Conversation Techniques course
In this Conversation Techniques course you practise steering, listening and probing. You learn to handle resistance, stay in control and steer conversations towards your objective.
NRTO quality markFree cancellation up to four weeks before the start, so feel free to book now.
In brief. Conversation Skills is a classroom course lasting 2 days. You can take it in Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague and Utrecht, among other locations, or online, in a group of no more than 8 participants. The price is € 1250,- excl. VAT per participant, including course materials, lunch on location and a certificate of attendance. For a team or department we also run this course in-company.
- Immediate grip on any conversation
- Practising with realistic real-world situations
- Turning resistance into connection
- Personal feedback in a small group
- Insight into what is going on beneath the surface
Your trainer: Mieke, Rob, Michaela or Christy 1.252 evaluations in total, average score 8,9. View the trainers
In conversations with colleagues, clients or your team: do you want to get to the heart of the matter, stay in control and bring the other person with you? With the right conversation techniques, you consciously steer every conversation towards your objective, even when emotions run high or resistance arises.
Description
In the Conversation Techniques course you work on the skills you need to conduct conversations purposefully. You learn how to get to the heart of the matter, how to keep the conversation on track when emotions run high and how to make your point without losing sight of the other person.
What the Communication Skills course is all about how you communicate, the focus here is on what you want to achieve in a conversation and how to work towards that deliberately. You will gain insight into the communication process, into verbal, non-verbal and paralinguistic signals, and into what is at play beneath the surface of a conversation. You will use McClelland's iceberg theory as a framework for better interpreting behaviour, beliefs and emotions.
The course is mainly practical in its set-up. You practise conversational techniques, simulate recognisable situations and receive immediate feedback. You are also introduced to a number of models that help you understand conversations better and influence them more effectively. In this way you build up a set of techniques that you can apply straight away in your own working practice.
Topics
During this course you will work on the following topics:
- Basic communication: the communication process, common pitfalls and the verbal, non-verbal and paralinguistic sides of a conversation.
- Steering skills: clarifying your objective for the conversation and deliberately choosing a strategy and technique, for example in bad-news conversations or feedback situations.
- Listening and conversation skills: active listening, summarising, asking follow-up questions, reflecting and asking open questions.
- Relationship and content: what is going on beneath the surface of a conversation, and how do you deal with it?
- Connecting with the person you are speaking to: having an eye for frame of reference, experience and emotion, and turning resistance around constructively.
- Dealing with emotions and resistance: tension and respond calmly and purposefully in difficult situations.
- McClelland's iceberg theory: as a framework for better interpreting and influencing behaviour, beliefs and needs.
Result
After this course you are aware of your own qualities and pitfalls, and you know what impact they have on a conversation. You steer conversations towards the goal you have in mind, and you keep or regain control when necessary.
You recognise resistance in yourself and in the other person, and you know how to deal with it constructively. You also listen more effectively, with an eye for the other person's experience and frame of reference.
You see through your own communication patterns and their effect on others, you use targeted conversation techniques to achieve your objective, you stay in control even when emotions or resistance run high, you listen more closely, ask better follow-up questions and prevent misunderstandings, and you handle difficult conversations. Such as feedback or bad-news conversations. With more calm and clarity.
Target audience
This course is suitable for anyone who regularly holds conversations and wants to become more effective at them. You will probably recognise yourself in one or more of these points:
You want to get more out of your questioning technique, you want to listen better to the other person's expectations and interests, you want to gain insight into mutual influence during conversations, you are looking for techniques for specific conversation situations, such as a bad-news conversation, a confrontation or a feedback moment, you want a conversation to run smoothly, even when emotions run high, you want to communicate more clearly and avoid misunderstandings.
Whether you are a manager, adviser, project worker or a professional in another role: if conversations are an important part of your work, this course is a good fit.
Teaching method
During this course the focus is on doing is central. You practise with recognisable conversation situations from your own working practice, receive immediate feedback and get to work with techniques you can apply straight away.
The structure is varied:
- A intake beforehand, in which you determine your personal learning objectives.
- Short theory blocks with practical models, such as the McClelland's iceberg theory, as a framework for interpreting behaviour and communication.
- A lot practising in role plays and simulations, based on situations you bring in yourself.
- Reflection and feedback from both the trainer and the other participants.
We work in a small group of no more than eight participants, so that there is room for personal attention and everyone gets enough time to practise. The atmosphere is safe and positive: making mistakes is allowed, because that is what you learn most from.
Prior knowledge
You do not need any specific prior knowledge. It does help if you regularly have conversations in your work or private life and are keen to practise actively. An open attitude and a willingness to look at your own communication will help you most.
Comments
No specific comments.
Practical information
- Number of days
- 2 days
- Course times
- from 10 am to 5 pm
- Teaching hours
- 12 hours
- Education level
- Suitable for all levels
- Preparation time
- None
- Included
- Course materials and lunch on site
- Certificate
- At the end of the course you will receive a certificate of attendance
- Cancel
- Free up to four weeks before the start (cancellation terms)
Language
The course is given in Dutch as standard. The trainer speaks English. English-language course materials can be used. If at least 3 participants register, the course can also be given entirely in English.
In-company
Would you like to organise this training for a whole group or several groups? This can be cost-effective. For example, we can tailor the content entirely to your organisation, and training a whole group is also cheaper.
Are you looking at large numbers of participants or a complete academy? That involves a great deal. Consider planning and communication, for example, or identifying and agreeing the objectives and content of the training. Or differences in level, feedback mechanisms and safeguarding. Fortunately, Learnit has extensive experience in this field (more than 25 years) and we are happy to help you through this process.
Request a quote More about Conversation Techniques in-company
All start dates
2 training days. Confirmed dates first, then in order of date.
- Tue 10 & Wed 11 November 2026Certain to go ahead Rotterdam · 10:00–17:00Free cancellation until 13 October Enrol
- Wed 25 & Thu 26 November 2026 The Hague · 10:00–17:00Free cancellation until 28 October Enrol
- Thu 17 & Fri 18 December 2026 Online · 10:00–17:00Free cancellation until 19 November Enrol
- Thu 17 & Fri 18 December 2026 Eindhoven · 10:00–17:00Free cancellation until 19 November Enrol
- Thu 28 & Fri 29 January 2027 Groningen · 10:00–17:00Free cancellation until 31 December Enrol
- Thu 28 & Fri 29 January 2027 Zwolle · 10:00–17:00Free cancellation until 31 December Enrol
- Thu 11 & Fri 12 February 2027 Amsterdam · 10:00–17:00Free cancellation until 14 January Enrol
- Thu 11 & Fri 12 March 2027 Arnhem · 10:00–17:00Free cancellation until 11 February Enrol
- Wed 26 & Thu 27 May 2027 Utrecht · 10:00–17:00Free cancellation until 28 April Enrol
- Thu 5 & Fri 6 August 2027 Rotterdam · 10:00–17:00Free cancellation until 8 July Enrol
No suitable start date? Send us a date request, and we'll look at the options together.
This course by city
This course for your team?
Plan your own group on a date that suits you, at your office, at our premises or online. We tailor the content to your day-to-day work, and training a whole group is cheaper than individual bookings.
- Your date and location
- Tailored content
- Multiple groups or an academy are also possible
- More than 25 years' experience
The trainers for this course
Ratings from participants after completing their course, across all courses by this trainer.
Mieke
Trainer in conversation techniques and train-the-trainer 8,8 from 386 evaluations
Rob
Trainer in communication and leadership 8,6 from 346 evaluations
Michaela
Trainer communication and personal development 9,1 from 264 evaluations
Christy
trainer in communication and leadership 9,2 from 256 evaluationsWhat others say about this course
Conversation Techniques course: average 8.5 from 79 reviews
“A very pleasant, practical training course with plenty of room to practise with our own cases. Saar listened very well, has an open attitude, gave very good feedback and valuable tips that we could put to use straight away. She also created a nice, open atmosphere. Excellent! The use of videos was very valuable too.”
"This course is certainly to be recommended. During the course you are given various tools that are very easy to apply both professionally and privately. After this course I became more aware of how to conduct a conversation properly, whatever kind of conversation it is."
“I found the content of the course very good. The trainer addressed all the cases and went into each one individually. The feedback given was received very positively.”
“Very enjoyable course, extremely instructive. I was lucky to end up in a nice group, which does make a difference.”
"Do you run into difficulties when it comes to communication? And do you want to develop yourself further in this area, so that you feel stronger in certain situations? Then the Conversation Techniques course is the right one. You learn to deal with situations you find difficult and gain new insights into how best to communicate. It gave me a lot of new and valuable insights."
“Tailor-made course, matching your learning objectives!”
“' An instructive and interesting course, in which you learn how to open a conversation, for example a bad news conversation.'”
“I took the course on 15 and 29 March 2012 in The Hague. A very good course with a great many exercises. The course material was well and comprehensibly worked out. It was a pleasant course. I learned a lot from it. The location was also very easy to reach. I have already scheduled my next course.”
“The course material was expertly alternated with practical exercises. The trainer conveys the material to the participants in a professional and enthusiastic way. Because of the small number of participants, everyone had plenty of opportunity to take part. A course I would recommend.”
“Good preparation, good content, well delivered.”
“A very clarifying and useful course for learning to understand conversations or to conduct conversations in different ways. Learning to understand and become aware of what is happening or why something is happening. On top of that, it is a very pleasant and enjoyable interactive course that will definitely be worth your while.”
“A bespoke course aimed at providing practically applicable tools for various communication issues.”
“Very professional and practice-oriented. The tailored approach ties in with your daily work.”
“An inspiring course with a great deal of your own input, so that you can go on to apply it in practice.”
"I found it a worthwhile course. Easy to put into practice."
“I found the course days very pleasant and instructive. Recommended and worth repeating.”
“I thought it was a good session, instructive and at a good pace. Sufficient attention was paid to the topics we had asked about, and time was taken for them. The trainer was also good, calmly explaining the topics we wanted to discuss. Thank you, Marco Schmidt, Reintegration Work Supervisor”
"The Learnit course above all made me aware of the differences between good and less good ways of communicating and how this leads to behavioural change. This has a positive influence on and effect on customer friendliness, service to others and ultimately on overall cooperation and improved relationships."
“This course provides many practical tools that can be applied straight away. Continuing to practise is important, though.”
“You learn to handle different types of conversation in a very enjoyable, relaxed way. There is a good deal of practice with the many kinds of conversations that exist. Because the exercises are filmed, you get a clear picture of what goes well and what goes less well when it is played back later.”
“From a general point of view, this course made an excellent link with the specific tasks for which we wanted to take it.”
“This course was very instructive. The lines of communication with Learnit are very short, excellent.”
“It is an instructive course. The information you receive suits you as a person. During the lessons this is further refined to what you need. After the course you become more aware of what you are doing and of what is said during a conversation.”
"The professionalism of the course leader (Roeli), the attention paid to personal learning objectives and the connection between participants meant that the conversation techniques course was experienced as highly positive."
“An enjoyable and above all educational course that helps you improve your communication. Becoming aware of what you say and processing (in the right way) the communication you receive. Definitely recommended for anyone who wants to develop themselves.”
“The course gave me insight into why I hold conversations the way I do and what I can do to break these patterns, and which techniques I can then use to become a better conversation partner.”
“I had initially signed up for a different course (Interview Techniques). During a conversation with Learnit Training, it turned out that this course also matched my needs well. They had judged that correctly. We were a small group, which meant the course could be tailored closely to our learning objectives. The trainer was very flexible; she adapted to our answers to questions. You could feel that she wanted to help you move forward. In my view she has a great deal of knowledge and expertise. I thoroughly enjoyed her sessions; she inspired me.”
“Practising the group conversations gives good insight into what works and what the practical pitfalls are.”
“Very useful course with theory well applied in practical exercises!”
"Over the past few months we at FMHaaglanden have been inundated with courses and training. It took me a lot of effort to get motivated again for this course. Once there, I was carried along by the trainers' enthusiasm, which made it an instructive course that flew by as well!"
“The quality of the course was excellent, with plenty of attention for your own learning objectives. The trainer is exceptionally knowledgeable. Thanks to the many practical exercises and immediate feedback based on video recordings, I learned a great deal in two days. Recommended for anyone who wants to improve their conversation techniques.”
“This was a course that stays with you. After a section of theory, you as a participant go straight into practice by working with your own examples. There is plenty of scope for receiving and giving feedback, and the trainer makes sure this happens in a respectful and safe way. A good foundation for anyone who wants to explore their stronger and weaker points in terms of conversation skills!”
“An organisation that wants to teach a way of communicating in an open and honest manner without damaging people. I found it very pleasant.”
"Our trainer Steff was truly excellent! His approach is very refreshing and inspiring. The content was good."
“The course was focused on practice, which made it very good. Everything else was well organised too and I can certainly recommend this course!”
“Very instructive!”
“It is a tailor-made course and highly applicable in practice!”
"It was a thoroughly enjoyable course. The training was delivered with great enthusiasm and it was a pleasant setting. We were in a group of 3 participants, which worked very well for me. As a result, there was more scope to respond to your needs and provide personal guidance. We were able to cover a lot of topics. It was a good combination of theory and practice."
"Recommended for everyone."
"Very good impression, experienced trainer and a good lunch"
“A useful training course in which the enthusiastic and knowledgeable trainer combines theory and practice well.”
“An excellent course that matched my needs as a participant. The material was covered by an expert trainer in a quiet, easily accessible location. The interactive approach means the content is adapted to the participant's needs.”
“Plenty of attention and space to learn (from each other) and gain new insights. Very good to go home after the course with enough practical tools.”
“Professional and customer-focused!”
“A lively course geared to the participant and their needs, with plenty of practice, so the day flies by and you learn a great deal without feeling that you are cramming.”
“The course is definitely to be recommended. Beforehand you can pass on your learning objectives during a brief telephone conversation with the trainer. All your objectives are then covered. The trainer teaches in a very enjoyable way, with structure but without it feeling imposed in any way. Input from participants is greatly appreciated. Presenting in front of the camera seems daunting at first, but it is very instructive and ultimately great fun too. As well as being very instructive and readily applicable, I also found the days very enjoyable. A shame that it is over. Fortunately I still have my course material with my notes, and the important points are still firmly in my head.”
"The course boosts your self-confidence. You learn to conduct a conversation to the best effect, and you can also bring difficult conversations to a proper conclusion."
“A highly professional organisation with excellent trainers who have solid experience and explain things well.”
“Leary's Rose, extremely useful! Once you understand that, communicating is a lot easier.”
“The basic skills of conversation technique. Explained in a compact way. And practised intensively straight away in a small group. You really do get your turn. You take skills away from this course that you can apply immediately.”
Training formats
Classroom
2 days€ 1250,-- Pleasant venue with a good trainer
- Small groups
- Inspiring and motivating
In-company
Bespoke trainingOn request- 100% for your group
- Bespoke training
- At your place or ours
Workshop
Up to 4 hours for groupsOn request- Suitable for events
- Interactive and inspiring
- Large groups too
Private training
At our place or yoursOn request- 100% just for you
- Achieve a lot in little time
- Whenever you want
Frequently asked questions
Can I cancel free of charge?
Yes. Up to four weeks before the first day of the course you can cancel free of charge, without giving a reason. You then receive a credit note or, if you have already paid, a refund. If you cancel later, you pay part of the course fee: 25% between four and two weeks before the start, 75% in the two weeks before it and 100% in the final week. Moving to another start date is free of charge up to two weeks before the start, after that 50%. Sending a colleague in your place is always possible. Read the cancellation terms.
Who is the Conversation Techniques course suitable for?
Which conversation techniques do you learn during the Conversation Techniques course?
Do you receive a certificate after the Conversation Techniques course?
Is prior knowledge required for the Conversation Techniques course?
What is the approach of the Conversation Techniques course?
What is the difference between Learnit's Conversation Techniques course and its Communication Skills course?
When should you choose the classroom Conversation Techniques course instead of a book or online videos about conducting conversations?
How do I know whether I will really communicate differently in practice after the Conversation Techniques course?
Can I take the Conversation Techniques course if I am introverted or find it difficult to practise in a group?
What is McClelland's iceberg theory and why do you use it in the Conversation Techniques course?
How can I best prepare for the Conversation Techniques course to get the most out of it?
What does the Conversation Techniques course cost and how long does it take?
You can find the current price at the top right of this course page, along with the schedule, location and delivery format. For in-company or bespoke courses we are happy to provide a quotation on request.
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Guaranteed to run: Tue 10 & Wed 11 November 2026 in Rotterdam
This date already has enough participants. Free cancellation up to four weeks before the start, so you can secure a place now.