How To Be A Successful Student

Let's visualise: SOASC students and teachers participate in the "Access, Amplify and Anchor" exercise for building confidence during the Neuro-linguistic Programming talk yesterday.

Picture: Dewi Md Sofri
Dewi Mohd SofriBANDAR SERI BEGAWAN
Tuesday, June 10, 2008

"WHAT does it take to be a successful student?"

Some 200 students of the Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddien College were clued in on some "tricks" during a two-day motivational seminar entitled "Mindsetting Success, Generating the Potential of Your Mind with Neuro-linguistic Programming (NLP)" organised by the Ministry of Education through Transcend & Actualise, Coach and Consultants.

The seminar took place at the Pengiran Anak Puteri Rashidah Sa'adatul Bolkiah Nursing College and was conducted by Malaysian consultant, Md Taib Mat, who used the NLP approach, focusing on the power of visual imagery to achieve success.

Before Md Taib Mat launched into the basic principles of NLP, an ice-breaking session was held to prep the students on what to expect during the seminar.

Students were told that their past does not define what they will be in the future because they can shape the future. They were requested to have an open mind, participate fully and permit the speaker to be their coach for the two days.

"So many times, we let our parents drive the bus, we let our teachers drive and worst, our friends. You should be the one to drive your own bus," he said, using analogies such as directing a movie and also driving a bus to portray the extent of control that one should have in life."

These two days, I am going to demonstrate to you how to do certain things with your mind," said Md Taib, noting everything that one needs to be successful is in the mind.

Access it and you will find that everything you need is there, he added.

NLP uses the visual, audio and kinesthetic approach in life which is important for teachers, he said, because it is how one processes information.

He also told the students that they should have fun in what they do even having a sense of play while studying. "If you get serious, you get stupid."

He said that one can be serious when playing and this is usually when it pays off.

Students were then asked to jot down what they hoped to achieve from the seminar. The seminar was not meant for passive students and throughout the day, the speaker injected several exercises that required the students to be actively involved in their road to development and self-change.

In order to have a successful future, setting a goal is crucial. "Your mind has to achieve something and if you do not have a target, your mind will be lost. So you must have a target," he told them."

It's not how good you are, it's how good you want to be ," he said, citing the title of a book by the late creative director Paul Arden.

The seminar also involved a lot of reflection exercises, where students were asked to close their eyes and visualise certain images as prompted by the speaker through sessions in enhancing and managing the state of mind.

Students were made to create a mental image of themselves scoring all "As" in their subjects as well as important people in their lives, such as their mother and favourite teacher, affirming that they will score all "As"."

What you have now is not as important as what you want to have. This is what I am trying to help you (with). (This is) because you are growing up," he said, in trying to plant the seeds of confidence to the students.

Yesterday's session focused on developing personal appreciation and empowering beliefs, changing behaviours and attitudes through "Swish Pattern" removing bad habits and replacing them with new ones.

Today, the students will be trained on techniques to remove fear and anxiety (limitations) from their system, generate new behavioural pattern and integrating a new self-identity.