Author: nlpnow

Categories
Thoughts Travels

Up close to nature

It is always fantastic to watch wildlife in their natural setting, and although there should never be full trust between the animals and humans, some trust and curiosity between the two I think should be welcomed.

I recently had the privilege to witness a family of foxes sharing food in the English countryside.
A family of foxes eating
It was after they had finished eating that I was able to experience looking into the eyes of the younger fox. There seemed to be a trust between us, I could be part of its world for just a moment, not to get too close, but just sharing a moment in time.
A young fox makes friends with Phillip Holt
As we relaxed in each others presence, a sense of calm flowed over me.
A young fox makes friends with Phillip Holt
But, it was all over so quickly, and the young fox left to join his family.
See a video of foxes, click.
Categories
Rotary Club KOT

Photographs of the 2011 Dragon Boat Race in Kingston

I recently published the video of the Rotary Club of Kingston upon Thames Dragon Boat Race, held on the River Thames in Canbury Gardens, on 17th July 2011. (click to view)

I now post some photographs of the event via flickr.
Enjoy.

www.flickr.com

items in 2011 Dragon Boat Race More in 2011 Dragon Boat Race pool


Categories
Mind Maps NLP PhotoReading Presentations Radio and TV interviews Thoughts

The 2nd radio interview in the series

In a series of radio programs, I talk about some of the courses I do, plus I will be giving tips and insights over the coming weeks.

Here is the second of the series. Unfortunately I do believe some people cannot view the widget to hear the show on my blog, if this is you, please click here.

Listen to internet radio with AshfordPublishing on Blog Talk Radio


Your comments and feedback would be appreciated.



More interviews can be heard here (click)

site index
Categories
Uncategorized

Dragon Boat Race of 2011

The Rotary Club of Kingston upon Thames again organised the annual Dragon Boat Race in Canbury Gardens next to the River Thames on the 17th July 2011.

A record of over fifty teams competed on a day with a few showers of rain, but this did not dampen the spirits of the crowds, as there was lots of fun and laughter and great competition.
Winners again were the Canbury Arms Boys team, with the Canbury Arms Girls winners of the female teams. A little bit of coaching and practise goes a long way. Full results can be found on the web site of Kingston Rotary Clubs’ web site.
Loads of money was raise for charities, making this event one of the best in the area of Kingston upon Thames.
It was fun filming and photographing the event, even if I got wet during a shower whilst out on the River Thames on a rib provided by John of the Albany Park Canoe and Sailing Centre.
For photographs of the day, some 300, where possible one for every team in a dragon boat, please click here, or visit Photographs of the 2011 Dragon Boat Race in Kingston.


Categories
NLP Presentations Radio and TV interviews Recommendation Thoughts

1st Radio Interview in a Series with Ashford Publishing Radio

I was recently interviewed on Ashford Publishing Radio in America.

The podcast can be heard here. Click to listen.

Listen to internet radio with AshfordPublishing on Blog Talk Radio

Hope you will enjoy, if you do let me know you comments.
Other interviews will be following as I give more in the coming weeks, click here.
site index
Categories
Culture Presentations Rotary Club KOT

Adult Achievement Awards, Kingston upon Thames 2011

Sometimes it is good to stand back and look at other people and what they have achieved.

On a nice Tuesday evening in May 2011, I was able to attend the Royal Borough of Kingston’s Adult Achievement Award ceremony held in the Guildhall Kingston.
Organised by Peter Gray of the Rotary Club of Kingston upon Thames, in conjunction with Kingston Borough Adult Education Service and Kingston College, the Deputy Mayor Councillor Geoff Austin and the Mayoress Mrs Sheila Austin along with Rotary Club President Peter Bassett honoured twenty people who had achieved so much whilst learning.
I felt very humbled as I listened to stories of how others had overcome issues, problems and hurdles to better themselves, their family and others.
All those who attended thoroughly enjoyed the evening, meeting and talking to the students from the education centres of Kingston. The superb setting of the Guildhall of Kingston and the presence and talk by the Deputy Mayor made us most welcome.
This little video shows these people receiving their certificates.
Congratulations.
click to see video
Categories
Culture NLP Travels

Course cancelled

Here I am sitting in Malaysia, preparing for my next course, The Society of NLP Master Practitioner, to be held in Istanbul starting 14th May 2011, flights arranged, plans made.

Then I get an email, the organisers have cancelled the course.
Oh Poo Poo.
I had been asked by other people to work with them, to give other course in other countries, I had been asked to meet with people, I had made arrangements to attend meetings, all based on the course happening in Istanbul. Now, all my arrangements are in disarray.
What can I do?
Nothing, but get on with my life, and try and stop the hacker/s that have violated my Skype accounts, using my credits to call Nigeria and the USA, and thank you Skype who do nothing about it. To stop the hacker/s getting into my other accounts. And Apple say that their computers do not get viruses and trojans?
Oh Poo Poo, I have to put a smile on my face, at least I woke-up this morning for the Muslim early morning call for prayers, (just after 5am) with the loudspeaker pointing to my bedroom from about a mile away, but it is so loud, it is as if the person is standing over my bed, and he is still going on at 6:20am preaching to those believers who are still asleep, at least I am awake and alive, even if I cannot understand the Malay language he is rabbiting on in.
At least I am alive, to go and try and change my flights, contact people to make other arrangements due to the cancelled course.
Anyone want an out of work trainer or presenter? 
Categories
Mind Maps

The table is turned, Oh Poo Poo

As a Thinkbuzan Master Trainer for iMindMaps and hand drawn Mind Maps, I will show examples of Mind Maps from differing sources to my participants.

One such example, (not produced with the computer software iMindMaps, and not following the Tony Buzan rules of Mind Maps), is reproduced below from the book Mind Maps for Medicine, by P. McDermott and D.N. Clarke.
Diarrhoeal Disease Mind Map 
I often give this as an example of how a whole medical course and general medicine can be contained in an A4 sized book of about 140 pages. This one page is the only one I understand, I joke, because it is on Diarrheoal Diceases, and being that I am continually travelling I may have to refer to it.
Last Friday was the time.
Early Friday morning I awoke with aching limbs, a rumbling stomach, and I knew things were not good for me.
Sure enough. I suffered. I needed the Mind Map. I could not leave my hotel bathroom for a while. I became cold. I became weak. I became tired. I spent all afternoon Friday and evening in bed.
Friday night, Saturday morning, I continued, even being sick, but there was nothing to bring-up.
But, we had an appointment Saturday mid morning to see the Senior Doctor at Medical Park, Antalya, who I had demonstrated pain control with hypnosis with, with an idea to discuss my work. 
I could not let my colleagues down. Anyway there was nothing left inside me, and I was completely sterile of germs and bugs, having had a really good shower.
When sitting infront of him, the usual social talk started, and my colleagues, talking in Turkish, told him how ill I had been.
The table was turned, the meeting became about me, no matter how much I tried to steer the meeting back to the original agenda, the others were having non of it.
So, I ended up being treated for my diarrhoea, which had stopped anyway.
So this was my big Oh Poo Poo day. At least I new the subject well in more ways than one. 

Categories
Books PhotoReading

PhotoReading in Antalya, April 2011

It is always a joy to finish a course, organized by BIZ in Antalya, especially PhotoReading, when the participants have absorbed six books over the short weekend, plus had learnt so many other aspects of reading, and had given a talk on the four related books that brought in with them for ten minutes, as if they were an expert.

It is amazing to listen to them talk about the four books’ subject matter with such authority, especially when they knew nothing about the subject prior to starting the weekend PhotoReading course.
In one group, we had a school teacher that acted like an examiner, firing questions to each of the participants as they gave their presentations, only to be answered in a coherent way. The trouble was that when it was her turn to give a presentation, the other participants fired equally difficult questions to her, but with laughter and with good humour even her questioners were answered.
I take great satisfaction in helping participants through the course, which often gives rise to self doubts as to ability, to old beliefs that there is only one way to read, and that is word by word.
When the end of the course comes, often participants do not want to leave the venue, having had such an eye opening experience. But eventually they do, leaving me alone in my hotel room, to begin to relax, reflect on the course, and prepare for the next days work.
I love my work.
Phillip Holt in Antalya with PhotoReading Participants,
Antalya, PhotoReading Participants, April 2011
 
Categories
Presentations Thoughts Travels

How good is a trainer, presenter, coach?

I was talking to a person, and they told me about a ship that had called into the harbour to deliver some cargo.

Once the cargo had been unloaded, the captain gave orders to set sail for the next port, but the engineer told the captain he could not start the engines.
When the captain asked how long it would take to make the repairs, the engineer said he was working on it.
Many hours later the engines still would not start, and the captain was desperate to leave the harbour as he was loosing money moored to to harbour wall, and he heard that there was a highly specialist engineer visiting the area, so the captain asked him to look at the ships’ engines.
The specialist took his little work bag down into the engine room, and listened to the engines as the tried to start, and he went into little bag and took out a little hammer.
With his little hammer, he tapped a pipe, tried the engines, and they started immediately.
The captain was so happy, and he asked the specialist for his invoice.
When the captain saw the invoice he was most angry, for it was for $10,001.
This was too much for tapping a pipe.
When the captain challenged the specialist as to why so much, the specialist replied.
“For tapping the pipe I charged you $1, for knowing where to tap the pipe it is $10,000.“
I was recently asked to visit a company who wanted me to give their management team some training. When told my fee the manager said it was too much, and asked for another person to do the course who had attended one of my courses, but was a trainer in their own right. 
The manager offered the second person half of what I had asked for, but the second person refused their offer as being too little.
A third person was asked, and was offered an even smaller fee, which they accepted.
We have a saying in English,
“If you pay peanuts, you get monkeys.“
So what is the price of a specialist, an expert, a good trainer, an experienced trainer, presenter or coach?
In his books, especially his book Outliers,  Malcolm Gladwell,  explains what makes people great, what made Bill Gates who and what he is, what made the Beatles such a great group? 
His answer is that they worked in their field of expertise, their specialism, that they studied for over 10,000 hours. This analysis was also substantiated by Michael Syed in his book Bounce, where he looks at what makes champions. They have to put in the hours of practice, the 10,000 hours.
I have been delivering training in my fields of excellence since the mid 1990’s, in many countries, cultures and languages, and also before that whilst working for computer manufacturers, so I have put in over my 10,000 hours, unlike many trainers who have just earned their training certificate.
So, I still have my little hammer if someone out there would like use it.