IT’S TIME TO TAKE THE MICKEY!

A few years ago, after much scrimping and saving, my wife and I were able to take our children to Disney. I am not sure who was more excited; I know that I didn’t sleep the night before we left! I also remember the feeling each day as Cinderella’s castle came into view; a fast beating heart and the sense that something special was about to happen; every day was like a new adventure!
I have often been laughed at when I tell people that upon taking up my Headship in 2001, I asked the staff one question; how do we turn our school into Disneyland? I realise that this may appear to be a daft enquiry to some; somewhat trivial, almost naïve to others, but I was serious. I am a committed and I hope, highly professional, educator who chose teaching as most do, because I wanted to make a difference to children’s lives; to help to prepare them for the challenges and opportunities in their futures; the moral imperative. In no way did the asking of that question seek to devalue or make light of the incredible responsibilities we carry as teachers, it was a symbolic way of underlining to my new colleagues that during my tenure as Head our job was to focus on our primary customers; our children.
As educators we know that successful learning can only occur in schools filled with happy people; staff, parents, governors but most importantly, children. We know that learning is most successful when our students are engaged, excited, intrigued and we know that teachers are at their best when they demonstrate passion and enthusiasm. When I was given the extraordinary privilege of taking on my Headship, I wanted to help create a school where people arrived in the morning with their hearts beating faster; it’s why I asked the Disney question. I knew that we would be on the way to success, when on a cold February morning, in the middle of the winter virus season, if our pupils woke up with a sore throat and they would still want to come to school, in the same way that if they were waking up in Paris on that same cold morning, with the same condition, nothing would stop them on their trip to Walt’s world.
As a profession, we know more about learning, brain and emotional development and the links between them, than we ever have. Every Child Matters gave us the political mandate to do what we have always known was right; to educate the whole child. There is rightly still huge concern around the issues of inclusion and achievement, but the solutions do not come in the shape of targets, or in rows of desks and more prescriptive approaches to teaching and learning, the solutions lie in refocusing the agenda. We have to make learning matter to our kids, for some, for the first time, for others to ensure that they can rediscover that joy. For that to happen learning must be rich in context and purpose; children must be able to see the links to their own lives and how by engaging in education, it makes things better and can make their hearts beat a little faster.
Although I blame the advertising industry for many, many things; including the rows I have with my teenage daughter over shopping and pocket money! I am fascinated by the science of their craft; after all, if we could convince our children to buy in to school as a brand in the same way they do certain technologies or clothing lines we’d be on to a winner, wouldn’t we? Interestingly, there are two questions that branding experts ask of new clients when taking on a brief, the first is;
What do you want to stand for in the eyes of your customer?
And the second is:
How are you going to shape your behaviours, as an organisation, so that you support the response to the first question?
Whether we like it or not, our children are incredibly sophisticated consumers; they are the first truly ‘on demand’ generation. The future of education does not lie in how we control them but how we sell to them; a great education is one of the foundations of a successful society; it is of more value than any computer game, pair of trainers or music download and we need to ensure that children feel that. At its best learning stirs the senses, quickens the pulse and fires the imagination; much like Disney.
Education is a serious business, so is the Disney Corporation, it after all, one of the world’s most successful organisations. At the heart of the Disney ethos are the concepts of education and entertainment and as a result they captivate generation after generation, it strikes me that great schools follow exactly the same formula.

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What will you gain?
You will experience a day focused entirely on you and getting what you want and need. Breakthrough intensive gives you access to a personalised change process which includes coaching, neuro-linguistic programming, Timeline Therapy™ and hypnosis. These are amongst the most powerful tools available for rapid development.

How does it work?
Breakthrough intensive works through asking powerful questions which help you to rapidly re-evaluate what’s working and what’s not working. Because our motivation is driven by your unconscious mind, not your conscious mind, the approaches bring you into rapport with your unconscious and allow you to work with it to get the rapid results. Most people strive for change and fail because they are working antagonistically with their unconscious. Breakthrough re-establishes the rapport.

The main elements are:

• Coaching, which helps you refine what you really need and want
• NLP, which helps you break unhelpful patterns of behaviour and develop more effective responses, it also helps you regain rapport with your unconscious
• Timeline Therapy™ rapidly and safely let’s you deal with past negative emotions and set really inspiring goals
• Hypnosis which enables you to receive positive and confidence boosting suggestions and develop empowering beliefs.

What if I go for it?
If you go for it you can expect to feel very different and respond in ever more resourceful ways to your environment and people within it. You can release yourself from negative emotions and dramatically improve your confidence and peace of mind.

What people have said about breakthrough intensive:

Thank you so much for working with me…things are great, feel about nine stone lighter and much happier. I really appreciate it and put a spider out today with no fear!! [my partner] was amazed, I felt wonderful. Go fo it – it’ll be one of the best things you ever do! LC, Leeds

The best thing about the coaching process…being able to confide in Will to talk about everything. To be able to let go of all of the things I have carried around and be able to discuss them in a calm and organized way. The breakthrough session in Malvern has made a really big difference. Everyone has noticed the change in me. It has been an unbelievable experience. MM, Worcestershire

For several years now I have had a fear of flying. I feared even the shortest flights and never contemplated longer flights to many countries I have always wanted to visit. Breakthrough was an amazing experience. Will is extremely professional. After just a one day session with Will my fear of flying was banished. My first flight following the session was fantastic, I was totally relaxed and calm. I am now looking forward to longer flights. I have also noticed other changes, particularly in my self confidence. Will has certainly helped me overcome my fear of flying and has also had positive impact on other areas of my life. He is a true professional and I would recommend him to anyone who would like to make a positive change to their life. Nick Lowe, Malvern

Following breakthrough for fear of water:
Well, I’ve started my swimming lessons and they are going extremely well. I was able to take my first unaided strokes on my second lesson! I no longer get panicky when I have my face in the water. I’m now confident I can achieve my goal, thanks to you. I appreciate everything you have done for me – I am a stronger person all round. Many, many thanks, HC, Malvern.

” I have worked with Will on a number of very significant issues in my life, to be honest I couldn’t see the light at the end of it…I felt trapped in a world of denial and dealing with it seemed the impossible. Will allowed this magnificent change to unfold, he gave me back the freedom I had been dreaming of…My whole family thank him…My husband thanks him…….I will never stop thanking him for the amazing work he did just for me. If your serious about having the biggest Breakthrough, believe me this is the man that will give it to you. He is by far a Master of his profession. Thank you” Karen Welsh, London

• Increase self understanding
• Develop your work-based skills
• Be able to gain highly individualised approaches to challenges
• Improve your effectiveness in a range of areas including
• People skills
• Personal productivity
• Work-life balance and time management
• Confidence
• Career progression/business development
• Dealing with challenging people or situations
• Deal with negative emotions that constrain you

How is coaching structured?
Coaching is structured according to your needs. Your coach will identify with you what you main goals are and develop a programme which will include specific activities to gain insight, techniques and approaches to overcoming challenges and challenging questions to support you. Your coach is there to assist you through helping you to understand what’s working and what is not working and how to enhance your performance. He/she will ask you questions to enable you to work through any limiting thinking you have and provide you with an even wider range of options than you may have considered.

Who will coach me?
We have a number of highly experienced coaches all of whom are qualified. We’ll help you to work with a coach that suits your needs and aspirations.

What if I get a coach?
If you get a coach, you are beginning a fascinating and inspiring journey towards greater effectiveness. Sometimes we can fall into the rut of believing that all we can currently see is all that there is. Coaching helps you move way beyond your current perception of what you could achieve and supports you to find the path to achieve your aspirations. Your coach is your partner for change.

You will learn:

• What NLP is and what it is not
• The presuppositions of NLP
• The NLP communication model ( an easily understood communication framework)
• More about the role and functioning of the unconscious mind and how to work with it
• To further improve your ability to notice subtle changes in others
• Future-basing for really motivating goals
• How to disrupt problem states
• Advanced linguistics for relaxation (how to induce hypnotic trance conversationally)
• How to embed commands in conversation
• How to use metaphor to promote change
• About sub-modality shifts and their use in directly changing how people hold problem states of mind How is the programme structured?

The first day provides the essential underlying concepts of NLP and begins to explore the advanced language patterns and change techniques which can be applied to your context.
In the second day more advanced strategies for promoting change are explored. The course is activity-based with links to real work situations made throughout.

Who is your trainer?
Will Thomas will lead the training. He is a qualified coach, and Certified Master Practitioner of NLP, Timeline Therapy™ and Hypnosis. He is an experienced trainer and personal development coach offering high quality training and coaching in the UK and Europe. He is author and co-author of a number of books on coaching, leadership and managing workload.

Who should attend?
Anyone whose role it is to support and encourage others to overcome problems and grow confidence. The course material is valuable for the empowering of clients, client groups and colleagues. The content has applications to leading adults, and working with adult and young people as clients. This is s perfect compliment to coaching and provides both covert and overt approaches to effecting change.

What if I attend ‘An Introduction to NLP’?
You’ll increase your flexibility to handle challenging situations through the way that you think and the tools you have at your disposal. Many of the strategies explored, can be used in normal conversation, and very quickly, to enable change in clients and colleagues. You will open up new ways of thinking about what blocks progress in others, and work more effectively to help them adjust their internal representations, build confidence and overcome challenges.

Past delegates have said:
“ An excellent invigorating and deeply thought-provoking 2 days. Every exercise had value for me, both personally and professionally.…Many thanks Will.” Felicity Steel

[The course] “Really will change my practice” Naomi, Hertfordshire, Educational Psychologist

“ Excellent 2 days. Interesting, practical and very enjoyable” SW

“ Excellent, well presented, everything made sense, clearly explained with good examples of application” R Bennet

Why attend The Coaching Organisation?
This programme provides the necessary strategic overview to develop a high quality professional development programme with peer coaching at its heart. You will explore the core Organisational Coaching Model, and ways to implement a high quality colleague to colleague coaching system. A growing body of research shows that coaching creates bottom line improvements.

What will you learn?

• How to set up coaching across your organisation
• Why you should set up coaching; the research that says you should go for it
• How to systemise the process so its is sustainable
• How to win confidence and persuade the “nay-sayers”
• How to build a team of high quality coaches and how to monitor and maintain that quality
• About some possible blocks and pitfalls and how to overcome them
• Recipes for success – opportunity to design a system that works for your situation

How will the programme be run?
The programme will introduce the current research and case studies on organisational coaching model success. Delegates will explore what they want to achieve in their own institution and then select appropriate strategies for setting this up.
There will be opportunity in the afternoon to action plan next steps and to receive support and guidance on the plans. Follow on coaching is offered separately should support beyond the course be required.

Who should attend?
Directors, HR managers, headteachers, aspiring headteachers, and anyone involved in, or interested in, improving communication and spreading excellent practice throughout their organisation.

What if I attend?
If you attend you will be setting in motion a series of steps to radically transform the way that professional development, communication and support takes place in your work-place. All the research points to great gains in productivity and improved sense of work satisfaction and output for everyone involved.

Why attend this course?
This course builds on your learning from the day 1 Foundations for Change programme. You’ll take your coaching skills to an even greater level and learn the precision use of language to support others. You’ll really improve your confidence using a wide range of techniques and tools. You will have a series of effective strategies for dealing with challenging people.

What will I learn?
You will learn

• How to structure review and feedback so that people really listen and take action
• Further secrets to build positive relationships with others
• How to generate really motivating targets
• When to ask questions and when to stay silent
• Precision questioning techniques so that your questions have greater impact
• How people construct problems and why they do it
• Conversational techniques to help people break out of problems and develop their own solutions
• Techniques to build really high levels of confidence in yourself and others
• Techniques for dealing with challenging people
• How to fine tune your senses to pick up even more information about what others are thinking
• How to promote relaxation in others through careful construction of language
• About the potential for wider organisational coaching approaches

You will also have the opportunity to practice your coaching skills and receive supportive and constructive feedback.

How is the programme structured?
The programme is carefully designed to enable you to:

• The programme builds on the one day foundations for change programme*
• Reconnect with your current practice
• Gain constructive feedback throughout the programme
• Actively experience each technique and out it into practice
• Learn in a safe and supportive environment

The programme culminates in opportunities to put all of your skills into action in a formative coaching session.

Who is the trainer on Coaching Skills 2 Advanced techniques?
The two-day Advanced Coaching Skills Programme is designed and delivered by Will Thomas. Will is a highly experienced performance coach and trainer. A Marks and Spencer Personnel manager from University, Will moved into education and became Head of Faculty in a large comprehensive school, he has used coaching extensively to enable people to maximise performance and overcome personal barriers to success. Will is co-author of the book Coaching Solutions and author of The Coaching Solutions resource Book.

What if I attend this course?
Attending this course will bring you new levels of confidence and capability in supporting others. From high flyers to the struggling individual, this course gives you tools for helping. Your ability to precisely use language to get results will give you the edge in any work or social setting. The programme will give you the most useful tools and techniques for promoting change in others.

*It is a prerequisite that you attend a one day coaching programme with Alite or Vision for Learning prior to attending the advanced course. This could happen within an open course setting or you may have the course in your workplace.