Jan. 3, 2018
The following FAQ was composed by POV UK trainer Alex Patchett-Joyce and posted on the corporation's UK webpage.
There are two particular parts I would like to highlight. First, this one:
What kind of training has Alex had?
Alex is a certified PoV trainer, the only one in UK and Ireland and she has undergone over four hundred days of training - her requirement to maintain this is that she has ongoing rigorous coaching by the founders of PoV, and fellow trainers. This ongoing coaching includes at least 35 days with Chuck or Lency Spezzano over a 2 year period. All PoV trainers, including Alex, are also mentored each month by a senior trainer and also coached monthly by a peer trainer. This training is to ensure that Alex can guide participants safely in this type of experiential workshop.
That's right. No professional training at all except within the boundaries of this toxic group itself.
The second part I want to point out is a small matter, but still most interesting as I have heard of other cults using the same tactics:
The Groundings
The trainer or a staff member will run through the groundings to make sure that everybody agrees to and understands them. They are designed to make the space as safe as possible for everybody’s healing, so do your best to stick to them.
...
9. Stay in the room: remember the section on your Ego? Nine times out of ten, if you suddenly become desperate to pee or leave the room, it is this part of your mind at work, doing its best to avoid the most useful bit of information! Do your best to stay in the room – that way you will get the most out of the training.
Now, onward and enjoy the entire FAQ:
https://psychologyofvision.co.uk/blog/
[Update 6/14/2018: This FAQ was re-edited and moved to a new URL recently, but the content is essentially the same]
http://psychologyofvision.co.uk/faqs/
[Update, May 28, 2021: POV UK has revamped their webpage and this FAQ section apparently no longer exists]
Frequently Asked Questions
Most of the following questions, answers and pointers are particular pertinent to attended workshop - where you are physically present. Alex also does online workshops for which many of these FAQs equally apply. If you have any further queries please email alex@psychologyofvision.co.uk.
What do I need to bring to an attended workshop?
Wear clothes in which you feel comfortable
It also helps to wear layers or bring something warm to wrap yourself up in because as you go through stages of process, you can suddenly feel hot or cold.
Bring a water bottle
Bring a notebook and pen
How long does it take before I can expect to see changes in my life, relationships or business?
As long or short as you want - the key is your willingness to change. After a series of ‘eureka’ moments when you’ll have a whole load of realisations you have the opportunity to shift your perception. You learn a lot from a workshop but it is your willingness to change once you leave the workshop that will make the real difference to your world.
This is true whether you attend a workshop, do one online or do a programme or course.
Does the workshop fee include accommodation?
No, accommodation is not included in the price.
Participants make their own arrangements.
Is food included?
Lunch is included at a lot of Alex’s attended workshops and it will say so on the website if it is. Teas and coffees are provided at most workshops, if you have any specialist drink/tea/milk preferences it is best to bring them with you.
Can I bring a friend to a workshop?
You can bring a friend to most workshops, though there are some that are for people who have previous experience of PoV. If in doubt check when you make your booking or call Alex. Advance notice of someone joining is always appreciated for instance for admin purposes and catering and in the case of online we’ll need an email address to send the link.
I can’t attend all the sessions, can I still book a place?
Sometimes, it depends on the type of event. Ask the Trainer when you book your place.
What is ‘Joining’?
Joining is a method that has been developed by Lency Spezzano, co-founder of Psychology of Vision. It is a much more ‘feminine’ way to work through issues, with less words and less ‘theory’ and ‘doing’.
Joining is the very natural act of focusing your attention on another to such an extent that you become intertwined with that person energetically and then you become one ‘unit’ – so that you can feel what they are feeling and vice versa. In fact we do this all the time in our lives without even realising it – it is called empathy and we experience it all the time. In Psychology of Vision, this joining is a great way to release your emotions and is used to help people get in touch with their emotions.
What to expect at a workshop?
Sessions are process-led which means that there is no script or agenda: what happens in the workshop is determined by the people present - by the issues and questions the participants bring up and every workshop and every group is completely different.
As the issues surface the trainer explains the dynamics of the mind, and insights on how to transform and go beyond them.
There is a structure and guiding principles in place to keep the workshop both effective and a safe space.
What change can I expect from a workshop?
Because everyone is different, what each person experiences will vary. Here are some of the changes you can expect:
Happier relationships at home and at work
Confidence to find solutions to your problems
Being more free, open, loving and spontaneous
Know how to forgive yourself and others, let go of resentments
Recognition and release from painful experiences
Learning how to be more effective at work
Life feels lighter and more fun
Increased creativity and freedom from blocks
Greater success and rewards
Being more comfortable and confident in any situation.
How much training has a trainer received before they start teaching or coaching?
In order to qualify to be a trainer, a person will have received a minimum of 120 days of training with PoV before they start delivering workshops, including regular one to one mentoring and coaching sessions. In addition they attend a minimum of 35 days training every 2 year period with co-founders Chuck and Lency Spezzano. Each year at their 10-day Trainers’ conference they are assessed for competency.
What kind of training has Alex had?
Alex is a certified PoV trainer, the only one in UK and Ireland and she has undergone over four hundred days of training - her requirement to maintain this is that she has ongoing rigorous coaching by the founders of PoV, and fellow trainers. This ongoing coaching includes at least 35 days with Chuck or Lency Spezzano over a 2 year period. All PoV trainers, including Alex, are also mentored each month by a senior trainer and also coached monthly by a peer trainer. This training is to ensure that Alex can guide participants safely in this type of experiential workshop.
Who are the workshops and programmes for?
You don’t need any prior knowledge of PoV to benefit from one of our workshops or programmes. The most important quality you need is willingness. Whether you are in a good place in your life and want to enhance your happiness and success, or have a big problem or challenge, you will benefit tremendously.
How much do I participate in the sessions?
Some people like to actively contribute to the process, others prefer to sit back and observe. The facilitators are trained to lead the group without putting any individual ‘on the spot’. The important thing to know is that YOU choose to what extent you take part. You will not be coerced to do anything you don’t want to do. You can be assured of total respect and complete privacy. The fact is everyone will get the healing and transformation by being present in the group.
As the workshop progresses the level of love and acceptance in the room increases. This dynamic makes powerful transformations inevitable for everyone present. You experience a safe and loving environment in which you can release past hurts with ease. There emerges a collective intelligence and wisdom in the group, so whoever emerges as a focus person, their breakthrough will benefit everyone present.
Focus Person
When a group of people comes together, a ‘group mind’ is formed. This means that if one person shares, they are expressing an issue that is going on for the whole group. So, for each session in the workshop or on a programme, a ‘focus person’ is picked from the name cards (everybody is in there) and they work through a problem with the trainer and with the help and support of the group. For some people, it may be obvious that it relates to them, for others they may not be able to relate to the story but the emotions may resonate with them. The key is to join with the person as they share their problem with the trainer and the group. Support them fully and imagine them healing their issue perfectly by the end of the process.
During the process of the focus person’s sharing this is only the tip of an iceberg, so be curious about what the root could be for you. Even if their story seems very different to yours, the subconscious or unconscious dynamics may be the same. Again, be curious and open minded.
As the various elements of the focus person’s problem become clear, the trainer will be able to help them access the subconscious and unconscious patterns underlying the surface layer – that is, how it is showing up in their world. Remember that this is your mind too! The original problem may seem totally unconnected with the root issue – it is a fascinating process to witness. At an attended workshop, as the pieces become clear, a way through will also emerge and the focus person will ask members of the group to represent various people or gifts for them. In this way they are able to move through the different aspects of their issue energetically with others to help them focus their emotions. Music is used to help participants to get in touch with each stage of the process.
What will I experience during the workshop?
Usually a series of ‘a-ha’ moments and insights about what has made your life work and what has held you back. Emotionally you will probably go through lows as issues surface that may have been deeply buried, and highs as they are released.
How am I likely to feel at the end of the seminar?
Much lighter and freer and excited about your life and the world. You are very likely to feel liberated from old patterns. You will probably feel more ‘yourself’ and in touch with the true loving and powerful you that has been beneath the programming and conditioning that you took on. You will also discover practical tools and techniques that you can take back to your daily life and apply immediately.
You’ll be glad you came!
What happens after a workshop?
Everyone makes their way home. We recommend you take it easy when you get home, drink plenty of water, get some rest, and let the work unfold. A warm sea salt or epsom salt bath can help too.
Are there any safety guidelines or rules for the workshops?
Yes, we have a set of guiding principles which we share at the beginning of a workshop and to which we ask everyone to agree to abide by. These are to do with confidentiality and respect for the people in the group and the process. These guiding principles are called the groundings and they set up a safe space and structure for the workshop.
The Groundings
The trainer or a staff member will run through the groundings to make sure that everybody agrees to and understands them. They are designed to make the space as safe as possible for everybody’s healing, so do your best to stick to them.
1. Confidentiality: everything that is shared in the room always stays in the room. This means that everybody feels confident when they are sharing experiences in front of the group.
2. No side talking: if you have a question or a comment, simply put up your hand and address the trainer. Side talking with others is off-putting for everyone and you will probably miss the most important bit!
3. No food or drink apart from bottled water should be brought into the room: it is important that the group respects the room in which the workshop is held and cups of coffee and food invariably end up being spilt or knocked over.
4. Mobile phones off: it is obviously very distracting if phones keep ringing during the workshop.
5. Give 100% to the workshop: you only get out as much as you put in, so dive in head first!
6. Be responsible for your own process: remember the Accountability principle. Nobody can make you feel anything that is not already inside you somewhere. Blaming others for how you feel only delays you healing the issue, so it is best to take responsibility.
7. Be on time: use the workshop to look at how you behave in the outside world. It is a brilliant learning ground. Being on time shows how committed and present you are.
8. Respect yourself, others and the surroundings
9. Stay in the room: remember the section on your Ego? Nine times out of ten, if you suddenly become desperate to pee or leave the room, it is this part of your mind at work, doing its best to avoid the most useful bit of information! Do your best to stay in the room – that way you will get the most out of the training.
10. Finish the workshop: sometimes, difficult and painful emotions can be triggered by what others say or just by being in the workshop. Remember that this is the best place in which to deal with and heal your emotions. You will feel so much better if you stay until the end.
The ‘Buddy System’ explained
On a Psychology of Vision workshop you will be assigned a buddy on the first morning or first session of a programme be it attended or online.
1. How you treat your buddy is a good indication of how you treat yourself. Listen to any feedback your buddy gives you – it is so valuable.
2. Don’t try to fix your buddy’s problems. Listening to and moving towards your buddy is the best way to support them.
3. Your buddy is your mirror. Be observant and willing to own back your projections and judgments.
4. There are 5 different types of buddies and work out which ones you are to each other. This can help you focus your buddy work.
Relationships are at the heart of Psychology of Vision’s training model. Your relationships with your partner, your children, your work colleagues, your family members, with your friends and with yourself – in fact, your relationship with anybody - can improve dramatically when you put these principles into action in your life. To speed up your understanding of relationships and to allow you to get to work on them right away, you will be assigned a ‘buddy’.
Chosen by the universe as the facilitator pulls your name cards two by two, your buddy will become your companion and mirror for the programme or days at the workshop, so it is important that you share yourself as honestly as possible with them. That way, you
will gain maximum benefit from each lesson.
The ‘Buddy System’ has been in place for many years in seminars around the world and trainers have come up with a list of the five most common types of buddies you may expect to meet:
1. You find your buddy very familiar and discover that you experience life in much the same way. As you connect and communicate you will have the possibility of helping each other with mutual and effective ways of dealing with issues.
2. Your buddy appears to be the exact opposite of yourself. You may tend to express the same emotion in different ways. This buddy can appear different at first but with the willingness to work past the surface differences and join together you will grow in awareness.
3. Your buddy reminds you of a significant person in your life now or in the past, with whom you quite likely have some unfinished business. Often this indicates the place where we are stuck in our lives as a reflection of this past unhealed relationship.
4. You may meet your “shadow figure”. This buddy represents parts of yourself you have judged and hidden. Often this type of buddy takes the most courage to join with, but this buddy also has the potential of being a great gift to us in our journey to free ourselves.
5. Your buddy has come to be your angel. It is as if heaven has answered your prayers, and has given you the person who will guide you through this period of your life. Your willingness to accept this help will be a blessing for you and for them.
Whichever kind of buddy you have, this new partnership offers a brilliant opportunity to examine your relationship with yourself and those around you, so spend time getting to know him or her. Remember to avoid giving advice or having too many ‘opinions’. Listening and being open-minded are the best ways to support and honour your buddy and to allow yourselves to learn from each other. Be open and recognise everyone is our mirror!
What is the procedure if I wish to make a complaint about a trainer? -
1. Any complaint about a PoV trainer should be sent to the Program Director (PD) – in writing (translated into English).
Presently, Francine Girard at francineyoga@msn.com
2. The PD will immediately acknowledge receipt of the complaint (to the sender), and follow the steps laid out below. After following the steps outlined below, the Steering Committee (SC – PoV advisory board) will reply to the complainant within 21 days. A permanent record of the complaint, the SC’s response to the complaint and any further action taken will be kept on the Trainer’s file.
3. When a complaint goes to the PD, the following occurs:
• The complaint is passed on to SC. One of the SC members will discuss the complaint with the Trainer in question.
• The Trainer is sent the complaint and has seven days to reply to the SC in writing.
• The SC decides the outcome of the situation within another 7 days and the same SC member talks to the Trainer in question and whoever has filed the complaint to communicate the discussion and outcome. If appropriate, the SC member can mediate between Trainer and the “complainer”.
Our objective is satisfactory resolution for all parties and we endeavour to achieve this through whatever communication necessary.
What does ‘process’ mean?
Process is a term used frequently in Psychology of Vision trainings. It is best described as the connectivity of all things. It is the opposite of experiencing events and experiences as random, unconnected and out of our control. If we see things in our lives as being part of this process, and recognise that everything we go through is a process, moving us towards healing ourselves and our relationships, then we can observe process to give us pointers and to help us on our way.
Particularly in the case of a workshop, process is a brilliant indicator for us to keep an eye on. What are we being shown consciously that could point to deeper, buried issues? A difficult journey to the workshop and you arrive late, can tell you that you have resistance to what you are going to learn or heal in the workshop.
[Here is the original text. As you can see the type was too small to snip and paste and still be readable]
