Hypnotherapy training or hypnotherapy certification?
As someone looking for hypnotherapy training, you may have searched Google for ‘hypnotherapy training courses’, or you may have searched for ‘hypnotherapy certification courses’. Now, whilst you may have gotten similar search results, maybe even seeing some of the same hypnotherapy training schools appearing, there’s a key difference between hypnotherapy training and hypnotherapy certification…
‘Training’ focuses on learning how to do what you want to do, so with hypnotherapy training, you will be learning the skills required to become a hypnotherapist. ‘Certification’, on the other hand, focuses more on the ‘piece of paper’ (certificate) that you get at the end of the course, rather than the training that the course offers.
There are many courses out there that offer good training as well as certification at the end of it all. There are also many courses that offer great training without certification at the end. In contrast to those courses that offer top-quality hypnotherapy training, there are also some really poor-quality training courses out there, some of which offer really professional looking certificates, that actually aren’t worth the paper they’re printed on!
Should you focus on hypnotherapy certificates?
When I personally started out in the hypnosis world, I took a course… To pass this course, all I had to do was read a single book, and re-word sections of the book as answers on my exam paper. That was it (seriously). The people running the course didn’t give a flying fart whether I actually knew what I was doing by the end of the ‘course’ (I didn’t). Nobody cared whether I could actually do the techniques from the book (I couldn’t), but I passed anyway, and I got a certificate to say I knew all about something that in fact I absolutely sucked at!
I subsequently went and got more, better quality training! I read books, watched videos, took online and in-person courses, and immersed myself in the world of hypnotherapy. However, my focus was not on getting certificates, my focus was on learning how to do hypnotherapy well!
So, as a hypnotherapy student, what do you need to look for? Well, sure, having a certificate that says ‘Certified Hypnotherapist’ on it is great. It gives you a nice feeling inside, and it looks good for your prospective clients. However, if the course you take doesn’t actually train you to do hypnotherapy properly, and you’re left thinking ‘how do I actually help people?’, how much is your shiny new certificate going to help? (Unfortunately, not much.)
Hypnotherapy training beats hypnotherapy certification
The key thing that you want to look for with any course is the training content itself. What will you actually get from taking the course? What skills will you learn? How will you be able to help your clients? Will it give you all that you need in order to do what you want to do? If your course gives you all that you need, then your results will speak louder than any certificate ever would.
When choosing a hypnotherapy training course, make sure that it covers the essentials. You’ll want to learn how to hypnotise, as well as covering a broad range of hypnotherapy techniques. There are many courses out there with different labels, you have hypnotherapy diploma courses, Ericksonian hypnotherapy courses, solution-focused hypnotherapy courses, ‘clinical’ hypnotherapy courses, cognitive-behavioural hypnotherapy courses, HPD courses, RTT courses, HCBT courses, and many more besides. To learn more about the different types of courses out there, check out my hypnotherapy course FAQs. However, it is important to ensure that, at the very least, you learn behavioural, cognitive, analytical and regression hypnotherapy approaches, as well as the fundamentals of how to hypnotise and how to run your own hypnotherapy business! All this (and much more) is covered within the RZHA online academy and hypnotherapy diploma course.
No matter what you’re looking to learn, whether you’re just starting out or you’re already a seasoned professional hypnotherapist, don’t be blinded by certificates – they are not what is most important, not for you, and not for your clients. Look for the deeper meaning. Look for the benefits, the skills and the positive take-home points that a hypnotherapy training course gives you… and if you get a nice shiny certificate too, think of it as an added bonus!
