Acorn Learning and Development - Sowing the seeds of success
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18 Park Street - Eliot, ME 03903 - 207-438-9220

UPCOMING PUBLIC WORKSHOPS

SPACE IS LIMITED, SO REGISTER EARLY!

FUNDAMENTALS OF COACHING

A certificate program in professional coaching

OTHER WORKSHOPS

Introduction Workplace Wellness

Understanding Behavior - The Key To Effective Relationships

Time Mastery -- How To Manage Your Time More Effectively


FUNDAMENTALS OF COACHING - An Overview

This powerful, practical program is back by popular demand at both the University of South Florida, St. Petersburg Campus (February 14-March 28, 2009) and the University of Southern Maine, Portland (May 12 – June 24, 2009.)

For students who cannot attend either of these programs, private small group classes can be arranged either in southern Maine or St. Petersburg, Florida. Optional continuing education credits are available for these private classes through Southern New Hampshire University.

Program Description: Individuals from all walks of life are discovering the value of working with a professional coach to provide assistance in developing and implementing their life and/or career goals, crafting their retirement strategies, and managing other life transitions.

The business demand for professional coaches is growing as more and more businesses and organizations recognize the value of coaching as a cost-effective employee development tool. With the added support of a coach, employees can increase their effectiveness, learn to be more creative, assume greater responsibilities, and grow professionally.

At the management and executive level, coaches prove to be of great value to those individuals who have been through the standard leadership development programs and who want more personalized support to help them achieve their maximum potential.

The Certificate Program in Professional Coaching is designed for HR professionals, supervisors, and managers, who wish to add a coaching spin to their work, as well as for individuals who want to explore coaching as a possible next step in their career progression. It is also valuable for practicing coaches looking to refresh skills and strengthen an existing practice. This certificate program both introduces the newcomer to the field of coaching and provides seasoned professionals the opportunity to build coaching skills through a series of courses, which are based on proven practices of successful coaching.

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THE COACHING PROCESS
     FIVE ESSENTIAL SKILLS

Saturday, February 14, 2009, 9am - 5pm
University of South Florida, St. Petersburg Campus

Tuesday, May 12, 2009, 8:30am - 4:30pm
University of Southern Maine, Portland

This course will introduce participants to the concepts and purposes of coaching and the essential skills required of the professional coach. Coaching is a process of support that enables people to identify their strengths, acknowledge their weaknesses, and pursue strategies to maximize their gifts and achieve their goals.

Within an organization, the goal of coaching is to help an individual improve performance through greater confidence and competence. Outside of the organization, a broader category called "life coaching" provides individuals with new options and strategies to identify and follow a more productive path toward achieving their personal goals.

Participants will learn that coaching is not training or counseling and how it differs from consulting and mentoring. Participants in this workshop will evaluate their own level of confidence and competence in each of the following five skill areas and will understand that coaching is a process that requires the capacity to:

  • build rapport
  • observe and analyze
  • question and listen
  • provide feedback
  • facilitate learning

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THE COACH'S TOOL KIT

Saturday, February 21, 2009, 8:30am - 4:30pm
University of South Florida, St. Petersburg Campus

Tuesday, May 19, 2009, 9am - 4pm
University of Southern Maine, Portland

This course will introduce participants to a range of tools and techniques, including self-assessment profiles, books, articles, and worksheets for use with clients. Participants will complete a self-assessment behavior style inventory that provides an understanding of personal differences and strategies for navigating through those differences. The class will review the use of a variety of models, frameworks, and worksheets and discuss how to incorporate them into coaching work.

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YOUR COACHING PRACTICE
     THE ART OF ASKING GOOD QUESTIONS

Saturday, February 28, 2009, 9am - 4pm
University of South Florida, St. Petersburg Campus

Wednesday, May 27, 2009, 8:30am - 4:30pm
University of Southern Maine, Portland

It is a trait of human nature that people are more convinced by arguments they have created themselves than by arguments presented to them by others. Effective coaches intentionally use open-ended questions to elicit statements from their clients that acknowledge:

  • their desire to change
  • their capacity and ability to affect their own destiny
  • the reasons why they want things to change
  • what they need to do differently in order for things to change and
  • their commitment to take action to make a change.

Small group practice will provide participants an opportunity to build their questioning skills  and to receive feedback on their use of motivational dialogue, both from peers and from the instructor.  Participants will also review and practice on-the-spot laser coaching, and learn how to recognize and maximize the coachable moment.

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Coaching in Action - Practicum

March 9 through March 27, 2009
University of South Florida, St. Petersburg Campus

Open enrollment January 1 – May 1, 2009
University of Southern Maine, Portland

To truly understand the coaching process, a prospective coach should know what it feels like to be coached. This course offers that option.

For USF students - This course is required as part of the Coaching Certificate package. You will schedule three hours of one-on-one coaching with Barbara Wilson as a capstone to the coaching certificate program. Then all students will meet for a half-day summary session on March 28, 2009.

For USM students - This course is an elective. You may register anytime between January 1 and May 1, 2009. When you register for this course, you will be contacted by Barbara Wilson to schedule three one-hour coaching sessions with her to be completed by June 23, 2009. On June 24, you will meet with all the other individuals who have also completed their 3 coaching sessions for a summary discussion.

This course can be approached in one of two ways.

Option A: It may be considered the "capstone" of the certificate series. In that case you would schedule the sessions between May 27 and June 23, after completing the three required courses.

Option B: It can serve as a stand-alone opportunity to learn more about coaching by experiencing it. Coaching sessions can happen anytime between January and June. Registration deadline May 1.

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ALTERING ATTITUDES, INFLUENCING ACTIONS
     The Coach's Role

Saturday March 7, 2009, 9am - 4pm
University of South Florida, St. Petersburg Campus

Wednesday, June 3, 2009, 8:30am - 4:30pm
University of Southern Maine, Portland

An important priority in coaching is to help people identify counterproductive attitudes that hinder their success. In this workshop, we will explore how people's values influence their beliefs, and in turn, how beliefs drive behavior. With a step-by-step process, coaches can help people to break through the trap of limiting beliefs about themselves and the resulting behaviors that keep them from achieving their goals. Participants will learn to identify common stress reaction behaviors, to reframe defensive responses, and to provide guidance in identifying more productive behaviors in order to achieve desired results.

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Introduction to Workplace Wellness

Tuesday, November 18, 2008, 9 am - 4pm
St. Petersburg College Corporate Training Center

Employee health and well-being is mission critical to your organization's ability to deliver quality products and services. According to data presented at the International Health & Productivity Management International Conference, 74% of overall productivity loss can be directly attributed to poor employee health!  As a core strategy in your employee healthcare cost containment efforts, a successful workplace wellness program will provide the resources and support your employees need to take greater personal responsibility for their own health improvement. A comprehensive workplace wellness initiative can result in increased productivity, reduced absenteeism, improved morale, greater retention, and more successful recruiting.

Barbara Wilson, Founding Partner and CEO of Wellness Strategies LLC, will share case studies and best practices that will increase your understanding of:

  • The connection between your employees’ health and their productivity on the job
  • Why workplace wellness matters to your business
  • Which wellness programs succeed and why others fail

You will also learn about

  • The seven benchmarks of success for workplace wellness
  • How to achieve high returns on your investment in employee wellness, and
  • Four critical steps to make your workplace a great place to work.

This half-day program will enhance your understanding of the tangible and intangible costs of an unhealthy workplace and why employee health and well-being is so critical to productivity. At the conclusion of this program, you will be armed with sufficient data, resources, and understanding to not only make a cogent business case for instituting a wellness initiative in your workplace, but also a strategy for getting it off the ground.

This program is designed for HR leaders, business owners, CEOs, CFOs, department heads, and other workplace decision-makers who are interested in improving productivity through enhancing employee wellness.

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UNDERSTANDING BEHAVIOR
     THE KEY TO EFFECTIVE RELATIONSHIPS

Wednesday, December 10, 2008, 8:30am - 4:30pm
St. Petersburg College Corporate Training Center
13805 58th Street North, Largo, FL

Summary Description: Developing the ability to work effectively with others is one of the most important skills you can learn. Successful relationships are crucial both to personal satisfaction and to effective work performance. In this workshop participants:

  • Learn their personal styles and how they impact others
  • Understand what it takes to achieve win-win results
  • Discover the foundation for creating a successful work team

More Detail: Most workplace challenges are a result of interpersonal conflict. Understanding why people behave the way they do is the key to building and maintaining effective relationships.

Using the “As I See Myself” behavior style profile published by the Effectiveness Institute, participants will increase their knowledge about their own natural strengths, preferences, and blind spots.  They will also learn about others’ styles and why conflicts and misunderstandings often occur. Most importantly, participants learn how to flex their behavior to meet the style needs of others to achieve results while strengthening relationships.

A unique benefit to participants is the inclusion of 5 “As Others See Me” profiles. This 2-page companion product to the “As I See Myself” profile contains the same self-scoring questionnaire and is an efficient means of learning how your behavior style is perceived by others. Understanding how you are perceived is a critical awareness for personal development and effectiveness training.

Materials include: “As I See Myself” profile, a laminated Quick Reference Card, and 5 “As Others See Me” profiles for each participant.

Facilitator:  Barbara Wilson, founder of Acorn Learning and Development, has devoted her career to improving workplace communications in order to strengthen working relationships. 
Her 25-year background in marketing and organizational development, combined with 10 years as a professional coach, catalyst, and consultant, provides a rich history of relevant experience in managing successful relationships through understanding behavior.

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TIME MASTERY

Tuesday, December 16, 2008, 8:30am - 4:30pm
St. Petersburg College Corporate Training Center
13805 58th Street North, Largo, FL

We all face a daily dilemma: too much to do and not enough time to do it. Shorter deadlines, competing priorities, endless meetings, interruptions, and ever-higher quality expectations are just some of today's time challenges. This program offers principles of time management in twelve critical areas. Action planning for improved habits, plus tried-and-true tools, tips, and techniques are all part of this personal development seminar.


For more information about any of these workshops, contact barbara@acorn-potential.com.

 

 
“ Example is not the main thing in influencing others. . .it's the only thing!”

-- Albert Schweitzer

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work."

-- Thomas Edison

 
     
           
   

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