This week I’m talking with someone who knows exactly what it takes to shift people out of old habits and into new ways of thinking and behaving.

Yoke van Dam is a behavioural change coach, facilitator and leadership trainer with deep expertise in NLP, emotional intelligence, communication and sales. What I love about Yoke is her ability to take big, psychological concepts and translate them into practical tools leaders can actually use. She’s also got sixteen years of corporate and consulting experience, so she understands the reality of organisations, not just the theory.

In this conversation we unpack the real mechanics behind behavioural change: why one-off workshops rarely create breakthroughs, how to get results through repetition and follow-through, and what NLP looks like when it’s applied in the wild, not in a textbook. Yoke shares strong examples around reframing, language patterns, and dealing with difficult groups, plus a fascinating breakdown of how to create your own PR and position yourself as someone worth paying attention to.

If you’re a facilitator, coach, speaker or leader who wants people to actually change, not just nod along, this episode gives you the tools, language and structure to make that happen.

Key takeaways

• NLP techniques create new neural pathways, but they only stick through repetition
• Reframing language is incredibly effective in conflict and client conversations
• One-off workshops give insight, but long-term coaching creates transformation
• The facilitator’s role is to stay neutral, stay present and listen beyond the surface
• PR isn’t luck — it’s targeted outreach, relevance and credibility signals
• People won’t trust your pitch if they can’t find proof of you online
• Energy shifts when you go live on camera — structuring sessions around that matters
• You build a reputation by showing your work consistently, not waiting to be discovered

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Show notes for every episode at https://podcast.leannehughes.com

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