Mind skills

Introducing 'mind skills'! Overview
This is a revolutionary, practical, participative, inspiring and dynamic two-day course designed to give greater knowledge, skills and insights into the creative and innovative aspects of the mind. Everyone who attends will get lifelong benefits at work and at home! The programme is always tailored to meet the specific needs of the organisation.
Many businesses have ambitious growth plans in difficult trading conditions. These plans will be met by capitalising on past success, but not by this alone. Organisations need to move away from relying solely on traditional ways of thinking and working, aiming ahead of the market rather than following it. This course will bump-start people's brains and thinking processes!

Your organisation needs people at all levels who:

• Contribute, innovatively, to the growth and effectiveness of the business
• Thrive on solving everyday problems in new, different and better ways
• Break out from the restrictions and boundaries of conventional thinking and wisdom and generate new and better ways of growing the business!
• Have a sound understanding of the techniques and processes of the mind and how to apply them to everyday situations

This programme will help your people develop those skills. You have probably heard of left-right brain thinking: join the participants and experience it yourself. Your approach to problem-solving and decision-making will never be the same again! Training objectives
This unique workshop will help the participants to:

• Increase their creativity by at least 100%!
• Understand the difference between creativity (or original thinking) and innovation (or adaptive thinking): the funnel model
• Recognise opportunities to be creative
• Appreciate the difference between accurately defining the problem and finding a solution
• Understand how they think and process information
• Develop simple, practical and useful new skills and techniques for use in their everyday work
• Develop their confidence in their own ability, by practical exercises, and to use and practice the new skills and techniques learned
• Understand and practice 'brain gym': getting the brain fit and keeping it that way!
• Improve the quality and diversity of their work output
• Sell and communicate their ideas
• Use their new skills and techniques on a permanent basis

Format
This is a highly participative two-day workshop which will leave participants eager to apply their new skills and insights immediately!
The expert trainer
Nick is an outstanding trainer with over 15 years' experience in major 'blue chip' organisations. He worked in HR, training and sales management for such organisations as Honda, Raychem, W H Smith and Filofax before starting his own consultancy and training business in 1999. He now works in partnership with organisations of all sizes and runs both in-company courses / workshops and public / open programmes nationwide. His clients include BT, RBS, Taylor Woodrow, Hawksmere, Capita, Teacher Training Agency, The Duchy of Cornwall, Hampshire Police and a host of others. A very popular trainer, continually following and embracing new ideas and best practice, he first carved out a particular reputation in the field of time management. His special interest in creativity, problem-solving and decision-making flows directly from his time management training experience. See what course participants and learning and development managers say about him:
'A big, big thanks for your two sessions today - they went down a storm!'
Oxford Magnet Technology

'Nick was a brilliant trainer and got our most reluctant employees to participate and enjoy the day.'
Orion Cleaning Group

'Of all the training courses I have attended over the years (and there have been a few), this was the most consistently relevant.'
Sennheiser

'Nick was excellent; challenging, risk-taking, thought-provoking!'
Peugeot Motor Company
Course outline
DAY ONE

1. Achieving 5th gear!
   • What does a creative organisation look like?
   • Mind, brain and body
   • So... how does the mind work?
   • Left and right brain
   • Experiencing left-right brain shift!
   • Achieving a creative state of mind
   • Brain gym session
2. Creativity and innovation
   • Video - Discovering the future: the business of paradigms
   • What is creativity?
   • What is innovation?
   • The funnelling model
   • Creating a positive state for good thinking
   • Types of creativity
   • Creativity blocks
3. Mind skills
   • Mental ambidexterity
   • The limbic system
   • Mind mapping
   • Brainstorming
   • Paradigm breaking!
   • Increasing creativity - 10 practical techniques
   • The Thinkpak
   • 4-phase planning
   • De Bono's six thinking hats
4. The bathtub competition!
   • (Evening exercise for residential courses only)

DAY TWO

1. Time to work on live issues
   • Selling and communicating your ideas
   • Working on real examples from the participants
   • Basic presentation skills
   • Getting the message across
   • Clarity, verve and energy
   • Selling isn't telling!
2. Review, action planning and evaluation
   • Preparation of presentations in groups
   • Presentation of thoughts and ideas
   • Action planning
   • Presentation and discussion of action plans
   • Evaluation

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