NLP Training with the Performance Partnership
and David Shephard
by Peter Strachan of The Tranceforming Team
The first time that I heard the acronym “NLP” was in an Officers’ Mess Bar during some down time in a Military Training Exercise. I was serving as a Wing Commander in the Royal Air Force at the time and held an appointment in the Ministry of Defence. Chatting to a Royal Marine Lieutenant Colonel who had just completed his Master Practitioner Training with Performance Parnership, he was extolling the virtues of NLP and, in particular, the remarkable talent of David Shephard. He suggested that if I was interested in learning more about NLP I should contact their offi ce and arrange to do a course called “Presenting Magically” - “a good introduction to NLP which would also polish up my platform skills” - very useful for a regular presenter and briefer.
That’s how it all began! Six years later I have completed NLP Practitioner Training, NLP Master Practitioner Training, NLP Trainers’ Training, Coaching Skills for NLP’ers, Photo ReadingTM, Archetypal Branding, Hypnosis Trainers Training - all with David Shephard and The Performance Partnership plus Time Line TherapyTM Trainers Training with Tad James in the US.
Of course I cannot speak for others, though a startling number of people have travelled the same path at the same time and, I believe, have got as much as I have from the learnings. For anyone considering training in NLP, I thought it might be worth recalling my experiences of the major trainings and why, both individually and collectively, David and the Trainings made such an impression on me.
My first impression of David during “Presenting Magically” was frankly not good! When he started speaking I thought “oh dear, he seems a little slow and maybe even unsure of himself”. Luckily it didn’t last long though (and, as those of you who have done the training or read the book will know, intentional!), as he soon collected the kinaesthetic amongst the group and dragged them into the pleasantly rapid fi re visual world of people like me. For the next three days I was spellbound as David weaved his magic and challenged us to use our brains in a different way. We learned about representational systems, energy, metaphors and dozens of other skills and techniques from the fascinating world of NLP. We learnt about anchoring and how to use different parts of the stage for different learning processes. It was the most interesting, fascinating, thought provoking 3 day course I had ever done and it was also quite a challenge! David’s combination of humour, charm and depth of knowledge about NLP in the context of developing Presenting Skills was truly awesome.
As I drove up Chiswick High Street towards the Vencourt Hotel sometime in March 2004, I remember looking forward to Practitioner Training very much. I must admit that I felt slightly uneasy about not completing all of the required test questions though I had listened to the pre-course tapes and so had a fair idea of what to expect. I met David and the team of coaches as I entered the training room and immediately felt that I was in the right place at the right time. I was completely blown away by the training! The combination of NLP, Time Line TherapyTM and Hypnosis is quite literally mind bending. I don’t think that it is possible to change more neurological connections in 7 days than with The Performance Partnership’s NLP Practitioner Certifi cation training. Be warned - life will never be the same again! I clearly remember David as being truly inspirational, having a huge depth of knowledge sprinkled with personal anecdotes made the whole experience great fun.
Six months later, same place and many of the same people found ourselves checking in for the NLP Master Practitioner Training. Met on arrival by the Coaching Team and, having suffered for not bringing a complete test paper for Practitioner training, I had taken the trouble to finish the test paper! I remember really looking forward to the training though it was hard to imagine how anything was going to be more impressive than the NLP Practitioner Training. Wrong again... the Master Practitioner training is divided into 2 separate training weeks with a day off in the middle. Each week is balanced with the right mixture of theory and exercises and the whole thing is set up by David with the elegance and precision of a Swiss watch. The fi rst week finishes with a board break and the second with a heavily supervised student to student Breakthrough Session. The whole thing was an amazing experience and a fantastic tool for personal empowerment. Assisted by the coaches and orchestrated by David in a unique stylish manner that made it easy to learn and great fun to be part of.
I simply now had to do Trainers Training and I had to do it with The Performance Partnership. By now I was getting to know David and the team quite well as I had done quite a bit of Coaching on other trainings. As an experienced presenter and trainer, I was looking forward to NLP Trainers’ Training and was pleased that a number of old friends were on the same course. Consistent with my Performance Partnership experience, the Training was another David Shephard tour de force - the better presenter you were, the harder you got pushed; when you needed help you got it and when your bar needed to be set higher, that’s exactly what happened. Recently I worked for a short time with The Performance Partnership to get some experience of the NLP Industry and got to know David Shephard the person rather than the stage presenter. Guess what? They are exactly the same! Unlike some presenters, David doesn’t change personality on and off stage. Clever, funny, generous and caring, though with a hard edge when required. David Shephard is without doubt the most amazing teacher I have met and The Performance Partnership’s brand of NLP is a fantastic way to learn about a fascinating subject.
Since doing Trainers’ Training I have left the Royal Air Force, formed my own Training and Coaching Company (www.thetranceformingteam.com.) and, with the continued guidance and advice of David Shephard and other colleagues in The Performance Partnership, have started running my own business. I have run 2 NLP Practitioner Certifi cation trainings, modestly sized though with great feed back and I have done a number of Breakthrough Sessions as well as individual performance coaching with 2 professional golfers with great results. Yesterday I secured a 60 day training contract with a public sector organisation of 1000 people! Also planned for this year are another NLP Practitioner training in June and a sports coach performance certification for professional golfers in late April.
Not only did I learn NLP and “a few platform skills”, what I learnt from The Performance Partnership and, with their ongoing support, I have been adequately armed with the skills and resources to change my career and get off to a running start! In keeping with that well - known phrase. “Just do it!” Peter Strachan of The Tranceforming Team Trainer of NLP, Hypnosis and Time Line TherapyTM
www.thetranceformingteam.com
enquiries@thetranceformingteam.com
Tel: +44 (0) 7747 634397
0r +44 (0) 1296 586441
