Practical Hypnotherapy Skills Training

Our Professional Hypnotherapy Diploma course is a strategically-designed blend of practical hypnotherapy skills training combined with the essential theory that you need to work as a Professional Hypnotherapist.

We use a range of teaching methods to help you learn. Here is a brief overview of some of the practical strategies and approaches we use to help our students develop the competence and confidence to become effective professional hypnotherapists.

Confidence building

We use a diverse range of teaching strategies to help students build their confidence in their knowledge and skills.

There are numerous broader additional benefits, including increased self-esteem, enhanced communication skills, greater resilience, a more positive mindset and improved decision-making, enhanced creativity and better time management.

Consultation skill development

We teach a range of consultation methods within the course which students learn to select from according to the client’s needs. For example, some clients will benefit from a deeper exploration of their undesired and desired behaviours, whilst others present with more thought-based (cognitive) or emotional concerns.

Being able to conduct an effective client consultation is more than just finding out the client’s contact information and what the problem is.

Our students learn how to use a range of spoken and non-verbal tools to elicit the information needed, including the client’s goals, so they can then formulate a treatment plan and deliver accurately targeted hypnotherapy.

Observation skill development

Students benefit by working to develop their observation skills of clients’ behaviours, words and body language communication.

They will enhance their verbal, sub-verbal and non-verbal awareness and, as a result, be better informed and more able to improve their decision-making skills.

Class and group discussions

Whole class and small group discussions help students engage with the topic being discussed and learn from each other’s views and opinions. We find that discussions help students process the course information, whether the aim is to share responses, understand key concepts, make new connections or deepen their understanding.

In addition, students are able to develop their listening and critical thinking skills, boost their problem-solving abilities and generally enhance their communication skills.

Group activities

We strategically design and supervise group tasks and activities, so that they help students develop a wide range of skills and boost learning and retention of information, as well as gaining greater understanding. Students are able to work together to assess and break down complex tasks (perhaps more demanding than suitable for an individual), delegate roles and responsibilities, and work through a range of elements together or coming together as a whole.

Students learn how to collaboratively engage with diverse perspectives, assess relevance and pool appropriate knowledge and skills. This helps students understand and develop their own voice and perspectives in relation to their peers and further strengthen their general communication skills.

Group experiences

Some techniques and concepts are ideal for students to learn experientially, rather than perhaps watching a demonstration.

These group experiences give students a personal understanding of the technique, which they can then discuss afterwards, gaining an awareness of how others experienced the same technique.

Delivering demonstrations and presentations

We demonstrate many of the hypnotherapy techniques and approaches taught on the Professional Hypnotherapy Diploma course. This gives students an opportunity to observe and notice both how the technique is delivered and how the recipient responds.

After a demonstration, students will engage in a discussion about what they have seen, breaking down each step, gaining greater insight as to how they may then go on and use the technique. This enhances understanding of complex topics and principles and promotes active learning and greater depth of knowledge, as students engage with the content in different ways.

Demonstrations enhance students’ observation skills and helps build their ability to ‘watch then do’. This is useful beyond the course, when they encounter new techniques.

New protocol evaluation and use

We deliberately save some techniques to be ‘demo-free’, as we also teach students how to look at a new technique and work out how best to deliver it.

Students learn how to look at a technique as a whole, work out its aims, break it down into core components (giving greater flexibility for client personalisation) and then adapting the technique to achieve congruence with their delivery style and approach.

This way of working is a useful skill for when they are qualified and engaged in professional development.

Pairs work

Practical techniques taught in class are then practiced by students. This provides a more comprehensive learning experience. Much of the hypnosis practice is conducted as pairs work. Each student taking turns to be therapist and client.

Students gain a deeper understanding of the techniques and have greater knowledge retention, as they have an experience to relate the technique to. Students increase their problem-solving, critical thinking and communication skills in real-life applications. Students gain insight from what they do, both when it goes well and when it goes off plan. In this way, they absorb more content and develop greater flexibility in how they work.

Triad work

Some of the hypnosis practical activities are conducted in groups of threes. This has several benefits.

Firstly, the therapist starts to become comfortable with being observed, making the practical exams easier.

Secondly, the observer has an opportunity to watch both parties giving and receiving hypnosis. In addition, the observer can provide constructive feedback to the therapist.

Finally, the group can then discuss their experiences and gain deeper understanding.

Hypnotising groups

During the course, students have opportunities to work in groups, using suggestibility tests initially and then, as they gain skills, working with hypnosis techniques. This helps students develop their observation and delivery skills.

By learning how to work with groups (of varying sizes), students develop the ability to elevate their practice to be able to observe, communicate and engage with several people at the same time.

Hypnotic testing

During the course, students learn and regularly practice how to deliver a range of hypnotic suggestibility tests and hypnotic depth testing.

Students learn the many benefits and advantages of using suggestibility tests and practice boosts their skills and depth of understanding of how a diverse range of people can respond.

Rapid hypnosis inductions

We teach a range of rapid hypnosis inductions, including physical inductions, sensory inductions and confusion inductions, in such a way that they are suitable for hypnotherapy, sport hypnosis and demonstration settings.

Students learn how to optimise their therapy time, meet the expectations of clients and work in a way that engages the client in the process.

Progressive hypnosis inductions

Students learn a range of progressive hypnosis inductions, including conversational hypnosis approaches, and those using direct suggestion and indirect suggestions, metaphors and non-traditional approaches.

Repeated practice

Many of the techniques within the course are practiced more than once. This high and low frequency repeated practice helps students in many ways, both in terms of procedural skill acquisition and depth of knowledge and retention of information.

For practical approaches, such as rapid inductions, students develop muscle memory and boost their co-ordination and accuracy.

For hypnotic techniques, students gain greater depth of awareness by applying the same technique to a range of people.

Students practice both in the classroom and outside of class. This blend of observational practice, focus of attention, client and observed feedback and self-awareness (reflection) helps students rapidly increase their confidence in their ability to engage with the techniques and maximises learning achievement.

Using notes and scripts

There is a wealth of hypnotherapy literature and resources available to students and graduates. Learning how to engage with this information is an important skill.

Students are taught how to deliver content to a client where it is appropriate to provide hypnotherapy from a standard or customised scripts or notes.

Throughout the course, students learn how to adapt popular and novel techniques, as well as write their own therapy outlines and scripts. This enables the personalisation of therapy, whilst also addressing the key needs of the client.

Working without notes and scripts

Students learn how to work free of scripts and notes from the very first weekend.

Guest speakers and demonstrations

Our guest speakers share specific expertise with our students. They have in-depth knowledge on specialised topics, or have interesting perspectives or lived experiences that students can learn from. Their authentic and unique contributions add to the learning experiences for our students.

Supervision in class

We actively supervise students during group tasks and practical activities, giving students space to learn whilst also providing assistance and feedback where appropriate, and recognising areas of good practice.

This enables any areas for development to be addressed promptly, helping the student learn and develop beneficial skills, secure in the knowledge that they are working well.

Exams

Exams have a vital role in the growth of our students, with numerous benefits beyond just testing what students know or can do. They motivate students to learn and to revise, to prepare for their exams. The revising has added benefits of increasing depth of understanding. It can also highlight both strengths and weaknesses or gaps in understanding, giving the student the opportunity to proactively address those.

The exams themselves prove to the students not just what they know, but that they actually do know what they know, and also that they can be under pressure and still perform. This is helpful when graduates are then building their business. They know they can deliver under pressure.

We recognise that some students may not have experienced examinations in a while, so we provide at least two mock exams for each of the three exams (short questions, case scenarios, practical). These mocks enable students to practice their exam techniques, as well as give an indication of where they may wish to focus their revision.

A taster of a practical teaching

Here is a brief video to give you an example of how a practical technical might be discussed in class.

Typical weekend 7

We invite you to have a look at some highlights of a typical weekend 7 on our Professional Hypnotherapy Diploma course.