Ian Gilbert
"He was very good - a bit like Eddie Izzard on speed (i.e. he kept up a pretty fast stream of input). Lots of ideas came out - we even referred back to some of them at the recent twilight INSET! He ain't cheap - but I (who pays no bills!) reckon he's well worth it"
This is how a member of an online forum that we came across recently described Ian Gilbert after a visit to his school for an INSET day. We don't know what Eddie Izzard would make of it but it seems to be a fair description. (Although we quite like this extract from the TES online 'staffroom' forum, 'Yes I did find Gilbert excellent. I wish I could have heard everything but the annoying old school tie lot where sat behind me saying "well its the same old sh1t". I was dieing to say well stop teaching your same old sh1t and you would not have to sit through this.' Wonderful whoever you are Artaud!)
A quick look at more conventional 'fan mail' reveals other comments such as:
'The only keynote speaker I have ever listened to from the first word to the last'
'Ian Gilbert made me cry, both with laughter and with awe at the job we do'
'Ian Gilbert - superb, inspirational. Every staffroom should have one'
'Admin just been to tell me that you got 100% "ones" top evaluation, never been done before, for conference...'
And a recent one from an independent school in the north west:
'Please tell Ian just how fantastic we all thought his workshop was today. You were quite right, he's one of the best speakers I have heard and, in particular, offered practical strategies to improve teaching and learning rather than just woolly exhortations to do better. This will be one invoice I don't mind paying!'
And if it’s a short sharp session rather than a full day you are looking for what about this from a Science Subject Leaders course where Ian did the final 50 minute ‘send ‘em home happy’ address:
'Well, Ian, what can I say? What a star!! Thank you very much for the fantastic ‘finale’ to our conference. I am still reeling myself and have been relying on the other delegates reminding me of the plethora of ideas that you gave us all. They are already being used in schools. Here is some feedback from one Head of Science - “Did some of Ian Gilbert’s stuff with year 11 today... The kids really responded. It got us into a discussion about what lessons are like and I could not believe what I was hearing"'
After leaving the University of Durham in 1988 with a French degree and hepatitis from a year in Bordeaux, Ian embarked on what was known as a ‘Diploma in Entrepreneurial Management’ at the Durham University Business School.
Part of this year involved a series of workshops, which included a session entitled ‘The Psychology of Success’. This was something that made him think – perhaps for the first time ever. Despite success throughout his academic career (O-levels, A grades at A-level, Head Boy, Shiniest Shoes 1981) he now began to realise that there was more to life than waiting to be told what to do and doing it well.
Attitude, creativity, taking responsibility, genius, goal setting and much more – all the stuff that he had never been told before but was beginning to wish he had. More to the point, he began to formulate the idea of working with young people to take these ideas into schools around the country.
As is the case with wishes and problems, what you focus on grows and he was soon on the quest to find out as much as he could about success, motivation, creativity, learning and a whole range of related topics.
Meanwhile, back at work, the Diploma had also involved working in a management role on the docks in a Northern town where he seemed to be one of the few people with a tie, let alone a job.
After deciding that management life was not for him he decided to get himself into the world of advertising, something he managed by knocking repeatedly on doors throughout Newcastle until they gave up and let him in.
A couple of years spent writing advertising for clients including the National Garden Festival and Formica and then his career peaked with an advert in the Beano. After that he decided to move into teaching as a way of moving closer to his goal of working with young people to help them become more successful through improved thinking skills.
With a national shortage of languages teachers, especially male languages teachers, especially male languages teachers under the age of 80, he not only had a job for life but also first-hand experience of working to bring out the potential of keen young minds or at least teach them how to buy cabbages in a foreign language.
Whilst teaching he met a colleague in the staffroom who liked his ideas and helped him set up Independent Thinking Ltd – this was in 1993 and since then he has never looked back, apart from during the long school holidays when he has still been working. 
- For Ian's prices click here
- People who benefited from Ian have also enjoyed Roy Leighton
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