Workshops for Non-Professionals

The following programs are focused on helping those who wish to improve their ability to communicate to those around them.

People Reading

Most communication is SAD JAN. it is composed of Sullen Silence, Advice, Deceit, Judgment, Attack and Negativity. Discounting and devaluing are so common that we may not realize their insidious effect.

To enhance success, both personally and professionally, we can use state-of-the-art methods of people reading and communication engineering. We can insure that message sent is message received, and message received is message acted upon.

Technology had outstripped our ability to use it effectively. Without precise, solution-focused communication we cannot affect advances in business technology. We cannot motivate employees. We cannot reach customers.

The Value-added communication model is based on five communication “choice points,” the goal, the gift- wrapping, the position of the listener, the process of delivery and the posture of the communicator. It is an eminently practical and easy-to-use method that is taught using demonstrations and small group exercises. We will learn how to BE great communicators, not merely DO communication techniques.

People Building

Experiential training methods can promote human growth to an extent that cannot be achieved by didactic information. Developing one’s own self is a never-ending process, as well as a welcome challenge.

There are many models promoting the development of the Self. Improvisation, a school of drama, offers a relevant model, since communication is, in many ways, an art of drama more akin to improvisation than to science. In this workshop we will use improvisational training methods in order to develop rich, personal skills. We will take on the roles of master communicators, and learn how spontaneity and discipline form the basis for effective communication. We will work in experiential groups in order to develop lenses (ways of looking at things), muscles (ways of behaving), heart (compassion) and posture (social role). We will learn how to produce communication that adapts itself to the unique style of a person. We will become more capable of eliciting the power within.

Ericksonian Lessons: The Practice of Effective Communication

How does one become a top communicator? Studying masters is essential because effective communication saves time, and results in much greater success in all management tasks. In this workshop, Jeffrey K. Zeig, Ph.D., will introduce fundamentals of an Ericksonian, systemic approach. Lecture and small group exercises will be used to promote a more entrancing identity as a powerful communicator.

Stress-less Steps

Stress and its consequences are problems of epidemic proportions in today’s business world. If you do not master stress, it will master you, affecting you mentally and physically.

In this practical workshop we will learn state-of-the-art coping skills. We will use group exercises, group hypnosis and self-hypnosis training to learn ways to manage stress and the resultant social, personal and biological irritability that it invariably results from uncontrolled stress.

Marital Enrichment: When Love is not Enough.

What would happen if a new miracle drug were developed that could give you:

• better mental and physical health,
• deeper meaning in life,
• greater satisfaction in everyday life, and
• increased psychological health for your children?

The manufacturer would have a tough time keeping up with demand, the company’s stock would soar, and the developer of the drug would likely receive the Nobel Prize.

Of course, there is no such drug. And yet, there is something that can foster these effects: a strong long-term relationship. An intimate relationship can heal old wounds

The central committed relationship in our lives is, among other things, our best chance to extricate ourselves from a painful past. Whether by providing the opportunity to develop a greater capacity for separateness or for connectedness, whether by encouraging old scripts to be given up or new paths to be forged, the healing process can take root in the right relationship.

Clear, compassionate, and user-friendly, this workshop reaches out to couples and individuals grappling with relationship issues. Attend it and discover a profound guide that offers effective perspectives on previously confounding relational issues. Learn breakthrough resources for all those who wish to gain the benefits of that as-yet-undiscovered miracle drug.

Topics to be covered include: Love and Intimacy, Mate selection, Sexuality, Affairs, Conflict Resolution, Gender Roles, The Marital Life Cycle, Divorce and Family Violence. The program will be practical, experiential and entertaining.

Emotional Impact: What can we learn from filmmakers…and social psychologists?

Effectiveness in communication can be advanced by cross fertilization, cherry-picking methods from other disciplines. Concepts from the arts, especially filmmaking, but also from social psychology, can empower communication with patients, clients, employees and peers.

The arts amplify emotions through the use of hidden codes. Influencing mood and perspective is the point of art – whether drama, painting, literature, dance, or music. Movies use implicit multi-layered methods. The viewer is often unaware of the intricate dramatic, experiential methods that filmmakers use for impact.

Social psychology studies the way in which people are influenced outside of awareness. People respond to contextual markers and demand characteristics without realizing their response or what precipitated it.

We will explore how powerful, covert codes from various arts can be folded into our daily repertoire. We will “unpack” various arts and extract principles that can be applied in the office or at home. Regardless of professional orientation and level of experience, attendees will find ways to use the concepts we uncover by using previously untapped possibilities in communication.