How to Find the Right NLP Trainer in India

Choosing an NLP Trainer: What to Look For Before You Pay

One of the questions I hear most often is:

“Which NLP trainer should I go to?”

It’s a fair question, and the honest answer depends less on the brochure and more on what you look at before you decide.

I have been associated with Sushil Mehrotra and WisdomTree Solutions for 14 years and have worked in this field alongside him. Sushil himself has been training and working with people for close to four decades. In those years, I have spoken with many people who were deciding where to learn NLP, and one pattern comes up again and again.

Here is what I would want you to know before you choose.

The Venue Is Not the Learning

The most common thing I see is that people are drawn to the glitter. Programs in fancy places, meals included, a lot of flashy things around the training. It looks impressive.

But at the end of the day, the learning is not happening.

So the first thing I would ask you to look at is the program content. What will you actually learn, practise and take back with you? The second is the context in which the training is set.

NLP may be a Western Concept. And as India Is Not an Individualistic Society, Interpretation here should be different.

NLP, as a subject, comes from the West. India is a community-oriented society, not an individualistic one.

That matters. When NLP is practised here, the learning has to be moulded around people: the family, the team, the community a person lives and works in. You work with the people around the person, not only with the individual.

A trainer who understands this will teach differently from one who simply delivers a foreign program in a local room.

My Three Must-Checks

1. Connect with the trainer before you finalise

Speak to the person who will be teaching you. When you connect with a trainer, you get a sense of the wavelength they exist on, and you can see whether you are able to build rapport with them.

That is the base of how you should choose. In one conversation you can gauge almost 80 to 90 per cent of the trainer’s philosophy, and whether it resonates with you.

If you want more to go on, check how long they have been training or in business, and ask about feedback from previous participants. If you do not want to do that, simply connect with the trainer.

2. Ask whether they can help you achieve what you want

You come to a training with something in mind that you want to achieve. So share it. Tell the trainer what it is, and listen to how they will help you reach it.

If what you hear is concrete, that is what you are looking for. If you hear only flashy promises and nothing concrete, you have your answer and you can move on.

3. Look at the content and the context, not the surroundings

Ask what will be taught, how it will be practised, and how it is shaped for the people in the room. A beautiful venue and good meals are pleasant. They are not the learning.

What People Get Wrong About Accreditation

Most people believe NLP is a standard subject that is accredited and recognised worldwide, and that they must get it from one defined organisation.

That is true only to a certain extent. NLP is a widely recognised subject, but it is not accredited by a universal body. Every country can have its own body, and every organisation can accredit and certify its own programs.

So the useful question is not “Is it accredited?” It is: where does this certification come from? Look at the lineage it belongs to, the body behind it, how long that body has been in the market, and who is running the programs. That is how you judge whether a program is legitimate.

The good news is that because NLP is so widely known, a certification you have done somewhere will usually be accepted for the next level, or for practice, when you move to a different organisation.

At the end of the day it is the learning that carries the weight. If you move to another organisation, they may well have a test or an examination before you qualify for that level.

The Simplest Way to Decide

If a friend asked me over a cup of coffee how to choose a trainer, I would say this:

Talk to the trainer. Tell them what you want. Listen to whether what you hear is concrete.

Everything else is decoration.

Questions to Ask Any NLP Trainer

• How long have you been training, and what is your background?
• Where does this certification come from, and what is its lineage?
• What exactly will I learn and practise?
• How will you help me achieve what I want from this program?
• Can I speak to someone who has attended before?
• How do you adapt the program for how people live and work here?

Frequently Asked Questions

Is NLP certification accredited?

NLP is widely recognised, but there is no single universal accrediting body. Each country and each organisation can accredit and certify its own programs, so look at the lineage of the certification, the body behind it and how long it has been running.

Will a certification from one organisation be accepted by another?

Usually yes, because NLP is so widely known. Another organisation will often accept it for the next level or for practice. What carries the weight is the learning, and they may test you before you qualify for the next level.

How do I know whether a trainer is right for me?

Connect with them before you finalise. Share what you want from the training and listen to how they will help you achieve it. A conversation tells you most of what you need to know.

How long are the NLP programs at WisdomTree?

The NLP Foundation Certification is a one-day program. The NLP Practitioner Certification is a five-day program, and the NLP Master Practitioner Certification is a 13-day program.

If you are not sure where to start, the one-day NLP Foundation Certification is a gentle way to meet the trainer and experience the style. When you are ready, the five-day NLP Practitioner Certification goes further. Current dates are on our upcoming programs page.

And as I said above, the best first step is simply a conversation.

You are welcome to write to us.

Related reading: how NLP helps leaders and how NLP training is different from therapy.