straightforward as they will most probably be easily available (if not

answering the phone themselves), with the larger companies you will most

probably end up speaking to an administrator or sales representative. The

knowledge of these people can be questionable to say the least and you have

to remember, their job is to get you booked on the course, so don’t

necessarily trust everything they tell you! For this reason it is advisable to

obtain information in writing and clarify any outstanding questions you may

have before you book.

About the Trainer/s

• Who are the trainers?

• What qualifications does the trainer/s have?

• How long have they been training NLP (get a specific answer, NLP

trainers are notoriously vague about this...)?

• How long has this company been established?

• What practical experience do they have in NLP and associated fields

(number of years, etc)?

• Do they work in isolation or with other trainers, training companies or

associates?

• Can they supply referees you can approach?

• Are there training assistants?

• If so, what qualifications/experience do the training assistants have?


About The Qualification

• Is the training accredited or recognised by any body or organisation?

• What is involved in the certification process?

• Is there a written exam?

• How are students assessed for competence?

• Apart from the training, are there any other conditions and costs in

achieving or maintaining certificated status?

About The Booking Process and Cost

• How much is the course?

• Does that include VAT?

• How do I book (Online/Booking form/Phone)?

• How is the booking confirmed?

• How can I pay?

• Are instalments available?

• When do I receive joining instructions?

• What is the training company’s policy on cancellations and refunds?

• What is the cost of the course and, if relevant, is accommodation

included or recommended?

• What happens if the course is cancelled?


About the Training

• How many days or hours is the course?

• What is the format for the training course? Modular/

intensive/residential?

• If modular:

o What are the number of modules and how many days per

module?

o Will there be assignments in between modules?

• If a day or module is missed for any reason, will there be an

opportunity to catch up?

• Are the minimum suggested criteria for course content (see above)

covered during the training?

• What is the minimum and maximum number of delegates on a course?

• What type of process/approach to training is used (practical

exercises/demonstrations/examples, etc)?

• Is there any pre-course work?

• Are manuals and handouts provided?

About Practical Issues

• Where and when is the course held?

• Does the cost of the course include full refreshments, or drinks, or are

all refreshments extra?

• Will travelling to the course be easy?

• And are there alternative routes and modes of transport, if necessary?

• Is accommodation close to the training venue?

About After the Training

• Is there any follow up or back up support offered, either during or after

the course?

• Are DVDs and/or CDs available or integral to the course?


What To Expect During the Training

As we have already discussed (at some length), the style of NLP trainings

vary wildly depending on the trainer. Some will be very linear affairs relying on

Power Point presentations and will be very similar to trainings that you may

have experienced through work or at university.

Others can be much more organic and some can be like going to a concert.

They should all have a balance of explanation and demonstrations, examples

and stories and practice elements.

Some NLP training courses can be very different to what you have

experienced in the past. In this case, assuming you have done your

homework, you should trust that the trainer knows what he or she is doing and

just relax into it!

It is vital that you maintain an open mind during the training process. NLP is a bit like a jigsaw puzzle; you cannot see the full picture until the

jigsaw is finished. Often, through the training you many be confused or not

understand the relevance of what you are doing. NLP training is experiential

and requires that you reserve judgement until you discover the results.

Even once the course is finished you need to sufficient “flying time” to earn

you NLP wings. So it can take a few weeks or even months of using NLP in

the “real world” to really understand the benefits of the training. Which neatly

takes me to the final point...

Follow Up Support

A reputable NLP trainer or training company should offer some form of follow-

up support. In the bare minimum this may be some DVD’s or CD’s, others

offer one-to-one coaching, practice groups or training days. This shouldn’t

cost you any extra (or, if it does, it should only be a notional amount).


What to do if you are Unhappy with Your Training

Sadly there is not a lot you can do once you have attended the training,

assuming that they have not deliberately misled you. If you are unhappy

during the course you need to make the trainer or staff aware of your

concerns as soon as possible so that they can do their best to rectify the

problem. If you are still unhappy during the course, it is not unreasonable to

request to leave, however, do not expect a full refund, and, unless you feel

genuinely misled, there is not much you can do to get a refund (as you have

chosen to leave the course).

If you are genuinely unhappy with your training and have found that trying to

discuss it with your trainer has got you nowhere, the next step would be to

complain to the qualifying body (that is why it is so important to find a trainer

who is a member of one). List your grievances and what you have tried to do

about it and see what happens. Although the body does not have any power

to force the training company to offer a refund or some alternative, they may

be able to lean on them to sort the problem out (and, in the worst case

scenario strip them of their credentials).

If that gets you nowhere then the only avenue available to you is the legal

route, but this can be costly and may end up swallowing more money than

your initial training cost (which, I suspect is why so many low quality training

companies continue to thrive, even with the large number of dissatisfied

trainees – there is really not much you can do).

This is why it is so important to do your research before booking on a training course. Find a reputable trainer who is has been in business for a

number of years, check their qualifications and experience and, if you can,

speak to the trainer and some past trainees (never take the testimonials on

the website as evidence of a good trainer – they will only put up the best

ones!).


Conclusion

I hope you have found this report useful in cutting through some of the blurb

and nonsense surrounding the current NLP training field.

It is worth waiting, travelling and paying a little more to attend the course you

really feel will benefit you, rather than picking the most local, cheapest or one

that suits your current timeframe.

So, all there is left for me to do is wish you the best of luck and all the success

on your training in NLP.

www.nlp-training.co.uk


Appendix 1: Checklist Template

Below is a very simple checklist of the recommended information you need to

make a decision about which trainer to book with. I recommend you print and

fill out a copy for each of the trainers on your short list so that you can

compare them easily.


COMPANY NAME:

About the Trainer/s Who are the trainers? What qualifications does the trainer/s have? How long have they been training NLP (get a

specific answer, NLP trainers are notoriously

vague about this...)?

How long has this company been

established?

What practical experience do they have in

NLP and associated fields (number of years,

etc)?

Do they work in isolation or with other

trainers, training companies or associates?

Can they supply referees you can approach? Are there training assistants? If so, what qualifications/experience do the

training assistants have?

About The Qualification Is the training accredited or recognised by

any body or organisation?

What is involved in the certification process? Is there a written exam? How are students assessed for competence? Apart from the training, are there any other

conditions and costs in achieving or

maintaining certificated status?


About The Booking Process and Cost How much is the course? Does that include VAT? How do I book (Online/Booking form/Phone)? How is the booking confirmed? How can I pay? Are instalments available? When do I receive joining instructions? What is the training company’s policy on

cancellations and refunds?

What is the cost of the course and, if

relevant, is accommodation included or

recommended?

What happens if the course is cancelled?

About the Training How many days or hours is the course? What is the format for the training course?

Modular/intensive/residential?

If modular:

What are the number of modules and how

many days per module?

Will there be assignments in between

modules?

If a day or module is missed for any reason,

will there be an opportunity to catch up?

Are the minimum suggested criteria for

course content (see above) covered during

the training?

What is the minimum and maximum number

of delegates on a course?

What type of process/approach to training is

used (practical

exercises/demonstrations/examples, etc)?

Is there any pre-course work? Are manuals and handouts provided?


About Practical Issues Where and when is the course held? Does the cost of the course include full

refreshments, or drinks, or are all

refreshments extra?

Will travelling to the course be easy? And are there alternative routes and modes

of transport, if necessary?

Is accommodation close to the training

venue?

About After the Training Is there any follow up or back up support

offered, either during or after the course?

Are DVDs and/or CDs available or integral to

the course?

your nlp training survival -...

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