One of the best ways to develop yourself is to go for total immersion. You can do this in many ways but perhaps the very best way is by signing up to a personal development training course. I mean that in the widest context of personal development.

I left school with one ‘O’ level, in art. Not my proudest achievement. I wanted to leave and start to work. After a few years of working life I decided it might be fun to go to college and do an evening class in maths. I’d always enjoyed maths so spending a couple of hours on a Wednesday evening studying GCSE maths seemed like a cinch. And it was. This was closely followed by GCSE English and ‘A’ level psychology. I loved it! You could do a GCSE in one year instead of two. But the real beauty was that I was learning because I wanted to.

Later in life I discovered personal development courses. I remember an old boss of mine giving me some tapes to listen to on holiday. After a few days relaxing I put the first tape on and was transfixed by the content. When I went back to work my boss suggested we should go on the presenter’s two-day course. Excellent, I thought, an all-expenses- paid business trip. I couldn’t believe it when he said that if I wanted to go I would have to pay for it myself – I was furious. It turned out to be one of the best lessons I’d ever receive. Because I’d paid for it I was totally engaged; I wrote masses of notes and tested out every idea I learned.

I still go on lots of courses and I discover something new every time I take the opportunity to learn.

How do you find the right course (or courses) for you?

1. What do you want to learn? Note this is what you want to learn. This is not professional development; it’s personal. There will be plenty of opportunities for you to attend multiple courses as part of your work. They are usually the ones you must attend, are paid for by work and are so mind-numbingly boring you can’t wait to get to the bar. My question to you is: what do you really want to learn about? What’s missing from your life or what are you passionate or even curious about?
2. A good first stop is your local further education college. There has never been a wider choice of courses to enrol for and don’t think that you have to wait until September for the start of an academic year. Colleges are starting new programmes throughout the year.
3. If you are looking for a personal development course, take some time to narrow down the subject you are interested in. Personal development is vast and covers many topics. Are you looking for something to build confidence? Something to help you lead? What about relationships? Finance? Or your physical or spiritual self?
4. Can you commit? If you are signing up for a one- or two-day (immersion) programme that’s easier than committing to three hours every Thursday evening to study Spanish. The challenge is, if you don’t have the commitment and you miss a couple of weeks, then it’s easy to quit.

So let’s assume you’ve found a course (or two) to help you with your personal development.

At the time of writing this chapter, I have presented personal development programmes to well over a quarter of a million people. I’ve seen people change their lives in an afternoon and I’ve seen people walk out of a week-long programme barely touched by what they have experienced. How can you get the most out of a course or event?

How to get the most out of a personal development course

• Pre-read as much as you can. Even though the presenter may be teaching exactly the same materials, being ‘pre-read’ helps you to digest the course materials at a deeper level.
• Get there early. There is no excuse for being late and you will feel uncomfortable from the off if you arrive after the start.
• Sit as close to the front as you can. This should be easy, as everyone wants to sit at the back. It’s a brilliant affirmation that you are there to learn. This has only backfired on me once when I was a fundraiser and travelled to London for a course on ‘large gift fundraising’. I sat at the front of a long thin room and was by myself until five minutes before the event started. I was then joined by a nice bloke who sat in the seat next to mine.

I opened the conversation with: ‘Do you know why we are sitting here, right at the front?’

‘No’, he replied. ‘Why?’

‘It’s an affirmation that we are here to learn. People who choose to sit near the front tell their subconscious mind that they want the information, so I believe they take more in.’

‘That’s brilliant, I agree with that’, he concurred, before the host stood up to introduce the day.

He began by explaining who was going to be speaking and the timings. Then with a glint in his eye, he added: ‘But before we start the official agenda, I am delighted to announce that we have one of the UK’s leading philanthropists with us today who is going to share with you why and how he gives away over £750,000 a year.’

By now my fundraiser instincts had taken over and I was frantically scanning the stage looking along the speakers table trying to work out which one was this hot shot donor giving away all this lovely money. I knew that, having sat in the front row, I’d be first to get to him during the break.

‘So please give a big welcome to Mr Braun.’

As the crowd started to clap I turned to my new front row friend, winked and said: ‘That’s what we’re here for, to get a lump of his cash, eh?’

That was when he stood up, looked at me in a quizzical way and said: ‘Are you now?’, before walking to the podium to make his address.

So, as a word of warning, sometimes the speakers sit in the front row, too!

• Take lots of notes and learn like a teacher. Taking notes improves your ability to recall information, even if you never read the notes again. I believe when you learn as a teacher (with the assumption that you need to teach others what you have learned), you learn more.
• Play full out. A course is the perfect time to really go for it. You are in a safe environment; you are supposed to make mistakes! By stretching yourself on a course, it’s easier to put those new ideas into practice in the ‘real world’.
• Meet new people. It always surprises me when people who already know each other spend all their time together at a course. You can learn masses and make amazing contacts during the breaks if you take the opportunity to mix with new people.
• Read your notes at least twice after the course. The first time in the 24 hours immediately after the course and then once again in the next seven days.
• Take massive action on what you have learned.
• Ask questions. If you don’t fully understand something and you ask a question, you’ll become a hero because you’ll have probably asked something that everyone else was thinking.

Attending a personal development training course will be one of the most rewarding experiences of your life. I guarantee if you find the right programme for you, every penny you invest will be repaid over and over.