This invaluable resource of news, advice and techniques has been inactive for quite a while due to problems with older software. A new version of the Member Forums is now up and running, and you will find it at this URL http://www.ngh.net/smf_forums/index.php. You'll need to register your user name and password, and then you can sign in and see all the Forums. (Unregistered users only see 5 Forums.) You can also fill out a profile, with your photot and links to your Web site .
By the most remarkable of coincidences, I'll be presenting a free one hour Seminar on the new Member Forums at the NGH Convention in August. Hints and kinks, advice and how-to's, ways to get the most out of this terrific benefit of NGH membership.
August 2008 is really just around the corner, and so is the annual NGH
Convention in Marlborough Mass. Meanwhile, for many folks it seems as if the
economy is slowing down while gasoline and other prices are soaring up. If
thinking about costs might discourage you from attending this remarkable event,
why not start now to find someone to share expenses with? Every year, people
share hotel rooms and sometimes automobile rides to and from Marlborough. (Note
- while you're there you really don't need a car, free shuttle buses can take
you just about anywhere you want to go.)
If you have a reserved room to share, or if you're looking for one, the NGH
Convention Discussion Group right here on Ourhypnospace is a logical place to
post that information.
As promised, I sat for this exam at the 2007 convention. The results are not in yet, and I'm cautiously optimistic. Turns out, there was one area of the exam for which I was not mentally well prepared, and that may have held me back. More about that later...
This was a thoroughly enjoyable experience for me, and I'm sure it will be for you when you apply. If you expect to see an angel with a flaming sword posted at the BCH entrance, intent on keeping us out, too bad. The members of the Board Certification Committee are a welcoming group, very interested in expanding the number of NGH Board Certified Hypnotists. In my opinion, they are all people that every one of us would like to know better.
That said, the BCH process is very real. You have to know your stuff and you will need to bring your best game to the table. I see it as comprising four distinct parts: Application, Interview, Written Test Section One and Written Test Section Two (Case Histories).
It all starts with the Application. One can apply on-line, but that leaves some loose ends and I do not like loose ends. In particular, you will need to include two letters of character reference and an article suitable for publication of about 1000 words, so I chose to apply by mail and include everything. I made copies of everything, and brought them with me to the convention just in case. I somehow missed the advice to also include copies of my brochures or other promotional materials, and didn't bring them to the convention either. It would be good for you to include yours.
My article was about the techniques I use to help new clients realize the amazing power of their own subconscious mind. Naturally, your article needs to be your work, no ghost writers please. I'm no authority on this point, but it seems to me that it would be OK for you to ask a friend to review your writing and perhaps serve as your editor, unless that friend is also a hypnotist. You're looking for comments on style, grammar and presentation, but not technical content.
Speaking of loose ends, I included a check for $25 with my application as requested, and I'm still looking for a way to get the remaining $225 of the total fee to the proper person at the NGH.
The next step is the Interview, also called the Oral Exam. My examiner, a classy lady much younger than I but vastly more experienced in our profession, wore a suit and looked like a million bucks. You are advised to dress in the same manner as you would to meet a client. If that usually includes a red false nose and full clown makeup that's OK, but you should be prepared to explain. As for me, I wore a suit and tie.
In the Interview, be confident and be yourself. You're not there to fool anybody; you're there to be you and to let the Board know who you are.
Some time after the interview comes Section One of the Written Test. There will be 60 questions, of which some are True/False, some are Multiple Choice, and some ask for short written answers. Of course I can't repeat any of the real questions, and any I concoct about our profession just might actually show up on another edition of the test, so to give you an idea here are some analogous questions not about hypnotism:
• In terms of population, New York City is the largest city in North America. (T/F)
• Although smaller than the ostrich, wild turkeys cannot fly. (T/F)
• Approximately what percentage of the current United States of America was not occupied by Anglo-Saxons prior to 1492?
If you don't know the answers to these questions don't worry about it, I guarantee you that they will not be on the BCH exam. Somewhat analogous questions about hypnotism will be there, and you already know the answers to those. There are no trick questions, but please read every question at least twice, and not too fast, to make sure you really understand what they are asking.
After Section One comes Section Two, which they call "case histories", and here is where I may have come up short. There are five of these, which I would have called "profiles of prospective clients" because that is what they are. A test examiner will read each case twice, and you can take notes.
Quoting from the NGH publication "Frequently Asked Questions about NGH Board Certification" (highly recommended) you have five minutes per case to "discuss the treatment plan and what intervention you would utilize." Now, if you've already seen thousands of clients, chances are pretty good that you'll think that each case reminds you of someone you've worked with in the past, and you can just recall what you did for them. If you haven't seen that many clients yet, five minutes should still be enough time to come up with an idea of what you would do. Be aware of possible ethical or legal concerns, the examiner will not emphasize those of course.
At any rate, time was not my problem with this part. As I listened to the cases, I realized that I did not have any idea what a properly formed answer would look like. The FAQ document includes a sample case history, but I really could have benefited from seeing a sample answer. I got a bit hung up on the form of the answer, and some of my scribblings might not have been what they were looking for. One hopeful note for me is that this part of the process is not scored as heavily as the Interview or Section One of the Written Test, so maybe... If not, I can take the exam again next year at no additional cost, and I will be prepared for this section!
One more thing - even if you're not scheduled to take the exam at the next convention, I think you'd do well to take the Seminar called "NGH Board Certification Intro", which this year was offered both on Friday and Saturday by Shaun Brookhouse and Maurice Kershaw. The delightfully dry wit of Maurice, and the not-so-dry humor of Shaun, soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread.
OK, the answers to the analogous questions are False, False, and 100%.
Teaching: What does it take to make an NGH convention a success? Besides hard and sometimes heroic work by the NGH staff, adequate physical facilities and lots and lots of hypnotists attending, there need to be great Workshops and Seminars. The Guild says we had 164 Seminars and 116 Workshops this year, presented by about 200 different people. Do you suppose that one needs to be a super star of hypnosis to be selected to hold a Seminar or Workshop? Well, they selected yours truly, which blows a great big hole in that theory.
A lot of stars were there of course, for the same reasons that the rest of us were. The way I see it, if one or more of the following applies to you, you are a star:
• Almost every certified hypnotist owns at least one of your books. • You've received an award at the convention banquet. • Your picture has been on the cover of "The Journal of Hypnotism". • You're entitled to write "FNGH", "DNGH" or "Order of Braid" after your name...
(Note to "You know who you are": Three out of four ain't bad, but when are you going to write that book?)
You're not quite there yet you say? That's OK - using the criteria listed above, I count about 20 stars among those 200 presenters. The others were people like you and me. You definitely do not need to be a star to be selected to present at the convention.
So, what do you need? If you have expertise in some area related to our profession that not everyone has, and if you have a desire to share that knowledge with your colleagues, you have what you need to present. Oh, and you'll also need to write a well thought out application and send it in before September 30th.
If you're selected, you'll get a free convention. Not a free hotel stay, mind you, but we're talking about $400 that you won't have to pay in convention fees. You also get one of those snazzy badges that presenters get, and you can add "Adjunct Faculty Member of the 2008 National Guild of Hypnotists Convention and Educational Conference" to your promotional materials.
What did I present? Thanks to my misspent youth, I have some knowledge of the kind of computer conferencing represented by the NGH Member Forums, and also I seem to be able to talk to non-technical people about technical topics in ways that they can actually understand. The technology of the Forums is rather dated compared to Ourhypnospace.com, there isn't a photograph or video to be seen, but the information that is in there is first rate and easily accessed. Alas, only about one fourth of NGH members are registered to access it. Not only are the other three fourths missing out on a wonderful resource, but those of us who are registered are missing out on the wisdom that the others could share. My presentation was about some of the jewels in that treasury and also about how easy it is to use, even if you're not real computer savvy, and here's how you do it...
For the second year in a row, my Seminar was scheduled for early Sunday morning. Not the ideal time to get a large turnout, after the banquet and parties of Saturday night, but I was grateful to those who did attend. I have not seen the evaluations yet, but I think it went well. I'm going to propose an improved Seminar on the same topic for 2008. By the way, it would seem that the Royal Plaza hotel's Internet service either doesn't reach into the Princess room, or is down for scheduled maintenance on Sunday mornings, so don't plan on being on-line as part of your presentation.
In my spare time I had a professional photo taken, which I expect will replace the one you see in my profile, never been happy with that one, and oh yes, I sat for the NGH Board Certification Exam. I'll talk about that next.
Many friends have asked me "So what happens when 1500 hypnotists get together for a convention?" Those of you who were fortunate enough to be able to attend in Marlborough this year already know about that, but I thought I'd blog a few words for the benefit of those who were not able to be there. And even for the attendees, there may be some aspects that you haven't experienced and would like to know more about, so here are my thoughts and feelings on Learning, Teaching, Taking the BCH Examination, and After Hours at the 2007 NGH Convention. Each of these topics will be a separate blog.
Learning: First of all, one simply cannot attend all the Seminars and Workshops that one wants. We do get a very hefty book, the Convention Catalog, that contains handouts from many, but alas not all, of the Seminars, and we can learn much from those after the Convention is over and we're back home. Last year, for example, I was able to become familiar with Gerry Kein's "UltraHeight" technique from the handouts in the catalog, even though I wasn't able to attend his presentation on the topic.
Gerry Kein's Seminar "Stop Shooting Yourself in the Foot" is about words and semantics to avoid when talking to clients, and Gerry as usual is funny and informative. It's not in the book, but the CD and video available from the Guild should give you a very good idea of the topic.
Lisa Halpin's "When to Turn Down a Client" was great, and her handouts are in the book. You just might need to consider what she has to say about that, I know that I do. I bet you'd enjoy her CD too.
Joann Abrahamsen's "Gimmicks, Gizmos and Gadgets" was a lot of fun. She demonstrated how just about any object, including some really interesting ones in her collection, can be used to induce hypnosis. The Seminar was not video taped, alas. Inductions are Joann's special interest, and she also gives a two-hour Workshop on inductions each year. And remember, sometimes a handshake is just a handshake...
Wendy Packer's "Rx for Hypnosis in the Medical Community" told us how to get doctors and other health care providers to begin to refer their patients to us when appropriate. She is a natural born presenter and her material was first rate. The handouts are in the book, and the CD would be a good investment.
Speaking of good investments, the video of Scot Giles two hour presentation on "Ethics and Legal Issues for Hypnotists" would be a good one. Every hypnotist in the US and Canada needs to know what Dr. Giles has to say in this area, and he's also a great presenter.
I was privileged to be the Host for this event, and I encourage all of you to volunteer to host at least one event at next year's convention. Choose one you want to see, of course :-)
This has surely gone on long enough, so I'll just mention one other presentation, "Communicating with the Mind in the Esdaile State" by Ines Simpson. I've been taught that clients in very deep states of hypnosis are not very interested in the suggestions being given by the hypnotist, and that they are not too useful for the sort of work we usually do. Ines demonstrated what is, in my opinion, an innovative way of getting around this. Working with a volunteer in somnambulism she asked if it would be all right for one arm to remain in somnambulism while the rest of the client deepened into Esdaile (and later, into Sichort). She tested for each state and was satisfied that the client really was there, except for her right arm. That arm continued to give ideomotor signals, and in response to suggestions put as questions pain was released and positive changes were made. I think that more work and study are needed, as does Ines, but I suspect that there is something really good here.
This particular volunteer, who was previously unknown to Ines, had triggers so that she could go into the three states at will for relief from pain of carpal tunnel syndrome. She shared her triggers with Ines, so no actual induction was necessary. I believe that what I saw was real.
I hosted this Seminar. Although hosts collect the evaluation forms as attendees leave the room, we do not review them. Nonetheless I did notice that several people left early, and their comments indicated serious disappointment that they did not get to see an induction in the Esdaile state. They completely missed the point.
Well, if anyone is still with me, stay tuned for the next chapter in this blog, Teaching, coming soon to a computer near you.
