NLP Archives - Frequently Asked Questions about NLP This page is a part of "Merl's World on NLP", one of the first websites on NLP, created in 1995 on CompuServe out of a Frequently Asked Questions file on the topic. The site has been resurrected because (1) its non-commercial, impartial nature and (2) much of the information here is still hard to find...
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Merl's Collection of Tips
On checking out a NLP training

This page is a part of the FAQ from Merl's World on NLP

A Summary: "Some quick checkpoints"

(added August 1998 by Patrick E. Merlevede, M.Sc - based on my own 6 years of experience in the NLP field I had at that time...)

1. About the certification :
   • Do you have to sign a license agreement? (YOU SHOULDN'T)
     read the page in the NLP FAQ about "Who owns NLP"
     (HINT: trainers licensed by Bandler will probably ask you to sign a license)
   • Does your certificate expire? (IT SHOULDN'T)
     once competencies are acquired, they won't go away, even if you stop using them.
   • How is certification done?
   • What are the certification criteria?
     (does this meet international standards?)
2. About the training:
   • What are the course contents? Which standards does the trainer follow in this matter?
   • How many participants will be allowed into the course?
   • How many hours of training will you get?
     (e.g. an NLP practitioner should be at least 120 hours - training time is hard to compress if you want to get the participants through some experiences.)
   • What do past trainees think of the training?
     (check out the newsgroups on the internet, ask references)
   • How do the past trainees apply what they learned?
3. About the trainer :
   • How does the trainer keep himself up to date?
   • Who is the trainer trained by (for his NLP knowledge)?
     (hint: if he trained with Bandler after 1985, there is a lot of risk he signed a license agreement, and will make you sign too)
   • What are his contributions to the field (publications, models, ...)?
   • What is the background of the trainer? (Jobs before, which field? / What university degrees?)
     (e.g. if you are in business, make sure your trainer has a business background / if you think that the conceptual knowledge of your trainer is important (I think it is), require that your trainer has a high level of education, by preference at least an university degree equivalent of Master's Degree)

WARNING: watch out when selecting a trainer: the fact he is "well known" itself is no guarantee for a good training.
A way of getting well known is by setting up a good marketing strategy (publicity, etc). Writing good books is no guarantee for being good at giving a training... Also check how much you can learn from a particular "famous" trainer just by buying (or renting) his tapes... (if a trainer claims all you need is some "subconcious learning" which is carefully designed into the training he gives while he is on stage, then it would be enough to buy the video tape - my opinion that the time you take to do exercises is as important!)

An example - If an INLPTA licensed practitioner shows up at Dilt's or at Bandler's, he'll get in as a practitioner (i.e. to participate in further training - beyond practitioner level). If a Bandler student or a Robbins student shows up at my program, I'll screen him first before admitting him. The reason is that Bandler's and Robbins trainings don't follow (by far) the typical requirements of the INLPTA or some national NLP organisations. (e.g. at least 120 hours of training for practtitioner level). I've heard the same from some other trainers working according to practitioner standards similar to those as INLPTA (as in France or in Germany.)

More in this Subject: "Selecting a training"

1. Consumer Guide to Good Training - Recommendations by Steve & Connirea Andreas

Steve sent me this text on 6 may 1999. I think it is worth reading since it certainly adds to the discussion.
<follow link to page>

2. Recommendations of Mike Halbfish - Edited by Patrick E. Merlevede

The text below (written in September 1997) was the first try-out in this area.
by Mike Halbfish edited by Patrick E. Merlevede

The information below was initially posted to the NLP newsgroup, and forwarded to me by the author; authorising its use on my web site. In some area's the document reflects more his opinion than mine, but then, the map is not the territory.
This text is a compilation of several e-mails. I started adding some structure to the document. The text still needs some editing though (e.g. deleting parts where the author repeats himself) ...

PAGE UNDER CONSTRUCTION

Outline:

Introduction

This article is in response to the questions asking about "getting certified or finding NLP training". It is intended to help people find and select the trainings that are best for them. It is also intended to start threads about who our favorite trainers are and why, favorite trainings and get others to contribute about selecting quality training. When I first learned about NLP it was difficult to find information. I hope that I can make this process easier for some people.

It has been over 10 years since I first discovered NLP (or at least Bandler & Grinder's Discovery). Previously, I was never so enthusiastic or excited about any subject matter. A world of possibilities opened and this world is still expanding in rich and wonderful ways. The thought of what I could do w/ these learnings was a continuous daily motivator to pursue learning more about NLP. During these 10+ years my enthusiasm has increased geometrically. I've pursued every training I could. I've trained w/ over a dozen training institutes from coast to coast & probably over 50 trainers. I've read most of the NLP classics, watched countless videos, and listened to dozens of seminars/books on tape. Each nugget of knowledge, each skill I acquire only fuels my desire to learn more. Every answer I get creates new more wonderful questions. Although, I can use NLP & DHE effectively & with confidence now to do many things I feel more like a beginner today than I did when I first read about NLP. That is because my curiousity continues to grow and I realize more and more applications are possible.

When I discovered NLP, it was like the most exciting thing in the world for me. I always believed people are capable of doing incredible things and I finally found the how to. I wanted to learn more. However, 10 years ago people responded Neuro Linguini what? They'd think what are these crazy Narrow Languishing Processes (NLP) that you're doing. I'd tell them it stands for New and Lovely Possibilities. The book stores and libraries didn't have NLP books at that time. It was difficult finding information. I'd study with anyone I could learn from. Along the way I made some mistakes about who I trained with and I learned lessons every time. I was also fortunate because I found some of the best NLP trainers in the world. Everyday my fascination and enthusiasm for learning more NLP grows stronger. Every answer creates more exciting questions, every skill I develop creates a desire for more skills. Today I am even more excited about NLP than I was in the beginning. I also recognize it for what it is another useful tool in my tool kit.

Today, NLP is still not a household word. Yet, there has been a proliferation of sources and there is a wide spectrum of quality differences among sources. Unfortunately some sources are still only teaching what was taught 10 years ago. Bandler says people tend to get stuck at different stages of his development. I find that to be very true.

The insights into trainings that I gathered did not come easy. I hope I can make it easier for some of you.

Trainer Differences

Some people I know look for instant gratification in the most convenient or cheapest trainer. However, I recommend GETTING THE BEST TRAINER YOU CAN, EVEN IF IT INVOLVES WAITING FOR A TRAINING, TRAVELLING, AND SPENDING EXTRA TIME AND MONEY IF NECESSARY.

What training style do you want?

1. A "show" starring the "cool, slick, better-than-sliced-bread" god-style atmosphere where the trainer presents for a couple of hours on stage then leaves for the evening.
2. An "academic" atmosphere that deals with the philosophical underpinnings of NLP and covers lots and lots of details, treating NLP like a science.
3. An "I'm your friend and lets learn together" style where the trainer gets to know the students and hangs out with them.
4. The "therapeutic" atmosphere mainly taught by therapists who are very concerned with ecology and do lots of therapy demos.
5. Some other style or a combination of the above...

Importance of Quality

Training quality is essential for many reasons. Here are just a few..

1. Students model, match, and mirror there trainer.
2. A poor trainer passes on his/her own limitations to students.
3. Good trainers make the learning more entertaining & fun
4. Good trainers will have leading edge information. They are people who continue to develop and change themself very quickly
5. NLP is about unconscious learning & behavioral competency. It is not simply about content that you can gather in a book.
6. Good trainers give students good habits

2 quick examples : When Bandler first created the Phobia cure it took about 5 or 6 minutes to do a phobia fix. Now, because the model/technique has been improved phobia's can be fixed within 30 seconds. Years ago, I used to assist a trainer named Jeff Thaw. When I first saw him do a certain process it took him all day, or maybe even a weekend. Then, I saw him repeat the process with another group in less than a day. The fourth time he did this lesson w/ a group it only took him one half hour. Each time he did the process he improved his process. This is kind of like going from a non windows based PC to a Pentium, the difference between doing math in your head rather than w/ a calculator.

Finding a trainer

OK. SO, now that you have decided to get the very best training how do you find it?

2 Steps in this process are:

1. Identifying what type of training will best meet your needs
2. Identifying who the best trainers are

1. Your training needs

How do you know if a trainer is a quality trainer for you?

Each trainer has different strengths and a different style. So, look for a trainer with a style that you like. Ideally, I recommend training with several trainers because this will build your flexibility.

What type of training best meets your needs? Here are some things to think about:

• What are your goals?
• What changes would you like to meet?
• What specific skills do you most want to learn?
• How do you expect to apply NLP? In what contexts do you expect to use NLP/DHE/Hypnosis?
• Are there other goals related to the training (ie meeting certain types of people, getting a recognized certification, school credit etc.)

• How much time are you willing to commit?
• How much money are you willing to commit?
  what BENEFITS do I hope to get for my commitment of time and money and does the organization back up their claims so that if they don't deliver, do I get my money back?"
• Can you travel?

• What are your values?
• What type of training best meets your needs?
• Do you prefer an intensive training (training camps, retreats) or a training that is spread out over a longer period of time (weekly/monthly classes).
• How will you know that you've received value for the money/time/resources you've invested in training?

However, when asking about travelling and the format I would PUT QUALITY FIRST. The people who I find benefit the most and are happiest, Select based upon quality and MAKE it fit their schedule, not the other way around. This is very, very important. People who choose wisely make it work. The people who select based on whether or not it fits into their schedule or geographic location usually end up being sorry they didn't take the best training. The people who are happiest with their training are people who've made a commitment to get quality training and often have to jump through many hoops in order to get it.

2. Selecting a trainer

After answering these questions call the institutes and ask SPECIFIC, DIRECTED questions of the institute to see if they will be able to meet your needs. Quiz them throughly as if you are interviewing them. Also be very skeptical - a good training institute will invite the skepticism, while others will get irritated or blow you off.

2.a. Questions to ask (about) the trainer

• Do you like the trainer?
• What is the arrangement for his classes
  (ie how many students, how often do classes meet, how long are classes, is there homework?)
• What are the trainers values.
• What does the trainer consider to be his/her strengths/weaknesses?
• Can the trainer perform the skills you are interested in learning?
• How has the trainer changed his/her trainings in the last few years?
  LOOK FOR A YES
• How has the trainer changed his/her marketing? (This is an indicator of the above question)
• Does the trainer give any guarantees?
• What does the trainer do when s/he is not training?
• Does the trainer apply NLP in a business/sports/medical/therapeutic/educational/modelling or other setting?
• What hobbies does the trainer have?
• What goals does the trainer have for students? at that particular training?
• How does the trainer know if a training was successful? Ask them.
• What other goals does the trainer have?

"Do you LIKE the person on the other end of the phone? Are they helpful? Do they want to talk a long time or are they in a rush to get off the line? Do they share their personal experience with you? Do you think they are being honest with you? Do they speak with total conviction or is it just a sales pitch? Are they rude or respectful?" Most often the person you are speaking with on the telephone is also the support person for the training, meaning, they have a lot to do with the enviornment that is created in the training room. If they are rude, guess what? You will be treated rude during the seminars. If they are great, guess what? You will be treated great in the training room.

Also, talk directly with the trainer. An institute that will not let you speak with the trainer is an indication that the trainer won't have time for them during the training, or after the training either!

Ask the person on the phone for the name of a student who has taken training from them AND from a competing company who would be willing to talk to them about the differences. Sometimes this is possible and sometimes it's not. It is really putting the training company on the spot, but is a GREAT way to check to see what they are saying is valid or not. Good companies are more than happy to let you speak with their students and are not leary about giving out that information.

2.b. Questions for former students:

Feedback from students? Be cautious here because even a lousy trainer might get great feedback because students like NLP and they don't have a basis of comparison w/ other trainers. This is like the person who thinks you should get a 286 based computer w/ WordPerfect 5.0 because they've never used a Pentium w/ Word. for windows.

If you have the opportunity ask students more detailed questions ie

• How entertaining was s/he?
• Did s/he keep his promises?
• Was s/he committed to you after the training?
• What changes did you make from the training?
• Are you still applying the skills s/he taught?
• What were the limitations of the trainer?
• How did the trainer deal w/ problems that came up?

You may not be able to get answers to all these questions. You also may not need answers to all these questions. These questions are mainly posted to start you thinking.

<end of Mike Halbfish's contribution>

Update September 1998: Mike let me know he became part of the training staff for Dr. Tony Scannella, The FEA, and The Dynamic Wellness Center, Kevin Creedon.

Give some feedback ...

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