Neil Laughton usually uses his extensive experience as an entrepreneur and business coach   to help and inspire top executives and business owners but when he teamed up with Brighton Metropolitan College , he used his knowledge to help unemployed delegates develop the confidence and skills they needed to thrive in the workplace.  Using the GROW (goals, reality, options, way forward) training model, Neil employed a variety of techniques and styles to challenge and inspire the broad range of delegates. It was so successful that one of them said she thought the course could “change your life and the way you think.”  Neil learned a few things too.

Training Techniques

At the start of the course, the delegates set goals that weren’t just focused on the jobs they wanted but also on what they’d like for their personal life and how they would like to give something back to society by contributing to their community, family or the world in general.  This helped to keep them motivated and broaden their thinking.  Learning sessions were then split into group learning sessions, syndicate small group sessions, one to one meetings and presentations from industry guest speakers who told them all about their businesses, roles or gave them tips on how to succeed.  Neil organised trips and visits including a special challenge day on the South Downs.  For this session, the delegates got to enhance their communication, presentation and decision-making skills through a media based exercise incorporating an outdoors element.  Variety was key in keeping things interesting and stimulating.

Neil’s View

It wasn’t just the delegates who were surprised and inspired by what they saw.  Neil himself was very pleasantly surprised by how positive and willing the delegates were.  They all showed real integrity in what they did and absolutely no bitterness towards their situation.  He was very impressed by the way they all pushed themselves out of their comfort zones and faced all the challenges head on.  By the end, he really felt that they had improved their confidence and self-belief.  Building trust was integral to this process and Neil did this through an early session where they talked about trust and performed a trust building exercise but also through perseverance and Neil’s unrelenting positive attitude.

The Delegates’ Responses

By the end of the course, all the delegates had visibly gained in confidence and were chomping at the bit to put their new skills into use.  One of them said, “The Climb Higher course is amazingly varied, always interesting and helps you make the most of your talents and skills” and another said that it was “Life changing and hugely enjoyable”.  After the course, one delegate spoke about how inspirational she had found both Neil’s coaching and the presentations from guest speakers while another listed all the most important things he learnt such as the importance of networking, CV writing skills, believing in himself and understanding people.  Overall, they were hugely positive and highly impressed with Neil’s experience and “infectious can-do attitude”.

Due to the success of this course, Neil will be running more five-day courses, not just for unemployed people, but for anyone who wants to develop their strategy, leadership skills and teamwork.  Contact neil@laughton.co for more information.