Skillful Trainer ®
Core training skills
From experiencing the process to conscious group work
Because leading a group is more than just a good script. It is the ability to notice and understand the process. We teach you to understand what is happening in a group and to respond to that process consciously.
Training description
You might know dozens of exercises, have a presentation ready, and be a great public speaker. Yet, leading a group can still catch you off guard.
Because a group is not just the sum of its participants. It is a process. Emotions, tensions, withdrawal, resistance, the need to test boundaries, rule-setting, finding one's place, confrontation, cooperation, and finally, collaborative work all emerge.
A good trainer doesn't try to stop this process.
They learn to notice, understand, and utilize it in their group work.
Skillful Trainer is 70 hours of training for those who work with groups or want to start a career in training. We don't start with a list of techniques.
We start with you and the experience of the process.
First, you enter the group experience as a participant.
Then, we look back at what happened together.
You learn to recognize the stages of group development, participant behaviors, your own reactions, and potential trainer interventions.
And then, you cross to the other side: from a participant, you become someone who designs and leads their own workshop.
Training program
01 | EXPERIENCE THE PROCESS
40 hours of interpersonal training
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02 | YOU UNDERSTAND WHAT HAPPENED
10 hours of group process
analysis
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03 | YOU LEARN TO WORK
WITH THE PROCESS
20 hours of designing
and presenting workshops
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Instead of talking about the group process from the position of an observer, you experience it first.
When people start meeting, something is triggered that cannot be fully planned or predicted. The group begins to create its own dynamics.
Experiencing the group process is the foundation and prerequisite for conscious work as a trainer. Getting to know group dynamics from a participant's perspective allows for a better understanding of the process that you will later lead others through.
Only after the experience do we pause and look at the group from the trainer's perspective.
- What was happening at the beginning?
- What can resistance mean?
- What is the difference between conflict and constructive confrontation?
- When does the group really start working?
- What role can a trainer play at different moments?
You analyze specific events from your own experience and learn to name the process that you previously simply experienced. We work with, among other things, the successive stages of group development: from the initial stage, through the transition and conflict phase, to constructive work and closure.
Now it is time for practice. You design a workshop: you define its topic, target audience, recruitment method, flow, duration, group size, and working techniques.
Next, you present a segment of it to the group and receive feedback. The goal is not to create an "ideal scenario." The goal is to start making training decisions consciously:
- Why am I doing this exercise?
- What do I want to achieve with this?
- What is happening in the group right now?
- What does the group need at this moment?
- Does my intervention serve the process, or just the execution of my plan?
During the training, we will work on:
- awareness of processes occurring within the group,
- group dynamics at the interpersonal and intrapsychic level,
- understanding your own functioning in the trainer role,
- conscious use of communication,
- recognizing emotions and their significance in training work,
- making appropriate interventions, analyzing the meaning and purpose of techniques used,
- giving and receiving feedback,
- workshop design, trainer ethics.
ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION
LOCATION AND SESSION DATES
Training duration: 70 training hours
Training location: The training will be held IN-PERSON
Sessions are held at the Dr. Ben Furman Motivational and Preventive Center
ul. Huberta 2, Katowice (Brynów)
Training hours: 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM
DATES FOR THE 1ST EDITION
SESSION I: January 28–31, 2027
40 hours | interpersonal training
SESSION II: February 13, 2027
10 hours | group process analysis
SESSION III: March 6–7, 2027
20 hours | workshop design and presentation
TRAINER: Dr. Maria John-Borys
Psychologist, PTP-certified psychotherapist, supervisor, and trainer of interpersonal training and PTP psychosocial skills workshops. A specialist in group processes and group work, she combines many years of experience in training, psychotherapy, and systems work.
She has been providing individual psychotherapy and working with families for over 20 years. She completed a three-year course in systemic family therapy. As a supervisor for the Polish Psychological Association (PTP), she supervises groups of individuals seeking PTP trainer recommendations at the first, second, and third levels. She herself holds PTP recommendations as a supervisor and trainer of interpersonal training and psychosocial skills workshops, as well as PTP psychotherapist certificate no. 195.
Her experience in working with groups and children dates back to the beginnings of sociotherapy in Poland. She co-created the concept for therapeutic community centers and developed an original program for working with children from families experiencing difficulties, which was subsequently used in many sociotherapeutic centers.
At Skillful Trainer, she brings years of experience in leading, observing, and supervising group processes. She teaches not only how to conduct sessions, but above all, how to notice, understand, and utilize what is happening within the group, between participants, between the participant and the trainer, and within the facilitator themselves.
She runs a psychological practice in Katowice.
PARTICIPANTS
The training is intended for people who work with groups or are planning to start such work.
This training is especially for you if…
- you lead workshops, training sessions, or group classes,
- you work as a psychologist, educator, therapist, or youth worker,
- a coach, educator, or specialist working with people,
- you already have experience working with groups but want to better understand what happens "between" participants,
- you feel that sometimes a lesson plan is no longer enough,
- you want to develop your own training style and not just lead sessions, but consciously work with a group.
TRAINING FEE
The training fee includes: 70 hours of training, coffee breaks, training materials, and a certificate.
Training fee: ..............................PLN
All proceeds from the training go toward the statutory activities of the ULICA Foundation for Children.
Book a spot for the
Skillful Trainer training
Neo Energy Group.
As a leading developer and operator of renewable energy sources (RES), Neo Energy Group is deeply committed to sustainable development. The company also engages in social initiatives that not only promote the well-being of children and youth but also build their mental resilience—a protective shield that is a key element of their health and prosperity. By supporting the ULICA Foundation and its Center, NEG actively contributes to the development of ecopsychology and the ideas of Dr. Ben Furman. It also demonstrates that responsible business and sustainable development are not just about investing in technology, but also in people—especially the younger generation. The innovation embedded in Neo Energy Group's DNA is also evident in the Foundation's activities and the concept it promotes, which uses modern tools to rebuild and strengthen the mental resilience of children. As a result, children's problems are beginning to be viewed differently. They are becoming processes of learning new skills that help overcome difficulties and initiate the desired change. The accessibility of these initiatives to local communities is further proof that Neo Energy Group understands and takes its social role very seriously, with the power to influence positive change. By supporting the ULICA Foundation, the company joins forces with those working for a better tomorrow, where every child—regardless of where they live—has the chance for healthy development in harmony with the world around them.
If you have any questions, please contact
Magdalena Tyska
Customer Service Specialist