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Got Questions? Read on or Watch these short videos

FAQ #1:

Please Take the time to watch this video or read the following before calling to set up your  initial get acquainted call
with Mark Shepard at 203-495-8808

Q: How long have you been doing what you do and how did you get to be an NLP Rapid Change Specialist?

A: I have been actively engaged as a student and practitioner of transformation,  personal growth and alternative healing practices since 1989. To best answer this question let me share the story of how I got to where I am today...

Like most of my clients, I have always been a highly sensitive person. I am creative and blessed (sometimes it felt like a curse) with a wide range of talents and abilities. In High School I started writing songs which were so good, my friends insisted that I "should do something with them" they all seemed to think I should be famous. The only problem with that was I had an extremely introverted personality. I was shy and full of fear and anxiety. At one point I would make myself sick just before every (and I mean every) significant performance. I also had no energy and was physically exhausted much of the time. I ran into similar problems in my personal life. I would get so nervous trying to ask a girl out that I would just go to pieces. To quote my friend and coach Kim Kasparian, "I had more issues than tissues."

To make a long story short, at one point in my late 20's and early 30's I simply gave up on music. It made me so miserable I couldn't stand it any more. I would perform at a coffeehouse and some guy would get up and leave and I would think it was because he didn't like my music!

At some point I began to work on myself. I read books, went to seminars, even studied with an energy healer. It didn't seem to make any difference. One day, I was so broke and down and out that I ended up calling all the nursery schools in the phone book and offering to play guitar and sing kid songs for $75.00.

I eventually added storytelling and exotic hand drumming to put together a career as a kid performer. Several years later I was booking DrumSongStory programs all over New England and charging $1,000 and up per hour.

But I was still struggling, frustrated, lonely and full of fear and anxiety. I could do kid shows but the mere thought of performing for adults usually caused me to mysteriously get sick.

One day I was so miserable on so many different fronts (in spite of all the work I'd done on myself) that I went to the bookstore to try to find some book I could read to help me pull out of it. I found "Changing Belief Systems with NLP" by Robert Dilts. To learn more about NLP and the other tools I use to help my clients Clear the Fear Fast click on this link: Rapid Change Resources: more about NLP, EFT, Hypnosis, Time Line Therapy™

Within moments after doing one of the NLP exercises, I had literally erased my shyness. Soon I was on the internet researching Neuro Linguistic Programming and sending away for training tapes. I started make rapid changes and discovered to my delight that the stuff I was changing stayed changed! Of course other challenges came up, but I now had tools to deal with the slings and arrows of romance and daily life.

I had to learn more. I eventually received certification as a hypnotherapist in 2002 and then in 2003 did an extensive training course with world renown NLP expert, Dr. Tad James. I am now a certified master practitioner and trainer of NLP, Hypnosis, & Time Line Therapy™ . I also began work on my PhD in clinical hypnosis that year and continue to study and learn more in preparation for my dissertation..

I opened my practice in early 2003 and have been honing my skills and my approach to assisting others since that time.

One defining moment was a severe phobia case I worked with.

Case Study: Fear of Bridges and Heights, cleared in one session.

I received a call from a man who had been experiencing increasing difficulty crossing bridges. He was also having trouble with his fear of heights, to such an extent that even seeing someone up high on TV would cause him to feel faint. On several occasions, when approaching a high window or balcony, he actually passed out.

The incident that brought him to my office was typical. He had successfully (if tensely) driven over a big bridge in one direction. Yet coming back in the opposite direction, he actually had a frightening hallucination whereby the bridge seemed to grow longer and longer.

He sped up to try to get off the bridge but realized that he was posing a threat to other motorists as well as to himself. The risk of dying due to his fear reaction was clearly greater than the risk of falling off the bridge.

His level of motivation to change was high. He agreed to set aside a full day for our first session together. We worked for 2 hours in the morning and 3 hours in the afternoon.

Result: That very night he drove over a particularly high, narrow bridge with no problem! His passenger was amazed that this man showed none of the tenseness, sweating, or rapid breathing, etc. he had exhibited on other occasions.

That same evening he was at a party, chatting with friends out on a second-story balcony. He was actually leaning against the railing and didn’t realize until after he went into the house that he had done something the mere thought of which, only hours earlier, might have led him to faint.

I just did a follow up with this man over a year later. He is still crossing bridges more easily than he ever thought possible.

Some insights:
Helping this man make this change so rapidly and powerfully, totally motivated me. Soon others followed and it has just become typical for me to be able to help most severe phobia sufferers I work with to be free of their problem in a single day long session. Other fear and anxiety based challenges may take longer. Obviously I can't guarantee that your problem will disappear in a single session but it happens pretty regularly.

The other insight I've had in working with fears and phobias is that I understand these folks because I am one of them.

FAQ #2:

Q. Why haven't I heard about your techniques before?

A. Good Question. In every one of the many books I've read about fear, phobias and anxiety put out by the psychological community, there is literally no mention of NLP or hypnosis and certainly nothing about  Time Line Therapy™ or EFT!

For the "mainstream" psychotherapeutic community, it's all about "desensitization." "Desensitization" is basically forcing the client to "face the fear and do it anyway. " The other approach that's popular with the "mainstream" is prescribing drugs to numb a person out of their fear.

Alternatively we have a set of tools now that works dramatically, quickly, without dangerous side effects. You would think the therapy community would embrace them. They seem to be threatened by the idea of losing their weekly fee. The business and sports community seems to be much more open to NLP because they are always looking for the edge and they understand the concept of getting a return on investment.

FAQ #3:

Q: Who are your clients exactly?
A: Recently I realized that every one of my best clients, the ones I've enjoyed working with the most and who also got the best results from working with me the fastest, are dealing with issues of clearing underlying fear based beliefs and habitual patterns of thought and emotional triggers. Even those dealing with cigarette smoking or weight loss are usually grappling with some kind of deep fear. My clients are also willing and ready to take responsibility for their change. They can't stand being the way they are any more. They are motivated. They are also imaginative, sensitive, and able to visualize as well as to be in tune with their self talk and feelings. They also understand the cost of their fear and were willing to value my time and expertise.

They come from all walks of life and professions. I've worked with:

They've come to me for help with:

Fear of -  not being good enough, or smart enough, or talented enough to be successful.

Fear of success, fear of heights, fear of bridges,

Fear of -

going out in public, cold calling, taking tests, conflict, homework, death, driving, water, vegetables, members of the opposite sex, shyness, anger management issues, fear related habits like smoking, nail biting, anxiety eating, public speaking, singing in public, panic attacks, worry, anxiety, fear of confined spaces, spiders, mice, snakes, dentists, doctors, airplanes, sex, homework, fear of using a public toilet...

And many are also suffering from Anger, Sadness, Guilt, Shame and a whole host of self limiting beliefs and related behaviors or "programs."

You name it, somebody is afraid of it or struggling with it and suffering.

FAQ #4:

A: The leading edge techniques of NLP, Time Line, Ericksonian Hypnosis, & EFT go far beyond what conventional talk therapy is able to accomplish. Talk therapy is useful in many ways and helpful. However It operates under a different set of beliefs and philosophies that in my opinion limit it's effectiveness (e.g. "change takes a long time")

The process I use enables rapid immediate change. It is quite typical for me to assist someone with a severe phobia in a single day to walk away free from his or her fear. Psychotherapy often takes weeks and months to achieve any change. Even then, it is mostly in the realm of "forcing" yourself to "face the fear and do it anyway". The technique, called "de-sensitization" gradually exposes the client to the source of his or her fear. Not only does this take too long, in my opinion it carries with it the danger of re-traumatizing the client.

I worked with a psychotherapist once who had several severe phobias. After working with him for 2 hours in the morning and 3 hours after lunch, he was free for the first time in 35 years of the dread he'd always walked around with. I'm not sure if he was more relieved that he'd finally found help or upset that it wasn't in the form of "Psychotherapy."

Q: How is NLP and the Clear the Fear Process different from Life Coaching or Executive Coaching?

A: NLP and the process I use to help people Clear the Fear Fast address the underlying issues that might be causing the client to sabotage his or her success. If the person hasn't cleared those blocks, the assignments and accountability of a personal coach will be unfulfilled. Quite often after I work with a client they have cleared enough of their self limiting beliefs and behaviors to enable them to make great progress with a personal or executive coach.

In other words a personal coach may assign tasks for you to do that will lead you to achieving your goals. I help you to actually clear the stuff that would keep you from taking the action you know you "should" take but for various reasons don't. I also tend to work with most of my clients on an "as needed" basis rather than a set weekly appointment. I also do not usually charge by the hour. I charge a flat fee which includes follow up in person or by phone for 1, 3,  6 or 12 months.

Q: What type of Personality do you work best with and what is expected of me?

A: I have designed my Clear the Fear Fast program for people who are

1. Highly sensitive, creative, imaginative enough to be able to access the problem by simply thinking about it.
2. Sick and tired of being stuck in their old self destructive patterns and programs
3. Motivated to do whatever it takes to change
4. Willing to follow my suggestions
5. Willing to take at least one day off for our initial breakthrough session as well as commit to several 2 hour follow-up sessions.
6. Willing to "keep me in the loop" by checking in with me from time to time after our Foundation work is complete.
7. Understand and accept that my program is not covered by Health Insurance and that my fee is an investment in their future.

Q: For what type of person is this program NOT going to work?

A: Please know that I am quite selective in who I work with and I sometimes (gently) turn away people who aren't suited for this program and who won't get the results for which they would have signed up for (It wouldn't be fair to them or me).

This program is not for people who are:

1. Expecting to pay $75.00 for a one hour "miracle" cure. My program works fast and will give you a great ROI (return on investment) but it does require a certain level of financial and time commitment. I have packages available to fit most budgets. If my one-on-one program is not in your price range then I have many 1 day workshops and 3 day seminars that bring Rapid Change within any one's means.
2. So out of touch with their emotions that they can't discern what they are feeling. 
3. On heavy doses of medications that impair their ability to visualize or feel.
4. Expecting me to make the changes for them. Once I teach you how to change, you are responsible for practicing and using the techniques.
5. Too busy to honor their appointments or to do the reasonable tasks they've agreed to complete.

Another type of person I won't work with (without exception) is the chronic skeptic. This type of person is so committed to being a victim that they are less interested in real change and are looking for someone else to blame for their problems. A little skepticism is fine and healthy. I just don't have time for the person who just wants to prove themselves "right" even at the expense of their own health and happiness.

If you are one of these people, I gently and respectfully ask that you not call and I hope you understand why. We'll probably just not work well together and I wouldn't want you to waste your  time or money. Is that fair?

Q: What exactly is the Clear The Fear Fast™ program and what does it include?

A: It consists of two parts:

The Foundation Breakthrough program and the Follow-Up Support program.

Part One: The Foundation Breakthrough Process
Starts with a full day one on one session that is usually followed by up to three 2 hour sessions during first 30 days as required to Clear the Fear or other Pattern/behavior you want to change.

In this process we

• Crack the Code  - uncover and interrupt the old unconscious programming that is making you miserable.
• Clear the Cause - Dissolve the root causes and and de-program old negative anchors or triggers
• Create Choices - install positive resource anchors so that the old triggers lead to a different response.
• Program the Power out into your future for a better result.

Part Two: Follow-up and Reinforcement, Fine Tuning, Support: As needed (up to 3 hours per month) we meet in person or over the phone to reinforce the changes we've made as well as to use your  new tools and resources to easily and effortlessly rise to future challenges. Depending on which plan you choose I offer follow-up support for periods of  3,  6 or 12  months. Based on my experience with hundreds of clients it seems like there were two groups of people: the Phobic and everyone else.

As severe as they seem, Phobias are usually done in a single all day session. Most of my Phobia sufferers would turn down any follow up sessions because they felt they didn't need them. Everybody else seemed to need on-going support and reinforcement. They may have successfully cleared the issues that brought them to me but that seemed to set the stage for a few waves or "echoes" of other emotions that needed to be worked through. Other times it just seemed like life just naturally provides "tests" and we need a little help moving through them. I've also had a number of business people come to me for help with more personal issues once we cleared the blocks in their career area.
 

Q: What's the next Step?

A: If you have read through this FAQ section of my website as well as these important sections:

Client Testimonials

Foundation Breakthrough Process Outline

Coaching Packages

We set up a "Get Acquainted Call". At this point, between seminars, concerts, other personal appearances and ongoing work with my current clients, my availability is limited. As a result, I carefully choose the clients I work with. Although there is no charge for this "get acquainted" call, I will need you to secure your appointment with a credit card. My time is valued at $500 per hour so that if you miss your appointment you will be charged $250 for the half hour reserved for you.

In the interest of saving time, you will usually be asked to answer some specific questions in writing prior to our call.

Then if I choose to accept you as a client, you choose the plan that works for you  (see Coaching Packages) and we set an appointment schedule for your Foundation Breakthrough sessions.

If you are ready to take the next step go ahead and call my office at 203-495-8808.

Any other questions? Please jot them down so we can be sure to cover them in our initial chat.

Thanks for taking the time to consider working with me and changing your life.

- Mark Shepard

p.s. in case you haven't opted in yet to get your free mini-course "How To Stop Anxiety In 10 Minutes or Less Without Harmful Drugs or Endless Therapy" do it now! It could be all you need to feel great immediately!

More questions from anxiety and phobia sufferers:

Question: How is someone with agoraphobia or panic attacks in public supposed to come and see you if they can't leave their house? .

Answer: As far as agoraphobia and house calls, I absolutely would be willing to do a house call. I can also do a lot over the phone to help some one.

Question: Why do you charge so much when someone with agoraphobia can't work...

Answer: This is a pretty challenging question because no matter how I answer it your own beliefs about money and value and what is fair are going to be triggered. I'll do my sincere best to answer here. If it brings up other questions that's fine.

First of all I deliver a huge value. Take the woman who suffered from a bug phobia for 30 years. I helped her in a single day. Compare that to going to a therapy weekly for 30 years at $100 bucks a visit.. That works out to $150,000 so when you compare the $2,500 I charged her. it saved her a lot of money not to mention she got the result she wanted and can now go into any room in her house without her husband having to accompany her...She can drive home from work without being full of anxiety and terror that she might find a bug somewhere in her house.

Secondly the times when I have cut my fee to the bone to try to help someone who I felt sorry for because they had this problem and couldn’t work, strangely enough have been my absolute worst failures…It’s like the wizard of Oz seemed like such a prick to make Dorothy and her friends risk everything to get the broomstick of the wicked witch… but in their commitment and willingness to risk it all they found their healing…So at the risk of sounding less compassionate than I am, with a lot of agoraphobics there is some serious "secondary gain". They get something out of not being able to afford help…they get to feel sorry for themselves they get to feel helpless…They get to stay stuck in their house. I won’t work with anyone who is not willing to acknowledge the secret benefit their problem gives them….I don't know how to say that any more gently. Please hear that I am saying that with gentleness and compassion. I've been there.

Next please consider the reality of running a business. I have a family and employees and expenses and debts…I have to choose how to spend my time so that I can take care of my commitments. Should I  take a speaking engagement where I charge $3,500 or more for a one hour talk and where I could influence hundreds or thousands of people or recording a song where I could reach hundreds of thousands or even millions of people or spending a day with a client which is intense, emotionally, and intellectually demanding work…the bottom line is I have a right to be compensated for the value which I deliver (so do we all, so do you). I’ve also invested thousands and thousands of dollars in training, certifications, years of experience, advertising, marketing, not to mention hundreds of hours and thousands of dollars recording CD’s and writing and printing my Clear The Fear Home Study system etc.

Let me try to put it this way…

Let’s say you are suffering from agoraphobia and can’t leave the house…and let’s say somehow you managed to get the money together for me to come and work with you (that’s the equivalent task to Dorothy and the broomstick)…. let’s also assume that we can clear the problem in 10 hours or less. At my usual fee for local clients. That would be $5,000. (If it takes longer there is no further charge BTW).

Let’s say that because of the work we did together you were able to then go out and create the career of your dreams and you  started making $100,000 a year….was I over priced? or was it a reasonable investment? What if you started making only $25,000 per year after that $5,000 investment...wouldn't it still be worth it? What if that year you were able to go out and get a part time job for a non profit helping the homeless or protecting the environment or teaching kindergartners how to tie their shows or even picking up trash along the highway....and you only made $5,000 that first year...wouldn't it still be worth it? wouldn't you still be making more of a contribution to the world and yourself?

Ron Lewis, the author of “How To Succeed With Women” shared with me that he had agoraphobia and worked with an NLP practitioner. He now teaches workshops all over the world and has a growing internet empire that is literally bringing him millions…

Somehow he found a way to pay the price of admission. When I began to learn NLP I borrowed over $25,000 to attend trainings and to buy all the cd sets and books I could find on the subject. At the time I did not have any money. I had just declared bankruptcy. Yet I found a way (just like Dorothy and the Scarecrow, Tin Man and Cowardly Lion found a way).

I’m struggling to explain this to you because I know it seems so unfair when you want and need help...and because I want to help people…. and yet…if you really, really want help it can’t be free. There has to be a cost. Many holistic practitioners suffer endlessly because they don’t charge enough for their services. They don’t want to be “bad” people or because they feel sorry for their clients…ultimately they end up closing their offices and getting a day job doing something they hate (and not helping ANY one)because they didn’t stand up for their value.

The traditional medicine man in the tribe would require the hide of the white buffalo or a certain plant that you might have to walk
for days to find or your best horse…

All I know is that the people who are willing to do whatever it takes to pay my fee (and I have done payment plans BTW) and to not see my fee as a block but a necessary piece of the healing commitment, those people are the ones who make the fastest progress…