Frequently Asked Questions

Relaxation is a state in which the muscles of the body are loose and thinking becomes slower and more visual, much like during a dream. As you enter relaxation, the electrical activity of the brain slows down. The frequency of brain activity can be measured, and you can see a shift from “beta” waves, typical of wakefulness, to “alpha” waves, which indicate relaxation. With the shift to alpha waves, the right hemisphere begins to dominate over the left. As a result, thinking becomes less logical and linear and more imagistic and colorful, made up of pictures and symbols.

Physiological activity slows down as well. Breathing becomes shallower and slower, the heart rate drops, blood pressure falls, and the body’s various systems work at their best. These changes create a feeling of calm and ease.

Relaxation can be a therapeutic tool in its own right, used in NLP, guided imagery and other therapeutic methods. As a rule, a person cannot be tense and relaxed at the same time. It follows that the more relaxed a person is, the less tense they are. Relaxation can be very helpful to anyone who suffers from problems rooted in tension, stress and anxiety. Here are a few examples:

Relaxation during childbirth: Relaxation can help labor progress, reduce pain and lower the mother’s level of tension. It eases fear and induces calm. In addition, during relaxation the body releases more of the hormones that support the process (oxytocin, which encourages the uterus to contract, and endorphins, which relieve pain naturally).

Relief for heart patients: Various heart conditions are linked to tension and stress. Heart patients can use relaxation to calm down, reduce high blood pressure and regulate the heartbeat.

Pain relief: The cause of any pain must be medically diagnosed and treated when necessary. Relaxation can help until medical treatment takes effect, or in cases of chronic or psychosomatic pain. A headache, for example, can have many causes. If the pain results from dehydration, it is best not to confuse the body by relaxing it, but to make sure the missing fluids are replaced. If the pain stems from tension, it will ease once the person calms down and enters relaxation. When a headache is caused by the narrowing or widening of blood vessels, relaxation can lower blood pressure and loosen the muscles around the head, easing the pain. In a similar way, relaxation can ease stomachaches and more.

Relaxation for children: Relaxation can help children calm down after a fall or another difficult experience. For example, when a child wakes up crying in the night, relaxation can help soothe them.

Relief from insomnia: People who have trouble falling asleep at night, or who wake up and cannot fall back asleep, can use relaxation to help them drift off. In our experience, a recorded relaxation helps them too.

Relaxation in states of anxiety: In the Israeli reality in particular, and in modern life in general, many people experience anxiety and sometimes even anxiety attacks. Anxiety is characterized by a rapid pace, both of thinking and of the body’s systems (heartbeat, breathing, sweating and blood pressure). Relaxation has the power to slow that pace down and so ease the symptoms that accompany anxiety.

In summary, we live in a world where events move very fast and are stressful, so everyone can benefit from, and enjoy, an experience of relaxation every now and then.

There are several ways to reach a state of relaxation, for example massage, healing, Reiki, listening to calming music, meditation, resting after significant exertion, and so on. The courses at Retter College teach a range of relaxation methods, including a professional relaxation language that we call “the Calm Language.” Using this language, you can phrase soothing sentences in a particular order and so lead a person from ordinary wakefulness (beta waves) into relaxation (alpha waves). The Calm Language has its own “grammatical” rules, which are taught right at the start of the first year of study. The components of the Calm Language also improve interpersonal communication in general. You can get a taste of the sensations experienced in relaxation from the sample relaxation on our site (link to a sample guided imagery). We highly recommend trying it. All of this explanation pales in comparison with the experience itself.

When a person is in a state of relaxation, an opportunity opens up to connect with their inner world in a focused and deep way. During relaxation, the critical mind quiets down, and it is possible to go deeper into the process without the critical part constantly judging what is happening. Guided relaxation also allows thoughts to be focused in a particular direction, unlike the calm state that usually comes just before sleep, when our thoughts wander off in all kinds of directions by association and keep flowing – or, as the first Buddha described it: “jumping like a monkey from branch to branch.”

As noted, relaxation makes possible:

1. Entry into the inner world.

2. A reduction in critical judgment.

3. Mental focus.

These three factors come together to make deep, effective inner work possible. To get the most out of this state, a professional facilitator should guide the participant through the guided imagery. The support of a professional helps a person while they deal with deep and sometimes difficult material. The guidance keeps the mind from wandering and directs the therapy in a focused way.

To understand how imagination affects us, recall two situations that every one of you has surely experienced. In the first, you are in a completely dark room. Someone surprises you and switches on the light. What happens to you in that first moment?

Now recall a very similar situation. You are in the same dark room, but this time you are the one who switches on the light. What is the difference between the two situations?

Did you notice that in the first situation the glare was stronger and it took you longer to adjust to the light? How can this phenomenon be explained?

The imagination and mental planning that preceded the act of switching on the light (the second situation) caused the body to prepare itself for the results of an action that had not yet taken place (except in the imagination). The pupils began to constrict even before the light went on, while it was still completely dark. This example shows how the power of thought affects the body, and how close the connection is between “imagination” (our inner world) and “reality” (our outer world).

Guided imagery is based on the Pygmalion effect, or on the expression “a self-fulfilling prophecy.” When we think about something, we begin to prepare ourselves for it to come true.

For example: a man has been suffering from insomnia for some time. As he lies in bed at night, he is full of fear that he will not manage to fall asleep tonight either. He imagines himself lying in bed, tossing and turning, thinking the same troubling thoughts that keep sleep away. Even before going to bed, he knows there is a good chance that in an hour or two he will give up on lying in bed in distress and get up to wander around the dark, quiet house. In the scenario he imagines, he is lonely and lost in endless long nights, and he knows he will have a hard time functioning the next day because of the exhaustion and low mood.

The man’s imagination contributes quite a bit to his problem. If he could change the imagined scenario from severe insomnia to falling asleep quickly, or to making enjoyable use of the waking hours of the night, he would be much better off.

One could write at length about the history of guided imagery, which is as old as humanity itself. An extensive body of literature has been written about it. Since time immemorial, people have believed that images have the power to influence the course of their lives.

Ancient wall paintings. These wall paintings depict people wearing masks of animals or fertility goddesses. They are the earliest evidence that cave dwellers believed in things beyond their conscious grasp, and used images to engage with them.

Shamanism: a shaman is a traditional healer who uses, among other things, guided imagery and incantations for healing purposes. Shamans also use these tools to curse their enemies.

Shamanism has existed since a very early stage of history. To this day there are places in the world where shaman healers practice: in Africa, in Lapland, in Hawaii, among the Indigenous peoples of South America and among Aboriginal Australians. The shaman heals through an imaginary journey to the upper or lower world, where they can communicate with various spirits and look for a good spirit that will heal the patient.

The teachings of Hippocrates. The Greek physician Hippocrates is considered the father of modern medicine, and he devised the Hippocratic Oath. He taught that “whatever affects the brain affects the body…”

Yoga. Yoga in the Far East also uses imagery, projecting shapes and colors onto different areas of the body.

The “witches” phenomenon. In the Middle Ages, “witches” were persecuted by the Church. They were wise women who used, among other things, guided imagery and incantations to bring about healing.

The teachings of Hermes Trismegistus. He was most likely a philosopher in the time of ancient Egypt, and he held that the power of thought is what moves the universe. Following him, in a later period, Hermetic healers succeeded in healing patients by guiding them to imagine themselves completely healthy.

The teachings of Paracelsus. Paracelsus was the most important physician and alchemist of the 16th century, the era of the Renaissance. Among other things, he wrote: “The power of the imagination is a factor of supreme importance in the field of medicine. The imagination can cause illness, and it can also cure it.”

The 18th-century approach. In the 18th century, rational thinking flourished. The dualist approach held that there is a complete separation between body and mind, and the idea that the mind influences the body was considered primitive. Guided imagery declined at that time, or was practiced in secret.

The teachings of Rabbi Nachman of Breslov (1772–1810). Rabbi Nachman of Breslov wove wondrous tales for his followers about princesses, giants, beggars and rulers. He spoke of healing and wholeness through metaphor. He taught his students through exercises that were clearly based on guided imagery. For example: “Is there something you long for, or something you would very much like to happen? Focus on it with all your power of concentration. Picture it in every detail. If your desire is firm enough, and your concentration intense enough, you will be able to fulfill your wish.” (Sichot HaRan, section 62, translated and adapted by Moshe Mykoff).

Approaches in the 19th and 20th centuries. In the 19th century, interest in a connection with the mystical, the spiritual and the incomprehensible was reawakened.

Josef Breuer was the first physician to use imagery to treat neurotic patients. (Freud credited him with the creation of psychoanalysis.)

C. G. Jung coined the term archetype: an innate, universal symbol shared by many people. For example, a cave is an archetypal image of the womb. Jung said that if a person believes a ghost is attacking them, they will react to it as they would to an armed robber. In this way, Jung established the idea that the only reality a person knows is their own mental images, whether real or imagined.

Émile Coué was a French pharmacist who advocated positive thinking and affirmations. He formulated the famous saying: “Every day, in every way, I am getting better and better.”

Edmund Jacobson conducted an experiment in the 1920s showing that when a person imagines running, the muscles in their legs move involuntarily. He devised the traditional relaxation method, which is based on relaxing the parts of the body step by step.

Since then, many experiments have been conducted that have proven again and again the connection between the power of thought and imagination, and the body.

Dr. Bernie S. Siegel is a physician, a general surgeon and a pediatric surgeon. His work with cancer patients led him to understand that the power of thought and psychological influences are essential to recovery. In 1978 he founded ECaP, the Exceptional Cancer Patients association. At ECaP, treatment is individual and group-based, using drawings, dreams and guided imagery. His work and books became known around the world and spread awareness of the importance of guided imagery in healing.

The biofeedback method. This is a treatment method in which the patient is connected to devices that measure various functions of the body. The patient sees the different readings on a screen and learns to control them with the power of thought. Modern medicine began to use biofeedback, and in doing so recognized the ability to control various bodily functions through the power of thought.

Psychoneuroimmunology. This is a new field of medical science. It studies the interplay between the psycho (emotions and thoughts), the neuro (the nervous system) and the immunological system (the immune system). In other words, the influence of the mind on the body’s immune system.

Many times, out of unawareness of the power of our thoughts, and sometimes despite that awareness, we imagine scenarios that do not serve us. A person who has not believed for many years in their ability to change an existing situation will truly find it hard to make a change. For example: quitting smoking, losing weight, recovering from a particular illness or fulfilling another dream.

As an exercise to illustrate this, you are invited to recall a situation in which you lost faith in your ability to achieve something important (for example: succeeding in your studies, landing an interesting and fulfilling job, winning the heart of someone you desire, managing to lose weight, and so on).

Didn’t those thoughts take the wind out of your sails? Did you ever, in hindsight, give up on something important because you lacked support?

In situations where we lack the inner strength to achieve something, guided imagery can support the process and create “a new, optimistic, self-fulfilling prophecy.” Guided imagery holds the potential to fulfill dreams and the ability to influence the reality of our lives through the power of thought. The courses at Retter College teach effective ways to harness the power of our thoughts to achieve our goals.

According to the Retter approach, deep work needs to include all times: past, present and future.

At the start of the therapeutic process, we locate the root of the problem in the person’s past. When working on the past, memories are retrieved and we look for a significant event, a difficult memory, or a family or social pattern that lies at the root of the problem. A series of traumatic memories, or a family or social pattern, affects the person and is connected to the problem they are dealing with in the present.

Returning to the man who suffers from insomnia (described in the question “How does imagination affect us?”), we first need to find out what in his past caused him to react this way, and what the roots of his insomnia are. Perhaps we will discover that in his childhood he was made to sleep at fixed hours that did not always suit his physiological needs. Even as a child he remembers having trouble falling asleep. In this way a link developed for him between falling asleep and effort. Once the roots of the problem are revealed, the imagination can be used to treat them, change them or heal them. Then we can move on to treatment in the present and, with the help of guided imagery, change the “script” that keeps him from falling asleep. He can also be taught to use self-relaxation and positive thinking. As a result of working on the present, his sleep patterns change, and he begins to fall asleep easily and to make enjoyable use of the night hours. To complete the process, we help him imagine himself in the future as well, in a situation in which he falls asleep easily and sleeps through the night. The purpose of addressing the future is to preserve the change.

To explain this, let’s run a small experiment. Do you know how many windows there are in the home where you live now? If not, take a few moments to count the windows (without moving from where you are). (When you have the answer, keep reading.)

How did you arrive at the answer? What process did you go through?

Most people imagine themselves walking through the house, or around the outside of it, counting the windows. Was that the case for you too?

Since you had no answer consciously, off the top of your head, you turned to your memory, pictured the house with all of its rooms, and arrived at the answer. With the help of imagination you reached information that was most likely not available to you until a few minutes earlier. In this exercise you were not in relaxation or in a deep therapeutic process, but by the same principle it is possible to retrieve memories from many years ago, all the way back to early childhood. (In the second year of the course we learn to retrieve memories from the womb and from past lives as well.) With imagery and appropriate guidance, we can also retrieve information we were not even aware existed, much like the number of windows.

For example: a woman of about 40, whom we will call Ruth, came for treatment because of a severe eczema problem on the palms of her hands. Because she made her living giving therapeutic massage, her condition badly hurt her finances. As her financial situation worsened, her sense of pressure grew, which in turn made the condition of her hands worse. In this way Ruth entered a kind of negative spiral.

The therapeutic process began by exploring the factors in the past that contribute to the problem: Ruth kept saying that the eczema was her punishment. We went back to her past to find out what she was being punished for. Ruth went back to the age of 11. She, the eldest sister, was supposed to look after her younger siblings. They were playing outside and did not notice the baby brother who crawled into the yard where there was a pool of water. The brother fell into the water, drowned and died. Ruth felt that she alone was to blame for the family tragedy that had befallen them. Her parents and everyone around her did not blame her, and of course did not punish her. Everyone understood her and tried to support her. Ruth decided (unconsciously) to punish herself. Over the years she found a variety of ways to punish herself. In the healing process we released the guilt and found a way for her to say goodbye to her little brother.

The concern is that while memories are being retrieved, a difficult event may come up and the participant (in the Retter approach, the person who goes through the relaxation and the imagery) will not be able to cope with retrieving the memories. This is an important question, and it reflects the great sensitivity and responsibility we feel when working with the human psyche. It is also one of the reasons the course is so long. The answer to the question is complex, and it is discussed at length in the course. Here are the main points.

Memories are not retrieved at the beginning of a series of sessions. Work on the past begins only after, over several sessions, the facilitator has concentrated on strengthening the participant’s inner resources. When the facilitator feels it is right to deal with the past, they begin to guide the participant toward retrieving memories. But even then, the facilitator cannot force the participant to remember. The defense mechanisms that have kept the participant from remembering the event until now continue to protect them during the relaxation and imagery as well. This is why it often happens that the participant “cannot remember.” In other words, their subconscious knows they are not ready for it. The Retter approach uses very gentle imagery that allows the participant to decide whether to retrieve a memory or to refrain from doing so.

Almost anyone, at any age and in any state of physical and mental health, can enjoy guided imagery. Even so, care must be taken when working with people whose reality testing is impaired. To work with the imagination, you have to know where reality ends and imagination begins. People who have difficulty telling the difference, usually people with a mental illness in an acute state, can be harmed by guided imagery.

For people who have experienced severe trauma, or who are in the midst of a serious emotional crisis, we recommend supportive therapy only: therapy whose aim is to strengthen and encourage them.

This subject is given in-depth attention during the courses.

Often a person runs into a problem and wants to solve it, or to be rid of some symptom. They want to imagine the desired state and in that way achieve it. If so, why is it necessary to look into the past and retrieve distant memories?

For example: a woman who suffers from migraines wants a relaxation that will reduce the pain, and an image that will help shorten her attacks and lessen their intensity, and perhaps even make them disappear altogether. She could be guided, for instance, to picture the over-constricted blood vessels in her head as a flash flood in a stream bed, and to imagine a process in which the water gradually calms, becomes clearer and flows in a calm, steady way. Treatment of this kind may well help her and perhaps even solve her problem, but it may also be only symptomatic, like taking a painkiller. The pain may continue to trouble her, or may wander to another place in her body. Sigmund Freud discovered in his early work that symptomatic treatment is effective in some cases, but in others it causes the symptom to migrate. The woman’s real problem is not the headaches. The pain expresses a different difficulty. Perhaps she piles too many tasks and responsibilities on herself. Perhaps she lets her partner humiliate her; perhaps she does not know how to express anger and difficult feelings, and so on. The symptom, in this case the headaches, is an opportunity for the woman to look inward. If she treats the pain only symptomatically, she will miss the message that her hidden inner world is trying to send her. That is why deep work first examines the source of the pain. If, for example, the issue is difficulty expressing emotions, it is worth examining in the woman’s past how this difficulty was formed, and starting to heal the past.

Retrieving events from the past can influence the present. Everything we do in the present is shaped by our past and, at the same time, creates our future. In our inner world there is a constant dialogue between the past and the future.

Visualizing healing affects a person because the human brain responds in the same way to an event, whether it took place in reality or only in the imagination.

For example: you believe you have lost your wallet. At first you are only imagining it, because you do not know for certain, and yet how do you react? Your thinking speeds up, and you try to recall when you last saw it. Perhaps you even suspect a thief, or assume the wallet fell out. You may feel stressed by the consequences of the loss. You will surely search for it energetically.
Reactions of this kind will happen whether or not the wallet was really lost. Perhaps you simply put it in an unusual place. In that case, the whole drama took place in your imagination.
Once the roots of the problem are revealed (and this does not always happen), the therapeutic process continues with a focus on the present. The guidance (“guidance” is the Retter approach’s term for the therapeutic process) in the present will focus on making the desired change happen now. The end of the series of sessions will focus on the future. We help the participant embed the change and adjust their self-image accordingly. We build a visualization of the near and distant future for them, and describe their life with the change as an integral and natural part of it.
Let us return to the example of Ruth, the woman who suffered from eczema (her case was described in the question “How can the past be retrieved with the help of guided imagery?”). Retrieving the memory (of her brother who drowned) gave Ruth great relief, but did nothing for the eczema itself. Despite her understanding of the inner processes that were causing her to suffer, her eczema did not improve. She has a habit she has lived with for years. The habit became a part of her, and now a process is needed to change it.
Guided imagery focused on change in the present: we built a healing visualization for Ruth. Over the course of the sessions, we came to know her well. The facilitator knew that Ruth makes great use of medicinal herbs in treating her children. We used this knowledge for the healing.
After relaxation, Ruth was asked to imagine herself going to see an old woman, famous for her ability to heal various problems with medicinal herbs. In her imagination Ruth arrives at the woman’s house and sees that it is surrounded by a garden of medicinal herbs. The woman is working there, gardening. She notices Ruth and invites her into the house. Under a special lamp and with a magnifying glass, the old healer carries out an in-depth examination of Ruth’s palms. At the end of the examination she goes out to the garden and picks several plants. She returns to the house and prepares a special remedy from them for Ruth. When she is done, she hands Ruth a bowl of water containing plant extracts. Ruth is asked to dip both of her hands into the fragrant solution.
With her hands in the herbal solution, she feels her skin beginning to soften; the old, rough skin is replaced by new skin, healthy, smooth and supple. Ruth takes her hands out of the special water and strokes the skin of her face. To her surprise, she finds that the touch is very pleasant and that her hands have indeed healed. Ruth thanks the wise woman and receives from her a plant extract to continue the treatment.
The day after that session, Ruth called the facilitator, excited, and said that her condition had improved greatly. When she woke up in the morning, her hands were in the best state they had been in for a long time. Within a few days the skin of her hands was smooth, and the eczema remained only under her fingernails.
Guided imagery to preserve the change in the future: to preserve the blessed change that happened to Ruth, we built another visualization for her. After relaxation, Ruth pictured herself in about a month, returning to giving holistic massage. Gradually, more and more clients come to her. Her financial situation improves, and so does her mood. Then Ruth pictured herself a year later. Her hands remain smooth and supple. The condition of her nails is also steadily improving. She has a full clinic, and her financial situation lets her buy a used car. She has enrolled in the studies she had always wanted to pursue, and so on.
Ruth’s condition improved greatly. Her hands healed completely. Even so, the eczema under her nails never disappeared entirely. In the six years since the treatment, Ruth has not stopped giving massages and even treating people with them. The habit of reacting with her hands to the tensions in her life remains in her. Every so often, when the eczema begins to spread, she comes for a single “refueling session” to gather the strength to cope with her condition.

NLP – Neuro-Linguistic Programming (in Hebrew, “Nalap”: linguistic-physiological routing) – is a model for improving communication, from which many therapeutic processes have developed.

The acronym: three letters that concisely convey the foundations of the model.

The term NLP has three parts:

N – neuro – neurology (physiology). Nervous and brain activity, the processing of sensory stimuli, and the way we think.

L – linguistic – language. The way we use language. Analysis of linguistic patterns in order to understand their effect on interpersonal and intrapersonal communication.

P – programming (routing). The ability to identify and change the way internal information is organized. Organizing the results of the analysis of neurological (N) and linguistic (L) activity makes it possible to build a new programming (P). Programming is made up of structured stages and includes defining a focused goal and planning the path to achieving it.

NLP was developed in the United States in the late 1960s. Two researchers, Dr. Richard Bandler, a psychotherapist and mathematician, and John Grinder, a professor of linguistics, joined forces to crack the riddle of therapeutic intuition. They modeled (studied in order to build a model of) four therapists who stood out in the United States at the time and had succeeded in creating impressive changes among their clients. The two were curious and wanted to examine what made these therapists unique. They assumed that unique communication patterns could be found that the four therapists used intuitively. Bandler and Grinder started from the premise that once they managed to decipher the code that leads to excellence, they would have a powerful tool that they could pass on.

The four therapists the two modeled first were: Dr. Milton Erickson – a psychiatrist, hypnotherapist and the father of brief hypnotherapy; Dr. Virginia Satir – a social worker and famous family therapist; Dr. Gregory Bateson – a prominent anthropologist and biologist; and Dr. Fritz Perls – the father of Gestalt therapy.

Bandler and Grinder began collecting information about the communication styles of the four models. They filmed therapy sessions, watched them through a one-way mirror, carefully interviewed clients, and put many questions to the four therapists in order to understand why they responded the way they did. At the end of a lengthy period of research they had enough raw material from which to create the basic assumptions of NLP. In 1975 they published their first book, “The Structure of Magic.” The method was soon built out, many models and processes were developed, and the model spread and was adopted by professionals in a variety of fields. At first NLP was used in the field of behavioral therapy. Later, business people and negotiators realized that NLP could serve them too. Later still, NLP reached the world of sports as well. Within a short time Bandler and Grinder trained many people. The model reached the entire world and gained great momentum.

Retter College is the exclusive representative in Israel of Professor John Grinder, one of the founders of the model. In March 2008 he gave a seminar in Tel Aviv on “The New Code.” Prof. Grinder is due to give another seminar on behalf of Retter College.

So that everyone can experience for themselves what this is about, here is a short exercise.

Without thinking about the answer, say the first thing that comes to mind when you hear the word “ambulance”…

(Different people will give different answers. Perhaps you will find yours here.) A siren, a spinning red light, an injured person, a terror attack, the smell or color of blood, a woman in labor, fear, and more.

Let’s do it again with another word. What comes to mind when you think of a baby?

Tenderness, love, crying, the smell of a dirty diaper, the smell of milk, a heavenly smile, a picture of a baby, a sense of responsibility, and so on.

You can continue with more words such as dog, supermarket, home, winter, sea, and so on.

Why don’t all people answer the same way?

Of course, each of us has had different experiences, and those experiences shape our associations. The word “ambulance” will draw completely different reactions from a motorcyclist who was hurt in a road accident and evacuated in serious condition, and from a woman who gave birth to her firstborn son in one.

But there is another factor behind the differences between people. NLP researchers discovered that, neurologically and sensorially, we differ from one another.

For some people, the sense of sight is more dominant than the other senses. Hearing a particular word, these people almost always get pictures and colors. The word “ambulance” will call up an image of the vehicle with the red light, or the red Magen David Adom emblem. The word “baby” will remind them of a picture of a baby or a smile. Even thinking of chocolate will call up a picture of brown squares or a wrapper with a drawing of a cow. Visual people might say: “Just look at that stench!” They want to describe a sensory experience related to smell, but because sight is their dominant sense, they describe the other senses through it too.

Other people are kinesthetic. Their dominant sense is feelings and bodily sensations. Kinesthetic people will feel danger or fear on hearing the word “ambulance,” and will be filled with tenderness when they think of a baby. A kinesthetic person might say: “I feel that the colors in this picture are too intense.”

Some people are auditory. The word “ambulance” will remind them of the wail of a siren, and the word “baby” will remind them of the sounds of crying or gurgles of pleasure. They might say: “Listen, that outfit just jars on me.” They experience the world mainly through voices and sounds.

In a small minority, the dominant senses are smell or taste.

Every person uses all of the senses, and there is not always a clear dominance. A person may be both visual and kinesthetic and not at all auditory. The number of combinations is as great as the number of people living on Earth. Each of us combines the senses in a unique way.

NLP researchers found that the sensory style described above is a very important component of interpersonal communication. Many misunderstandings can arise from a fundamental difference in sensory style.

For example: a visual person will want their home to be tidy. They will be bothered by the sight of piles of unfolded clothes or a lot of paperwork on the desk. A kinesthetic person, by contrast, will be bothered by feeling crumbs scattered on the table, or a floor sticky with dirt. A couple living together in which, for example, the man is visual and the woman kinesthetic may run into difficulties because of this. The man will be angry at the woman for moving all the clutter aside, cleaning, and then putting the clutter back exactly as it was. The woman will not understand why he went to the trouble of tidying the paperwork without “running a cloth” over the table.

This couple might go to a museum where a sign saying “Please do not touch the exhibits” appears on every corner. For the woman, a rule like that “blocks” her ability to take in the exhibition. She secretly feels the paintings and the fabrics. The man does not understand why she is unable to obey such a simple instruction. Understanding the difference in sensory styles can explain very well what drives each of them to act the way they do.

The NLP researchers noticed that the therapists they observed tailored their communication to the client’s sensory style. They understood the potential inherent in sensory styles and learned to use them to create more effective therapeutic relationships. When a therapist adapts their language to the client’s sensory style, the client feels that the therapist is speaking their language, that there is “chemistry” between them.

For example: to describe the seashore during relaxation, for a visual person you describe the color of the sea and the sand, the line of the horizon, the boats anchored in the distance, and so on. For an auditory person you describe the murmur of the waves, the cries of the seagulls, the horns of the ships and the sighing of the wind. For a kinesthetic person you describe the touch of the sand, the temperature of the water, the brush of the breeze on the skin and the warmth of the sun.

People sometimes contact us who are very interested in guided imagery but believe they will not be able to enjoy it because “they have no imagination.” There is no one who has no imagination. At the same time, most of those who work with guided imagery mainly describe sights and colors, so it is understandable that kinesthetic and auditory people doubt their ability to connect with this method.

Identifying a person’s sensory style, and building the imagery and language to match, allows everyone to enjoy visualization.

These are two fundamental concepts in the NLP communication model. Pacing (also called joining) is a state in which the facilitator (or another person, in the course of communication) adapts to the participant. The facilitator does not try to “move” the participant from where they are, but to join them where they are. Pacing is done on the verbal level (the facilitator uses a vocabulary and slang matched to the participant; a counter-example is when a patient is trying to understand their condition and the doctor speaks to them in professional jargon and incomprehensible Latin names). In pacing, the facilitator “steps into the participant’s shoes” and sees the world from their point of view, without judgment, criticism or expressing an opinion. Pacing lets the participant feel comfortable with the facilitator, and builds trust, which is a good basis for the work that follows.

Leading is a state in which the facilitator begins to “move” the participant from where they are to the place the facilitator wants to reach. The participant will go in the direction the facilitator leads them only when they believe that the facilitator knows where and how to lead them.

For example: when a child falls, gets hurt and starts to cry, how do many parents respond? “It’s nothing, nothing happened, don’t cry.” Usually this response doesn’t help, and the child keeps on sobbing.

That kind of response is “leading.” The parent wants to lead the child to a state where they overcome the pain and no longer suffer, but what is missing for the child here is the “pacing.” The child wants their parents to understand that they fell, that it hurts, that they may have been frightened. The parents’ response gives the child the message that their feelings are wrong. It is as if the parent is saying, “You don’t feel any pain, because in fact nothing happened.” A more soothing response would be to open with pacing. For example: “I saw you fall. Did you get hurt? Does it hurt? Come here, let me give you a hug.” Often an accepting, supportive pacing response is enough to calm the child without any further encouragement. If the parent wants to cheer their child up, after the pacing they can gently move on to leading: “Now I’ll kiss the sore spot, and then it will pass.”

The principle of opening communication with pacing and only then moving on to leading holds true in every communication situation: in sales, in couple relationships, in therapy, at work, in a conversation with the kindergarten teacher or the bus driver, and of course with children.

Different theorists have defined the term “subconscious” differently. Some divided it into the preconscious, the subconscious and the unconscious. We will refer only to the term “subconscious,” and define it as: “everything that is not conscious right now.”

If you are looking at your computer screen right now, you can see the written words and the colors, and out of the corner of your eye you can also see what is happening behind and beside the computer. You can feel the temperature in the room, whether you are cold or warm; you can hear the fan or motor of the computer and other sounds, or silence, and so on.

At any given moment you take in an enormous number of stimuli. Since it is impossible to concentrate on and absorb everything, you will be aware of only a small part of what happened, and all the other stimuli go into a kind of large storehouse that we will call the subconscious. This information is processed and stored within you.

The contents collected in the subconscious influence us. For example: after parting from a good friend, I feel a heaviness and don’t know why. It may be that I picked up on something I didn’t consciously notice. Perhaps a fleeting, critical look, or an impatient tone of voice. The heavy feeling stays with me and may cause me to avoid another meeting with that friend. I may not even feel that I am avoiding her, because “I simply don’t have time.”

The contents we have collected into the subconscious over the years shape our thoughts, feelings and behavior. It is commonly believed that the power of the subconscious is eight times stronger than that of the conscious mind. For example: a person who consciously wants to stop smoking because smoking harms their health, and yet cannot manage to do so. In all likelihood their subconscious does not allow them to quit, for a number of reasons. Smoking probably meets many needs for the person: a treat, a time-out, an effective tool for calming down, a way to focus their problems on this one issue rather than on more painful ones, and more. Since the power of the subconscious is greater than that of the conscious mind, the person will not succeed in quitting until they establish communication with the subconscious and respond to its unconscious needs.

During relaxation, with effective use of imagery, it is possible to establish communication with the subconscious and to enlist its great power to achieve the changes we long for.

NLP researchers also discovered that there is a connection between the pace of communication and the intensity of emotions. For example: anger has a fast tempo and calm has a slow one.

The researchers discovered, for instance, that a person who suffers from a phobia feels, when they encounter the object of the phobia, as though time has come to a standstill, and so the ordeal never seems to end. For example: a person afraid of riding in an elevator who is forced to take one will experience the time the elevator takes to rise as if it were eternal and would never end. At that moment they are unaware that the ride in the elevator lasts only a few seconds. Their perception of time changes. Wise use of this fact can free people from phobias, and of course from other difficulties as well. The NLP model includes a process for treating phobias, the essence of which is changing the perception of time of the person who suffers from it. It is possible to “reprogram” the brain, as it were, so that it changes the perception of time.

NLP can help anyone. The model can be used to strengthen a person’s resources and allow everyone to get the best out of themselves. NLP can strengthen motivation, change limiting beliefs, replace problematic values with others, replace emotions that make life hard for a person, and change how they relate to their personal history.
NLP includes processes aimed at solving specific problems. NLP developed a powerful process for changing habits such as eating disorders, smoking and alcoholism. There are focused processes for treating phobias, allergies and states of emotional dependency.
NLP allows in-depth work on interpersonal relationships (between parents and children, couple relationships, sexual function problems, difficulties in creating intimacy, and so on).
The model can be used to treat problems that originate in childhood, as well as depression, anxiety and compulsiveness.
A certified facilitator can tailor a treatment plan to a wide range of disorders and difficulties.

Various NLP methods require a level of insight that develops in people during adolescence. For this reason there are a number of NLP methods that we recommend not applying to children. Likewise, the linguistic model taught at the start of the second year is not suitable for use with children.

For people who have experienced severe trauma, or who are in the midst of a serious emotional crisis, we recommend supportive therapy only: therapy whose aim is to strengthen and encourage them.

This subject is given in-depth attention during the courses.

Before making a decision as serious as starting your studies, it is worth examining in depth how well the proposed program fits your needs. Investing your time and money is justified when the place you choose to study gives you a return on that investment. When choosing where to study, many people feel as if they are buying “a pig in a poke,” and naturally there is a lot of uncertainty during the deliberation.

The purpose of the intro workshop is to let you meet us. You can see the place where the studies take place, meet the director of the college, the course facilitator and the assistant team; hear about the subjects of study, experience a short demonstration, ask questions and get a sense of how serious the program is.

After the workshop you will be able to sense, both from the knowledge you gained and intuitively, whether this is the right place for you to study. Attending the workshop costs ₪35 (deducted from tuition for those who register for the course). To attend, all you need to do is let the college office know that you intend to come. You can do that right now. Click here for the intro workshop registration page.

At Retter College we prefer that the decision to enroll be made at the end of the workshop. It is an opportunity for the maximum alignment of expectations. That is why those who register on the day of the workshop will receive a ₪200 discount on tuition.

Just reserve a spot and show up!

If you know of other people who may be interested in the course, we would be glad if you invited them too. It is important to let the office know about their coming as well. If participants join the course through you, the college will reward you with a refund of 8.5% of the tuition.

Workshops are held in every location where courses are held.
As an introduction to the evening courses, evening workshops are held between 6:00 and 8:30 PM.
As an introduction to the morning courses, morning workshops are held between 10:00 AM and 12:30 PM.
The program: gathering and light refreshments, an explanation of the subjects of study, a guided imagery demonstration and registration.

1. Making the decision.
2. Registering online and attending the intro workshop (recommended).
3. Paying a registration fee of ₪170 (included in the tuition).
4. Scheduling an admissions interview. The interview lasts about half an hour, during which you fill out a questionnaire and talk with the course facilitator in order to get acquainted, align expectations and check your fit for the course.
5. At the end of the interview you will be told whether you have been accepted to the course, and given an explanation about the first meeting of the course. At that time, payment for the course is to be arranged. (The payment can be spread over eight checks, as will be explained at the registration desk at the intro workshop.)

The course is intended for people who want to learn to facilitate with guided imagery and NLP, and who are found suitable by the teaching staff. The course is not right for everyone. Many people want to solve personal problems and do not want to learn to guide others. For these people we recommend turning to an individual practitioner. Recommended practitioners can also be found in the NLP practitioner directory (in Hebrew).

There are people whose character and skills do not match the requirements of the course. For this reason Retter College holds a personal admissions interview before the course opens. The purpose of the interview is to make sure that whoever registers for the course is indeed suited to study in it.

People who registered for the course and paid the ₪170 registration fee will receive a full refund if they do not pass the admissions interview.

1. For anyone who is interested in the field and wants to go deeper into it for professional and personal development. This is training for work in a fascinating field that brings great satisfaction in helping people.
2. For clinical therapists from various fields: psychologists, social workers and psychiatrists who want to integrate these tools into their work and acquire a range of options for processes geared toward short-term therapy.
3. For practitioners from alternative fields who have so far worked mainly on the physical side and want to add a verbal dimension to their treatments.
4. For people who feel that the time has come for a career change (burned-out teachers, tired high-tech workers, people approaching retirement age, and so on). The nature of work in guided imagery and NLP does not demand physical effort but mental focus and a love of people. That is why many students acquire these tools before they retire.

The course teaches many therapeutic processes of guided imagery and NLP. The learning is not theoretical but practical. All the theoretical material is in the textbooks and can also be found in the recommended bibliography. From the very beginning of the course, and throughout it, whenever a new process is introduced, the course facilitator demonstrates it in front of the participants. The participant on whom the process is demonstrated receives professional treatment, while the rest of the participants watch and learn from it. The demonstration is followed by a detailed explanation of the process’s different stages, with emphasis on the significant points. After this explanation the participants divide into pairs and practice the process. One acts as the facilitator and the other as the participant being guided; then they switch. The pairs in the course are not fixed: every process is practiced with a different partner. Despite the difficulty of creating intimacy each time with a new partner, this way of learning greatly increases the flexibility of interpersonal communication styles and prepares participants to guide a wide variety of clients when they go out into the “field.”

This teaching method is highly experiential, and it opens up many opportunities for solving personal problems and for tools to improve interpersonal communication, all while learning to facilitate.

The course runs in small groups of 15–30 participants. Over the course of the year a pleasant dynamic develops among the group members. They support one another and embrace one another’s emotions.

There is no need to expose yourself in front of the whole group unless you volunteer for a demonstration. Whoever volunteers for a demonstration states a problem they want to solve in front of the group and opens up to the group facilitator while the other participants watch. Even in a demonstration, each participant chooses how much to share. Sometimes the person being demonstrated on keeps intimate information to themselves, or shares it with the course facilitator during the break. Apart from that, the deep work is done in pairs only, not in front of the rest of the group. Each participant chooses whom to practice each method with and how deeply to go into the process. The more participants open up (with their partner), the more meaningful the work is and the faster the results.

Group members commit to professional ethics, to not exposing the group members who were demonstrated on to other people, and to not sharing with others the content that came up in the pairs. Maintaining confidentiality makes it possible to trust your partner and open up to them.

One of the advantages of Retter College is the large number of courses running in parallel in different places around the country and on different days of the week. So if you miss a session, you can make it up in one of the other courses. The make-up should be arranged with the college office and with the course facilitators. Some sessions can be made up briefly with the help of one of the course assistants. For this, you arrange to meet with them about half an hour before the regular class time.

At the end of each year, a certificate of participation in the course is issued by the sponsoring university. Graduates of the courses held at Bar-Ilan University receive certificates from Bar-Ilan University (the Continuing Education Unit of the School of Social Work). All other course graduates receive a certificate of participation from the University of Haifa (the Continuing Education Unit in the Faculty of Social Welfare and Health Sciences).
These universities have reviewed the curriculum and provide it with academic sponsorship.

In addition, Retter College awards international professional certificates, recognized by all the institutions that teach NLP in the world. The certificates are written in English. They are given to participants who meet the requirements of the course. The main requirement, in addition to attendance and make-ups, is to practice the methods taught and to receive supervision (professional guidance) on that practice.

At the end of the first year, participants who have met the course requirements receive three professional certificates:

1. NLP Practitioner certificate.
2. Guided Imagery Practitioner certificate.
3. Certificate of participation in the New Code.

At the end of the second year, participants who have met the course requirements receive three professional certificates:

1. NLP Master Practitioner certificate.
2. Guided Imagery Facilitator certificate.
3. TLT Practitioner certificate and TLT Master Practitioner certificate.

At the end of the enrichment workshops, participants who have met the course requirements and attended all of the workshops receive a Senior Facilitator certificate.

Participants who attend fewer than four workshops receive a certificate of participation for each workshop.

At the end of the Trainer course, participants who meet the course requirements receive an NLP Trainer certificate.

The studies are sponsored by the continuing education units of Bar-Ilan University or the University of Haifa. None of the courses held in these units are recognized for credit toward academic degrees. The academic sponsorship attests to the quality and level of the course, and confirms that the program was reviewed and approved by professionals who specialize in clinical therapy.

Most of the courses at the college are weekly. Participants meet on a fixed day, once a week in the morning or evening, and each session lasts 4.5 hours. The advantage of these courses is their nationwide spread. The courses are held in ten study centers and allow almost anyone to study near where they live. Weekly study is convenient and fits into the weekly routine in a regular, recurring way. Another advantage is the continuity of study. Each week new material is taught. Even if, for some reason, the participant did not get a chance to practice what they learned during the week, it is easy to catch up, because the material is still fresh.

In the weekend course, participants meet once a month for two consecutive days. The course hours are: on Fridays between 3:00 and 9:30 PM, and on Saturdays between 9:00 AM and 6:00 PM. In this way the studies are concentrated into eight weekends spread over eight months. This course is identical to the weekly courses in its content, scope and tuition. The course suits people who live very far from the existing study centers (such as residents of Eilat and the Arava, or the Golan Heights), and it is also convenient for those who feel very busy during the week and can free themselves for study only on weekends (once a month). Some divorced women find it convenient to study on Saturdays when the children are not with them. The course is held on a kibbutz, in a green, quiet, rural atmosphere (Kibbutz Nahshonim, near Rosh HaAyin, 20 minutes from Tel Aviv and 40 minutes from Jerusalem). The advantage of the course lies in the special atmosphere that develops in it. The intimacy is greater, the participants are more available for study and arrive fresh (rather than after a day of work). The break from everyday life and the rural, family-like atmosphere that forms allow enjoyable study combined with rest. The course is planned carefully so that it is easy to absorb the large amount of material. At the end of each weekend, participants enjoy relaxations and visualizations led by the course facilitator. The visualizations allow you to rest and refresh. That said, some people find the concentrated weekend study less suitable for them, because the intensity of the experience overwhelms them. In the weekend course, participants are required to have more self-discipline regarding the need to practice all the subjects of study during the month in order to internalize them.

A personal interview between the candidate and the course facilitator. The interview takes place before the course opens. The interview assesses the candidate’s suitability, professional maturity, emotional state and expectations.

The course is accompanied by the Hebrew-language book “Communicating with the Subconscious: A Book for Learning Guided Imagery and NLP,” written in 1998 by Daphna and Amir Retter. In addition, in every course participants receive a workbook that includes worksheets and relevant texts. The workbook is updated every year and is distributed only among course participants. At the end of every workbook there is a bibliography of recommended material for enrichment.

The second year is intended for first-year graduates who want to keep growing professionally in the field. The course certifies its graduates to work in the field with the tools taught, and grants those who meet the course requirements the rank of international NLP Master Practitioner, and the rank of Guided Imagery and Time Line facilitator, under the sponsorship of universities in Israel. The subjects of study are: the NLP profile, emotions, values, beliefs, the Erickson model, the linguistic model, retrieving memories and changing history, closure, phobias, conflict resolution and the facilitator–participant relationship. The course includes a two-day workshop for certification at the “Time Line Facilitator” level. The scope of study is similar to that of the first year. Study in this course, too, is accompanied by a rich guidebook written especially for the course.

Retter College has many years of experience. That accumulated experience has been translated, with great thought, into a generous course that prepares its graduates to stand in front of an audience, to present a subject to an audience and to lead workshops. Amir Retter has taken part in a number of Trainer’s Training courses around the world and is certified to run and teach a course at the Trainer level. Amir Retter is the only Trainer Master in Israel. The special Trainer’s Training course at Retter College combines the best of what is taught and recognized abroad with the clarity and structure so characteristic of studying at Retter College. In addition, it is important to note that the course is taught in Hebrew. Today Retter College is the only institution that teaches the course in Hebrew. Naturally, the exams at the end of the course are also held in Hebrew. This makes for convenient, accessible, high-quality study.

The first-year course provides initial tools for one-on-one work. The course confers the rank of practitioner and does not certify its graduates to work one-on-one with the tools they acquired. Participants who previously worked in some therapeutic field, and continue to do so, can begin integrating the tools they acquired into their therapeutic work.

The second-year course trains its graduates to engage in one-on-one facilitation. During the training, the method must be practiced with people who are not participants in the course. Therefore, from the first year of study, each participant needs to begin building a “clientele” of their own. At first they practice on their close circle of friends and later, like ripples in water, word spreads and friends of friends come, and so on. The result is that participants who practice a lot accumulate extensive experience by the end of the track, and their name precedes them. At the end of the courses, graduates go out to work as facilitators with the experience and confidence they acquired during the track. After two years, graduates who have met the course requirements can begin charging for their work.

Many participants are professionals from various therapeutic fields who combine the tools they acquire in the courses with the tools they already had.

Participants who are not professionals in another therapeutic field can work in one-on-one guided imagery and NLP facilitation and open a private clinic. You can look at graduates’ websites and see how many people work in the field.

The NLP Trainer’s Training course: This course gives its graduates the tools to develop and deliver courses, workshops and lectures. The course provides many tools for standing before different kinds of audiences and for coping with the challenges that such a setting brings. Graduates of the course are authorized to open an NLP learning center of their own and to grow in any field in which they specialize (Details about the course >)

In every course, participants are accompanied by assistants whose role is to give participants professional support. During the studies each participant must practice the various methods and submit reports on these practice sessions. The assistants go over the reports, accompany participants through the processes they go through with the people they practice on, and answer questions that come up during practice. The assistants receive professional support from the course facilitators.

During the course, participants learn how to advise one another in a professional and focused way. Acquiring the skill of “peer facilitation” allows participants to form small working groups outside course hours, to consult and to advise others. In this way it is possible to give and receive guidance mutually, free of charge, and also to grow together as a group.

At the end of the training track, graduates can make use of supervision in several ways:

1. Join a consultation group that meets once a month with the facilitator of the course they took (for a fee).

2. Receive a phone consultation, or schedule a consultation session with a person trained for this by the center (for a fee).

3. Take part in the graduates’ forum, whose purpose is to give and receive advice. The forum is open to graduates only (free of charge).

4. Get in touch with another participant they feel comfortable with and set up a paired peer-facilitation framework of their own (free of charge). From many years of experience, this is the simplest way, and one in which people manage to keep going for years.

– Continuing-education funds (keren hishtalmut): All the courses at the college are recognized by continuing-education funds, including for teachers on sabbatical. The institution code is 2857.
– Ministry of Defense: All the courses at the college are recognized for retirees and those discharged from the IDF (military mental health officers, casualty officers, and so on). The course is funded through a Ministry of Defense authorization. The college’s vendor number is 992013.
– Bar-Ilan University (the Louis and Gabi Weisfeld School of Social Work, Continuing Education Unit) provides academic sponsorship to the course held on its premises. (Link to a copy of Professor York’s letter.)
– University of Haifa: After 22 years of academic accompaniment by the University of Haifa, we set out on an independent path: Retter College’s certification is an international certification, signed both by the prestigious ABNLP organization in the USA and by the Israeli Chamber of NLP.
– Professor John Grinder, one of the founders of NLP, recognizes Retter College as his exclusive representative in Israel. He visits Israel once every two years and gives intensive seminars.
– International Association of NLP-Institutes (IN): Retter College is a member of IN, which recognizes all the levels awarded by Retter College: NLP Practitioner, NLP Master Practitioner and NLP Trainer.
– ITA (International Trainers Academy): Retter College is a member of ITA. The organization is headed by Professor John Grinder, Carmen Bostic St. Clair and Michael Carroll.
– GTC (The Global NLP Training and Consulting Community): Retter College is a member of GTC, under the leadership of Robert Dilts and Judith DeLozier.

First of all, the course is long because there is so much to learn. Today the course is three years long, and graduates of the course are waiting for the program to be extended even further.

The course is long because it provides tools for working with the human psyche. These tools can bring healing and change in a short time, but they can also cause harm if they are not carried out properly.
The course is long because its purpose is to train facilitators who, at the end of the program, can work one-on-one with participants. This can be done using the Retter approach alone or in combination with other methods. A good facilitator needs a rich toolbox that allows great flexibility in choosing the working method that will suit each client, and that takes long, in-depth training. To get a sense of the number of graduates who have broken new ground and developed in the field as a result of the course, you can look at their websites (link to graduates’ websites).
The course is long because at Retter College we believe that a good facilitator is one who has solved, with these tools, the personal problems they themselves struggled with. That is why the course is also highly experiential and provides the time to go through deep processes of awareness.

The course is not expensive when you take its length into account. Each academic year has 244 academic hours, at ₪30 per hour. If you want to check whether the course is expensive compared with other courses, divide the price of the course by the number of hours.

The courses at Retter College have added values unique to it: the courses at Retter College include very high-quality literature that is updated every year, available supervision, a series of sessions with veteran students, a nationwide presence, many years of experience, and very well-structured lesson plans.
It is important to note that the course is very generous. It provides many effective tools that can be applied as early as the first year.

Hypnosis is a therapeutic tool in which the hypnotist relies on their own power of suggestive persuasion. The person being hypnotized places complete trust in the hypnotist and allows them to lead.

Guided imagery is gentler and draws on the strength of the participant rather than the strength of the facilitator. In both cases the level of awareness is different from ordinary wakefulness, and thinking is symbolic and focused. The participant in guided imagery feels in control of the entire process and can open their eyes at any time if they wish.
NLP is fundamentally different from hypnosis. The process is highly structured and built in stages. Because one of the first models the founders of NLP observed was Dr. Milton Erickson, the hypnotherapist, NLP contains elements taken from hypnosis. One of them is pacing and leading, for example. There are different schools of NLP in the world that differ from one another on this issue. At one extreme there is a school that holds that before any NLP process the participant should first be hypnotized. At the other extreme there is a school that claims NLP processes can be run without entering relaxation at all and without closing the eyes.
In Israel there is a strict law that permits only clinical psychologists, psychiatrists and dentists to practice hypnosis. For this reason, the courses at Retter College do not involve hypnosis at all.

Often, during touch-based treatments, emotional content comes to the surface. Usually the therapist copes with this content intuitively. Taking part in a course at Retter College will let the therapist add the verbal tool to their treatments and do so in a structured, focused and effective way. Many course participants combine the tools they have learned with the touch therapies they practiced before.

The course is very well suited to professionals from therapeutic fields. It allows a different way of thinking and provides practical tools for solving problems in a short time, along with communication and assessment rules that are effective and focused. Many professionals are reluctant to study in a mixed group that is not limited to professionals only. In the past we ran courses for psychologists and social workers and found that the pace of learning that way is no faster and not necessarily any deeper. From reports by professionals who have taken the course in the past, we learn that they feel comfortable in the mixed group; in their words, there is something refreshing and varied about it. The course hardly repeats content familiar from academic study, since guided imagery and NLP are not taught there. It is worth getting an impression from the recommendations of college graduates who are professionals, and there are many of them. We have trained most of the active NLP facilitators in Israel over the last 30 years. You will also have a chance to hear these recommendations at the taster session, which you can attend free of charge after reserving a spot.

Both methodologies aim at fast, focused and effective change. Both are focused on results (outcome-oriented thinking only). Coaching addresses the “what” – the vision and the goals – while NLP addresses the “how” – how to create the inner change. The target audience, both of the learners and of the coachees, is similar. Combining the two methods leads to excellent results.

The syllabus appears in the course brochure.

You learn the basic presuppositions of NLP, the assumptions on which the method is based. They are highly optimistic assumptions that promote interpersonal communication and make it more effective.

The linguistic model – a model for asking questions. Many coaches want to deepen their questioning but lack the tools to do so. The linguistic model divides questions into three categories: distortions, generalizations and deletions. For each of them there are questions that make it possible to analyze communication in minute detail. Many coaches who studied at Retter love the model and use it in their conversations with coachees.

At the end of the course you can say that you have also studied NLP and that you integrate tools from the field of NLP into classic coaching. You cannot say that you are certified in NLP. “NLP coach” could be understood as holding the rank of Master Practitioner, and that could mislead coachees.

Everyone who teaches NLP and guided imagery at Retter College is certified as a coach and has extensive experience both in facilitating NLP and in training facilitators.