Spring cleaning the office.

I am the first to admit that I can be, no wait I AM a little untidy, a problem which is compounded by the fact that I am a bit of a hoarder too.

I don't like to throw stuff away because I convince myself  that I may need it at some point, justifying the fact that I must of obtained it for some good reason in the first place so the best solution would be to put it somewhere nearby where it will be readily accessible.
Except it doesn't become readily accessible at all because I treat everything in the same way, resulting in multiple piles, bulging drawers and jam packed shelves of; files, articles, gadgets, gizmos, books, magazines, research pieces, mementos, notebooks, memory sticks, business cards and much, much more besides, meaning any value a particular item did have disappears or is simply forgotten, lost in the noise or rather clutter of all the other indispensable 'things' around it.

I've been sitting amidst a few more piles than normal of late because I have been spinning a few more plates than normal;

• writing a five day foundation course, 
• applying for two courses to be assessed for accreditations 
• re-writing the MPG programme to give just as much in half the time, cranking up the search for a new place to expand the OMNI brand
• websites
• forums
• clients
• accountants

and so on and so forth. The good news is that I have completed all of the above. The bad news is having taken my foot off the gas (temporarily!) I sit at my desk and realise I haven't used one bit of the two ton of crap that surrounds me now and have accrued over recent months.

It's scattered around the floor, on shelves, on radiators, in boxes - reams of material I thought I would need but discover I clearly didn't (or don't think I did!) because I already had everything in my head and all the resources necessary to do what was needed.

In fact that's great, all the stuff my students and client's are going to get in the courses, certifications and workshops is going to be 100% good stuff - no padding, no guff, no bits stuck on, just all me and I am actually very proud of that. Unfortunately it does mean I have a bloody big spring clean to do.

Spring cleans should be simple. You are throwing away something that has at some point become clearly not needed. Whatever reason you kept it for has passed and if you didn't need it for the reason you think you may have needed it, you definitely are not going to need it for something else. That is how it should be. 

And the best time you should do your spring clean is when you are feeling empowered and you have the most clarity and the decisiveness that is needed. 

Because spring cleans can become a pain in the arse very quickly if you don't.

Have you ever begun to clear out a kitchen or bedroom drawer and the next thing you know four hours have passed, you haven't thrown hardly anything away and your mood has shifted, sometimes for the better, but often for the worse?

Well one of two things has generally happened. The first is that you begin to create doubt in your mind that the things you are getting rid of were or are quite as useless as you previously thought and that maybe they will become useful at some point and then, well then you wouldn't have them! 

SO, you ponder, you go back and forth internally deciding their fate, their worth, their value and as soon as you let that happen a few times your doomed. That doubt creeps in and the spring clean is either abandoned or you finish it feeling deflated. 

The second thing that may have happened is that you may get caught up in the sentiment or emotions attached to things, maybe a time that they represented, or who gave them to you and it sways you to the point that it wouldn't be right to let them go. So you tick yourself off both for wasting time and ultimately and frustratingly not achieving anything.

I am sure many of us have been guilty of this in the past. I know I have. 

So let's go back to that ideal time to spring clean, when you're feeling good, why is it so easy then? 

Well when feeling strong and empowered we are at our most confident and confidence is one hell of a valuable resource. It is functionally resourceful, for focusing on things objectively and we can see the true value and meaning of things and this includes the crap we collect in our lives and need to throw out. 

When we are not at our best we tend to err on the side of caution and even if something has served no purpose for the last six months or six years, we strangely worry about the one day it might, so we keep it.

Also if our self esteem is lacking a little do we not attach some unwarranted value to sentiment that we wouldn't if we felt good about ourselves?

Thinking about it, isn't all of this talk about spring cleaning just a metaphor for how our subconscious minds functions and sometimes malfunctions and how our behaviour can become unproductive and irrational in response to memories, emotions, defensiveness and doubt.

Of course it is. But I actually do need to clear out lots of junk. 

I just know I can do it easily because I have all the resources I need, that the junk hindered rather than helped anything I was trying to do and that if I don't throw it away and heed the lesson positive lessons unwanted mess gives me, the next time I need to get something done I will just have more shit to wade through at some point.

Is it time you focused on the real value of things and gave yourself a spring clean too?

Becoming an OMNI Instructor and what it means.

From the moment that I watched my very first video of Gerald Kein effortless demonstrating the art of simple hypnosis and the use of regression therapy I knew that this was a person I wanted to emulate. It was the latter stages of my initial training to become a certified hypnotherapist and we were being shown clips of 'Jerry' as he is known by his numerous friends and admirers in the hypnosis community and another legend, Gil Boyne conducting sessions involving regression to cause. Both were impressive, but it was the mannerisms and style of the former that really piqued my interest in using regression as the tool for change and Jerry as the therapist I wanted to be like.

I decided there and then in the classroom that I could not be one of those hypnotherapist who seemingly always fell back on scripts and recordings to try to resolve every presenting issue they faced. I decided I would do things the Jerry way.

Choosing to sit the Basic through Advanced OMNI Hypnosis Class after becoming a Certified NGH Trainer was a great decision, a better decision would have been to do it even sooner! It really solidified any views I had on the art and benefits of regression techniques, compounding and proficient hypnosis that Jerry teaches so effortlessly.

After certifying a few NGH students I really felt that students could and should be taught hypnosis and hypnotherapy that is as cost and time efficient as it is effective at resolving serious issues.
I decided that if the opportunity arose I would do as I had done with the NGH certification and apply to become an OMNI DCI - certifying students for the International Board of Hypnosis Education and Certification.

I wanted to share with people the possibilities open to you if you trust in your abilities, know and use the right hypnotic and therapeutic techniques and do so with confidence and competence. However becoming an instructor and a designated OMNI Hypnosis Training Centre® is not easy. Despite training students in North America, South America, Europe and Asia, before applying the organisation had less than twenty approved instructors worldwide and this is because Jerry and Hansreudi Wipf, now in charge of OMNI, carefully vet their prospective trainers.

I knew that with no existing Instructors in the UK (just a small number of OMNIgrads and a huge number of Jerry's fans) I had an unique opportunity but Hans and Jerry wanted to know my intentions and my capabilities before agreeing to consider me.

Fortunately after a number of conversations I was accepted to train with them both in Deland, Florida.

Becoming an OMNI Instructor is a big commitment. Unlike other training options, they are rigid in their methodology, beliefs and techniques and expect their trainers to install this in their own students. They focus less on other therapeutic techniques but demand an uncompromising high level of skill in hypnosis and hypnotherapy. The curriculum is for the purist and this is why it is often considered the training for the professional hypnotherapist.

The training was intense at times and throughout the process, the standards demanded of myself and fellow potential trainers were high, but if I had never worked so hard in a class before, nor had I laughed so much either. Yet despite the fun and great banter, it was good to be reminded that there was still plenty to learn and we were learning it from the best.

I also realised that each and every other future instructor in the class shared my drive and commitment to doing hypnosis the right way and despite the difference in culture, with those in attendance having coming from Beijing, Brazil, Poland, Switzerland, Germany, Luxembourg, Japan, USA and of course myself from England, everyone had something unique to share and contribute. In fact their knowledge and ability was humbling and inspiring.

Hans led the class with his unique presence, passion and vision for OMNI Hypnosis as the first choice globally for professional hypnosis training. His mix of professionalism and having fun while you worked hard was contagious and he has steered the organisation into something that feels very big and very intimate at the same time.

However I am sure Hans will happily concede that while he was in no doubt in charge and running a top notch class and can be proud that he has cultivated a new crop of high quality trainers, Jerry was the star of the show.

His knowledge is unparalleled - sixty-two years hypnotising people and using techniques many hypnotherapists are too timid to attempt once qualified does make you an authority on the subject. Especially considering that since the inception of OMNI Hypnosis Training in 1979, Jerry has remained true to the principles he learnt from his mentor Dave Elman and he has subsequently refined and tweaked over the years.

But what really resonated with me, after spending so much time with him was the empathy and warmth that he radiated throughout. He was honest, self deprecating, incredibly funny, but he was also very humble and real too. He and Hans obviously have a great chemistry and are very close, but he was comfortable opening himself up to the rest of the class too, speaking about his failures and disappointments as much as his successes, both in his personal and professional life. It was nice to listen to someone who despite having given thousands of hours of hypnotherapy, would talk fondly and emotionally about the cases where he knew he had been the difference to someone else.

The last day was both happy and sad. Jerry was reflective and gave a speech which barely left a dry eye in the room, as the man many consider to be the very best, pondered brilliantly over his career. His message to us and the message he wanted us to take to our future students was that if we can make a difference in peoples lives then we can consider ourselves as successes. As he spoke my mind drifted to those individuals I hope that I have helped during a much shorter career than his and it is the message that I intend to carry forward to my future OMNI students.

I whole heartedly believe that wherever in the world you are, if you want to get into hypnosis to make a difference in the lives of others, then you should look up your nearest OMNI Hypnosis Training Centre®.

Jerry Kein, myself and Hansreudi Wipf - becoming the first OMNI Hypnosis Instructor in the UK