1. Essential Lifestyle Planning Facilitator Training - Day 1
Those attending should have completed Person Centered Thinking. It uses wall charts or table top activities and assumes that the trainer has made sure that the requirements for success are present. This format of the training will work very well if you have people who want to learn and have dealt with the basic requirements.
Some of the specific requirements:
The trainer has wall charts or will obtain/create them before the training
The room has wall space needed to post the wall charts, participants can move around and work comfortably in groups.
The trainer is comfortable with the process that follows –
The focus person meets the criteria for a focus person: has at least 2 “supporters present who will be comfortable participating in a discussion in front of a group and the “supporters” are people who like and admire the focus person, has provided completed information gathering sheets.
Remember – at the end of this day of training the participants will have completed a 1st plan. To be successful the trainer has to keep things moving. Get through the introductory slides quickly. The real learning happens when you stop talking and the participants start doing. If people have questions that will be answered by the training, respectfully ask them to hold the question for the end of the next day.
Developed by The Learning Community for Person Centered Practices
© The Learning Community for Person Centered Practices 2009

2. Purpose and Expectations
Introductions
Learning objectives
Outline of the day
Notes:
Purpose of today’s training is:
- Learn how to utilize Information Gathering questions to gain rich information useful in developing plans
- Use responses from information gathering to begin writing a first plan
Outline of the Day
9:30am Round of introductions with something good
9:45am Introduction-slides through the puzzle Seq
10:30am Sample Plan Katherine
10:45am Interview with Chris
11:30am Ask questions using notes and pre-recorded info gathering sheets
11:45am Move info gathering to wall charts
12:15pm Lunch
1:15pm Working/Not Working
2:00pm Move information to headings
2:45pm Questions
3:00pm Adjourn
General instructions:
The success of this day largely rests on who you selected as focus person and who their supports are. Having a discussion with the person in front of the group shows the participants one of the methods for gathering information, and helps to display how much useful information can be collected. If you have a great person who will give excellent information but slowly or with hesitation in front of a group, help that person get their charts done in advance and bring them on regular size paper. This is useful in that it provides the participants with richer information and shows how the information can be gathered via a face-to-face discussion and by asking supporters to fill out information gathering sheets.
Alternative - If the focus person is shy, s/he may opt to write information on wall charts instead of participating in a discussion in front of the class. When it comes time to write someone can transcribe them for the person if needed.
© The Learning Community for Person Centered Practices 2009

3. © The Learning Community for Person Centered Practices 2009
GROUND RULES
In the meeting
In the plan
In future efforts
Be Respectful
No clinical or human service speak
Use everyday language
Remember who plans are written with
No Jargon
Always review these ground rules.
Point out that to “be respectful” is the over arching rule. Let people know that regardless of where they are in learning this process they are unlikely to do harm if they keep this in mind. Also let them know that when something does not feel respectful and they are not sure what to do they should call a break, temporarily stop the process. If they cannot figure out how to have a respectful process do not plan with that person until you have an idea about a respectful way to proceed.
What are the exceptions to the no clinical or human service speak rule???
Clinical jargon/human services speak should only be used when describing medical issues or other such topics where there are not applicable everyday terms that can be used.
No Obsessing
5 minute rule
“Parking” issues that are not resolved
People are not broken
Good solutions are rooted in listening
No Fixing
© The Learning Community for Person Centered Practices 2009

4. © The Learning Community for Person Centered Practices 2009
Our mantra for the day…
A Plan is not an Outcome
A plan is NOT a list of goals or outcomes for the person. Outcomes on their own are not a plan, as they cannot be achieved unless those working with the person truly knows him/her.
A plan provides a positive description of the person, his/her relationships, and preferences.
A plan leads to Actions which involve outcomes created by the person and his her family/friends/supporters that are focused on what needs to be done to make sure things that are working continue and that things that are not working change.
Pay attention to where your audience, the participants in the training are in this process of moving from programs to supports – some are already moving down the path toward living plans. Give people credit and don’t reinforce blame culture. Ask -- To what extent are plans done to help people get lives or for compliance?
To what extent are the plans used in day to day support, are they a place to record learning?
How do the people doing the day to day work see the plans, are they seen as helpful, is their learning recorded, is what they write up as documentation seen by them as useful in their work or just for compliance?
Remind people that because a person centered plan is a promise, a mediocre person centered plan that is used is better than a great plan that just sits in a file.
Plans are written because administrative bodies require them in order to approve services but that needs to not be the only reason we write plans. Writing a plan does not change a person’s life -----implementing it does.
© The Learning Community for Person Centered Practices 2009

5. © The Learning Community for Person Centered Practices 2009
Moving from Service Life to Community Life
A Good Paid
Life
Community Life
Service
Life
‘Important to’ recognized
Focus on connecting,
building relationships
and natural supports
‘Important to’ present
To and for present
Closest people are
paid or family
Few real connections
Important for addressed
No organized effort to address important to
To and for present
Active circle of support
Included in community life
© The Learning Community for Person Centered Practices 2009

6. © The Learning Community for Person Centered Practices 2009
Moving from Service Life to Community Life
A Good But
Paid Life
Community Life
Service
Life
To and for present
Closest people are
paid or family
Few real connections
Important for addressed
No organized effort to address important to
To and for present
Active circle of support
Included in community life
© The Learning Community for Person Centered Practices 2009

7. 4 Stages of Planning and Implementation
1. Think about what you want to learn
2. Gather information
3. Develop a first plan
4. Use the plan and record what you learn
We are going to spend the next 2 days looking at the middle 2 steps.
When the training is over participants should feel comfortable going out and developing plans with other people.
Keep in mind that plans that work begin with thinking about what you want to accomplish; then figuring out the things you need to learn that will help you get there and how to learn them.
Plans that work are not annual events; they are part of an ongoing cycle of learning and acting on what you learn.
© The Learning Community for Person Centered Practices 2009

8. Think about what you want to learn
What do you want the plan to accomplish?
What are the things that you want to change?
What are the things that you want to maintain, keep the same?
How can the person with whom you are planning- best participate in the development of the plan?
How to make sure that the process feels respectful to the person with whom you are planning?
Who else needs to participate/agree for the plan to be implemented?
Have people looking at their manual throughout the training and encourage them to take notes. The smart trainer has spent some time in advance with the focus person and those who support her or him and has the questions on this slide answered in advance of the training.
Keep in mind (and point out) that in training it is not uncommon for the primary answer to the purpose of the plan question is to teach other people how to develop plans. (Because the smart trainer knows that the best focus people, with the best supporters often already have pretty good lives.) Also let people know that what is important is that people think before they plan. Obsessing over these questions is not helpful (and breaks the no obsessing rule.) The idea is that these questions get people thinking and guide the learning. Sometimes good answers to these questions have to wait until the plan is done.
Briefly illustrate what is meant by each question – The more work that the person and those closest to the person do, the more likely that the result will be a good plan that is implemented. So the question that those who are responsible for writing plans need to answer is “how can I support those around the person to be successful in contributing to planning and implementation?”
This training is part of the answer. It will give those who are close to people who use services some of the skills they need to be successful in contributing to planning and implementation
© The Learning Community for Person Centered Practices 2009

9. Things To Consider Before Gathering Information
Think about/consider:
the gifts and capacities of the person you are planning with
the commitment, gifts and capacities of those around the person you are planning with
Briefly illustrate what is meant by each question –
Learning who is close to the person by using a relationship map gives you an idea of who to talk to but not necessarily who to listen to.
The people you want to listen to have a personal connection with the person. We have found that when you ask people what they like and what they admire about a person (and the last time they had fun with the person) the answers can tell you whether or not there is a real personal connection.
Different people know different things because of when they are with the person and because of how they are with the person.
Those with a personal connection to the person know more about what is important to the person.)
The more work that the person and those closest to the person do, the more likely that the result will be a good plan that is implemented. So the question that those who are responsible for writing plans need to answer is “How can I support those around the person to be successful in contributing to planning and implementation?”
This training is part of the answer. It will give those who are close to people who use services some of the skills they need to be successful in contributing to planning and implementation
© The Learning Community for Person Centered Practices 2009

10. Questions To Consider Before Gathering Information
Always trying to help the person and those closest to the person to have valued roles
Who knows what?
What is the best way to get their information?
How will you sort out who to talk to from who to listen to
How can you best support the person and those closest to the person in doing this work?
© The Learning Community for Person Centered Practices 2009

11. Partnerships and experts
All good plans are done in partnership
Partnerships that work have agreed upon roles
When developing plans, it is helpful to think about roles from the perspective of content experts and process experts
Good plans are done in partnership:
Today we will illustrate one way to do this in partnership. On day 2 we will see other ways to have the partnership.
As we look at the different ways to start a plan you will see that each has a different set of roles, of expectations for the people involved
There are content experts and process experts:
One of the key distinctions is between content experts and process experts.
Those who know the details about what is important to and important for the focus person are content experts.
Those who know how to develop a plan are process experts.
What is your role ---- are you a content expert or a process expert?
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12. © The Learning Community for Person Centered Practices 2009
Content Experts
Know the details of:
Important to
Important for
Notes:
Content experts know details with regard to what is important to the person and what is important for the person.
The relationship map can help lead you to who the content experts are.
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13. © The Learning Community for Person Centered Practices 2009
Important to
What is important to a person includes only what people are “saying”:
with their words
with their behavior
When words and behavior are in conflict, listen to the behavior.
Notes:
This is the information Content Experts should know with regard to the focus person.
This is a review from Person-Centered Thinking. This should not take long to go over.
Consider asking the participants what Important to is in order to engage them early and jog their memories.
Important to includes:
Those things in life that matter the most to the person.
The things people cannot ---- or choose not ---- to live without
Things which, when present , are likely to contribute to a good day ---- or conversely , when absent, are likely to contribute to a bad day.
Those in this training should have already been through a day of looking at this so just remind them of the concepts
© The Learning Community for Person Centered Practices 2009

14. © The Learning Community for Person Centered Practices 2009
Important for
What is important for people, includes only those things that we need to keep in mind regarding–
Issues of health or safety
What others see as important to help the person be valued members of their communities
Notes:
This is the information Content Experts should know with regard to the focus person.
This is a review from Person-Centered Thinking. This should not take long to go over.
Consider asking the participants what Important for is in order to engage them early and jog their memories.
Important for includes:
Prevention of illlness health evals, checkups , routine medications, routine visits with medical personnel
Treating illness diagnosed conditions that require specific treatment
Promoting wellness emphasizes preventing illness and prolonging life, as opposed to emphasizing treating diseases
Environmental --- living in a safe place, walking in safe neighborhoods etc.
Emotional ---- safety related to verbal abuse, abusive relationships, grief counseling around loss, etc.
Physical safety ---- other risks to physical well being that may (or may not) be related to ability to discern risks, and to things such as traffic/navigational skills, foods we eat, poisons, etc.
What others see as necessary:
Social expectations
Cultural expectations
Legal Rules to follow
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15. © The Learning Community for Person Centered Practices 2009
Balance
Important to
for
Important to
for
Important to
for
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16. © The Learning Community for Person Centered Practices 2009
Process Experts
Understand HOW to develop plans with people
Are skilled at recognizing which person centered thinking tool is helpful and when
Understand how to formally develop a plan in a traditional way, as well as how to develop plans “backwards”
Notes:
Process experts are the plan facilitators.
They need to understand how to develop plans WITH people.
Process experts also when to use certain person-centered thinking tools (ex. Working/not working, donut, specific information gathering questions).
What is meant by developing a plan “backwards?”
© The Learning Community for Person Centered Practices 2009

17. Each of us want lives where we are
supported by & contribute to our communities
Have our
own dreams and our own journeys
Have opportunities to meet new
people; try new things; change jobs; change who we live with & where we live
We will developing a plan that focuses on the bottom 2 levels. If you are planning with someone who already has a good balance between what is important to and what is important for them, stop and think about whether or not an ELP is the best place to start. Perhaps one of the other person centered planning formats would make more sense. If they have a clear dream, why not do a PATH. If they have people in their lives who could be mobilized to support them over time, think about using MAPS to start a circle. Let people know that an ELP is often a very good place to start but for people with extensive support needs it is often not the best place to stop.
Process Expert needs to make a decision : ELP to put in place what does not exist in the first two levels, or to keep in place what does already exist in the first two levels, but quickly move to MAPS or PATH to help with the journey to the dream
Have what/who is important to us in everyday life; people to be with; things to do, places to be
Stay healthy & safe (on our own terms)
© The Learning Community for Person Centered Practices 2009

18. Tools for building Person Centered Descriptions
Communication
Chart
Matching Staff
Relationship Map
4 + 1 ?s
Learning Logs
Reputation
Notes:
Review from Person-Centered Thinking.
Some of these tools will be used throughout today and tomorrow. All are useful to planning as they help to gain a wealth of information.
Gathering Information:
Learning from the person:
Great Things about You
What you like to do (Favorite things/things you don’t like to do)
The best/worst weekday information sheet
The best/worst weekend information sheet
Positive Rituals survey
Learning from those who know the person:
“Unlimited Power” Questions
Two minute drill
Great things about this person
What s/he likes to do (Favorite things/things s/he doesn’t like to do)
Communication Chart (when the person does not use words to talk or communicates in other ways.
Learning from other information gathered about the person:
Is there information that a regulatory requirement dictates must be gathered?
Does an agency policy of funding source policy require certain administrative information be included in the person’s plan in order to provide funding for services? If so, have you collected it?
Working/
Not Working
Good Day/ Bad Day
Rituals
© The Learning Community for Person Centered Practices 2009

19. Person Centered Description
Like and Admire
Important for
Important to
Person
Centered
Description
Notes:
All the tools are useful to developing a description.
They help us to discover:
Great things about the person
What is important to him/her
Instructions and characteristics of supports, and
Things to figure out
Instructions for Supporters
Things to Figure Out
Characteristics
of Supporters
© The Learning Community for Person Centered Practices 2009

20. What needs to stay the same?
Learning Wheel
What needs to stay the same?
What needs to change?
Person Centered
Description
Action
Planning
PCT Tools
Notes:
Remember good plans are not to be written, just to be put into a file. They are to be used, revised and used some more.
Today we will build a person-centered description with our co-trainer. We will be looking at how to begin, starting with listening and then moving to organizing and synthesizing what we have learned to develop a first plan.
The “PCT Tools” phase uses Conversation packets are used to facilitate information gathering (RITUALS, GOOD DAY / BAD DAY, REPUTATION, COMMUNICATION CHART, RELATIONSHIP MAP). This is where you use the GUESS, ASK, WRITE skills from PCT training.
After you have collected information, you will use the first PCT skill of Sorting Important to and for, by writing it down in an organized manner in a person’s description. This will also include matching staff --- writing down the characteristics of people, and communication charts.
These two days of training primarily focus on the first two steps ---- Implement and Assess use pct tools also (learning logs, questions, wms/dms)
Tomorrow we will use the description and the working/not working tool to help us determine what needs to stay the same and what needs to change. This will help us to develop an Action Plan that could be implemented and a plan that puts us on the path to greater learning.
Implementation
& Learning
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21. © The Learning Community for Person Centered Practices 2009
7 questions that you should be able to answer for each person you support
What is important to the person?
What is important for the person?
Is important for being addressed in the context of what is important to?
Is there a “good” balance between important to and important for?
What does the person want to learn, what else do we need to learn?
If the person is to get the balance described and we are to learn:
What needs to stay the same (be maintained or enhanced)?
What needs to change?
When we are finished with the training tomorrow we will have found the answers to each of these questions, and recorded them in a way that is easy for the reader to understand.
And, whenever you have developed a plan that you are going to use to support someone) look at these questions and review the plan for the answers. If the answers are not there or are not clear we and/or you have some more work to do.
By developing a person centered plan with someone, you want to make sure that these seven questions are answered somewhere in the plan.
© The Learning Community for Person Centered Practices 2009

22. Lets look at a sample plan.
Direct the participants to where a sample plan is located in their training packet. This will give them an idea as to what a plan looks like.
Don’t spend much time going over it as they will be developing a first plan today.

23. © The Learning Community for Person Centered Practices 2009
First plan criteria
It describes what has been learned about –
what is important to the person, and
what others need to know or do to
support the person
It is better than what you had
Notes:
A paradox -The better the first plan, the less likely it will be implemented and used. If one person collects everything that people know and puts it into a plan they have created a plan that will make an initial difference but will not be used over time.
First plans should be” good enough” and create a framework for learning.
Tell people what “good enough” means by reviewing first plan criteria.
© The Learning Community for Person Centered Practices 2009

24. © The Learning Community for Person Centered Practices 2009
First plan criteria
It will do no harm -
to the important relationships that the person has; and
does not gloss over important issues of health and safety
It reflects a commitment -
to act on what has been learned; and
to continue to learn
Emphasize the importance of learning about relationships and that a good plan should seek to maintain and enhance relationships. Give an example of how efforts to do good in one area can do harm here unless we pay attention.
© The Learning Community for Person Centered Practices 2009

25. Use the next ten slides to describe for people how information is moved from the information gathering format to the actual plan. Tell them that they will use these slides to inform themselves and their group of how and where to move information. Review each of the slides BRIEFLY, just so they get the idea, and are familiar with how to use these handout pages.
For each of the following slides the information gathered through these questions on the left is used to complete/record information on the sections of the plan shown on the right. Remember, we use the GUESS, ASK, WRITE approach. If you don’t know for sure ASK the contents experts --- the person, their family and team members.
Participants may refer to the “A Checklist for Developing a Plan” handout if they have any questions.
MIKE --- Logistics instructions will need to include the numbers of these slides as full page handouts, so that the audience can read the full thing

26. Introduction – Great Things about the Person should list what the person thinks is great about them and what other people like and admire about him/her.
It should list things that we might like or admire about anyone of roughly the same age.
It should not include things that we only say about people who need support or is “faint praise.”
It should use the same type of language we use to introduce new friends and neighbors.
Where there are more than 6 or so items listed, related items should be grouped to make it more likely that they all will be read.

27. What is Important to the Person – This section describes what the person perceives as being important to him or her. This section represents the person’s perspective.
It must not include items that others think should be important to the person (these are things that are important for the person and may be sued in the “support” section).
It should only include those things that the person “tells” us are important (with words or behavior).
These should include what the person views as important in: relationships, things to do, places to be, rituals and routines, rhythm or pace of life, items to have available, other things which are likely to contribute to the presence of more good days than bad days.
Keep an eye out to make sure that this is what is important to does not include things that are important for the person and not important to them. Make sure that it includes what should be absent as well as what should be present in the person’s life.

28. Keep an eye out to make sure that this is what is important to does not include things that are important for the person and not important to them. Make sure that it includes what should be absent as well as what should be present in the person’s life.

29. What Others Need to Know or Do to Support – This section of the plan clearly describes what people who provide support are expected to do so that the person is likely to have more good days. This section describes what others need to know and do to:
So the person has what is important to and important for him/her
To ensure that what is important for the person is being looked at in the context of what is important to the person, there is balance between important to and important for.
In addition:
This section needs to be written with sufficient detail so that those responsible for providing the support will get it right.
Where there are four or more items that are similar, use one statement to introduce a ‘theme’ followed by bullets and detains. Use blank lines to separate distinct thoughts.
With What is Important to the Person - Keep an eye out to make sure that this is what is important to does not include things that are important for the person and not important to them. Make sure that it includes what should be absent as well as what should be present in the person’s life.

30. With What is Important to the Person - Keep an eye out to make sure that this is what is important to does not include things that are important for the person and not important to them. Make sure that it includes what should be absent as well as what should be present in the person’s life.

31. As people fill this out remind them -
This is where you get to record not only what people need to know to do for the person to get what is important to them but also the things you feel are important for the person. Sometimes what others need to Know is not enough. Make sure you ask “what do people need to do” to make sure this happens?
For example, it isn’t enough to know that Karrie gets upset if small children are around her. What should they do to make sure she isn’t in this situation, or what to do if she is around children.
Be sure to include what needs to be absent from the person’s life.

33. What Other People Need to Know or Do to keep the Person Healthy and Safe – This section should include:
Information about the health professionals involved in the person’s life
Information about medication and side effects that the person has experienced or could experience.
This is a tricky section when doing training. You must model respect but you also want people to see that issues of health and safety are dealt with in the planning process. Where the focus person has issues that can be dealt with in a respectful way, do so here. Where some or all of the issues cannot be dealt with respectfully in this setting tell people that. Always show them examples from other plans that illustrate how these issues are dealt with.
Staying healthy and safe questions should be added to one of the conversation packets. We need to ask Bill Allen to do this.

34. Ditto these questoins being added to the conversation packet --- probably best belong in the Conversations with Family and Supporters pack.

35. Things to Figure Out – This section is a running list of questions that need to be answered or issues to be resolved. It is intended to help:
Keep track of issues people shouldn’t forget
Write down questions that must be answered, but shouldn’t stand in the way of getting the “first plan” written
Think about what could help in complex or complicated issues.
MIKE ---- we do not have one of these filemaker type slides for the Characteristics of People who support me best page. It might be a good idea to create one.

36. for more information go to:
or contact:
Michael Steinbruck
Colleen McLaughlin
© The Learning Community for Person Centered Practices 2009