In January 2019, I made a bad financial decision.
The reason I’m sharing this with you is in the hope that you don’t make the same mistakes I did.
From my experience, I would love for you to take something away which will help you make a balanced choice when signing up for any coaching, courses or mentoring.
Everything I’ve written contains my views and opinions based on my own experience on the program “Thinking into Results” produced by Proctor Gallagher Institute. Specifically, I’ll refer to my experience of the course and program as being offered by Dr. Nana Jokura, an independent consultant of PGI.
How I came across Thinking Into Results offered by Proctor Gallagher Institute
Personal development has been a key area of learning of mine for many years, and when I started gaining knowledge about money management. I read many books, watched a range of videos available online, and learned about some of those people who were respected in the personal development fields. Coming across the offering of the “Thinking Into Results” program, it had a legacy associated to it from one of these great educators I had read about and watched, so the course felt like it had some history, value and authority. This course is exclusively offered by independent consultants who run the course as part of their own business, and are responsible for their own coaching practice.
From our first introduction call, Nana Jokura confirmed the fee for attending her offering of the program would be $9950 paid fully up front, and this would allow me to take part in 12 months of this mastermind/coaching program. It was emphasised that any money handed over was non-refundable and was supplied a contract to be signed agreeing to those terms. As with many businesses driving sales, the focus was on time-limited pricing; the importance to sign up immediately; and focus on what you could be missing out on. Outlining that the price would nearly double if this offer wasn’t utilised was also used to drive a fast decision.
With persuasion, I signed up for the program, paying in full, without seeing the course content or full detail of the offering from Nana Jokura.
What “Thinking Into Results” contained
In addition to the program total fees, we were encouraged to buy the course book (approx.. $90+ dollars). Within it are concepts and exercises that use the idea of repetition to imprint on our subconscious minds and thereby make easier the confidence in your goals, following up from support material we had access to in the form of 12 online videos.
When I did get access to the material the day after signing up, I found that the personal coaching offered by Nana Jokura was a weekly call with the other students, and we could have 1:1s for 15 minutes with her if we wished, with additional access to her via Whatsapp. However, it was made clear that she would become less and less available outside of the weekly calls as she was becoming too busy.
At this point, it didn’t feel like the program was quite the value for money I had expected.
My particular circumstances during the course
At the time of signing up, my mental state was compromised, trying to find solutions to life problems. Around 7 days after signing up on the program, I had a mental breakdown caused by acute stress and was sectioned for 3 weeks in hospital for recovery.
Due to this very unique circumstance, within days of this event, and over multiple messages, calls and conversations over the months afterwards, we requested a full refund for the course as my ability to take part was limited, and the signup occurred during a period of high stress and mental instability. These refund requests were denied by Nana Jokura every time, and was also denied again when the issues were raised by a third party complaints company.
Over the few months after my discharge from hospital, I attended a few of the group calls and tried my best to take part. However, due to my experience, I just could not engage with the consultant. With no compassion, understanding or embodiment of the program teachings shown from Nana Jokura, it meant that I was unable to engage in the material or take on the teachings. I didn’t feel that the program offered to me offered any duty of care, or truly wanted the student to succeed on the course, or consider their best interests. From reading and researching in the subsequent months after signing up, it became apparent that many students are disappointed by Thinking Into Results (TIR) but are encouraged by their coaches to persist, hoping they will one day believe in the offering.
Prior to sharing my experience publicly, I decided to reach out to the Nana Jokura to check her current business policies to see if there has been any change since my experience. Of course, one thing which has changed in those 2 years was my online presence, which I believe determined the response I got on this final occasion.
In emails that followed, I was offered my full refund (with admin fees removed initially then this was reversed) from Dr Jokura, but only in exchange for signing a legal non-disclosure agreement detailing that she nor I could discuss each other businesses, products, services or past conversations/interactions on any public domain or to others. This indeed confirmed that the business is still very much run with the no-refund policy for students at time of writing.
I DID NOT sign any such NDA agreement (therefore not allowed my full refund either as it was exclusively tied to signing a NDA contract when I contacted her two years later) as I wished to share my experience with others for a balanced view of positive and potential negative experiences.
My final thoughts
I do not believe the course is the problem for lack of quality, but rather than the consultants are focussed on getting a volume of signups for the program. My experience, and that I’ve read of others, suggests that there is no mechanism to ensure that the program is right for the student, or that a coaching experience worthy of the high ticket cost to the student. Particularly, with the legal framework documents of no refunds under any terms, it seems to not allow for those very rare circumstances where a more humane approach to business should be applied.
In my research, I also found that the same 12 week coach/mentorship can have fees ranging from $3-$15k+, with the volume of 1:1 coaching, group coaching, handouts, books and determined by the consultant who runs it.
Ultimately, I hope you are able to take a few small things away from my experience.
- Don’t be pressured to sign up for anything, especially when it’s quite expensive, due to the offering being time limited. The course/mentor/program/product will be made available again. You will not miss out on what’s right for you
- With regards to this particular program, Thinking into Results, you may find the same thing available elsewhere with a different consultant for a better price. If you are interested in the “Thinking Into Results” program, then shop around for consultants offering it. Prices vary vastly, and based on my own experience, more expensive doesn’t mean it’s a better offer. Find someone you resonate with. Take time to research. Sign up at a price which works for you.
- Understand fully any courses or program structures before signing up or exchanging money for it. Ensure you are getting full value giving up your resources and time ahead.
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21 thoughts on “My appalling experience with Proctor Gallagher Institute “Thinking Into Results” course with Dr Nana Jokura”
Seems like it’s a bit of a con to me. Will stay well clear of these kinds of courses. Unless I’m sure. Thanks for sharing this valuable information.
Very helpful thank you darling
I can appreciate your situation. The one thing that came to mind is that you signed a non disclosure agreement and yet here you are posting about your experience on the internet. It’s just my opinion, but this says a lot about your integrity. Just saying.
Hi Mel – just to confirm again (it mentions it many times in the blog post) I DID NOT sign any NDA agreements and refused their refund that was exclusively tied to signing a NDA. If I had signed the NDA it would have been a legal contract not allowing me to speak up, which I refused and declined. I am therefore able and completely free to share my story, as no such agreements were signed. I am sharing my story as my integrity means that I wish to prevent someone else suffering rather than be “paid off” to keep quiet and use my platform to allow others to hear an opposite side of working with a PGI consultant. I wish you the best on your journey ahead and for your time to read and comment.
Did you read the article!?
…did you miss the part where he says he did not sign the agreement and did not get a regund?
In my situation, correct – I refused to sign a NDA in order to get a refund so I instead decided to let people know about what happened to me and they can make a decision to use PG Institute or not for education.
Looks like Rick packs blog is gone!
I think with your ATTITUDE you should have stayed with the course longer.
Hi Michelle – Yes, it does seem to bring out both sides of people – good and bad. Thanks for the feedback and I wish you the best ahead on your own journey.
Thank you for your deep integrity, that you chose to be able to speak about your experience, rather than take the refund (personal gain) but be unable to warn people. As you write, there is “no mechanism to ensure that the program is right for the student” – instead there is pressure to BUY NOW or you will lose out. Thank you also for the link to Rick Pack’s blog. For anyone coming here, I suggest you read this as well. There is lots to learn for most people, in terms of not being held back by inner blocks, and in terms of listening to what one wants and going for it. However, this program is far from the only way to get there. In fact, for many people the program may be a way of losing a bunch of money – not what they want. Rick Pack makes clear that he was caught by a fantasy, like that the right clients would appear, etc.
Finally, I want to say that some of the people commenting leave a lot to be desired. One clearly has not read carefully, for instance. Instead has misread completely.
My big thing: I appreciate this honest testimonial.
This is a great article, thank-you. I almost made the same mistake with someone else who was teaching NLP so people could become life coaches. The promises the Life Coach was making seemed “too good to be true”. So I asked him, “How about you teaching me your course for free, I will put it in writing, that money I make as a Life Coach, I will give you 50% for the first 3 years? It’s a win/win situation”. I never heard from him again. So now, whenever someone offers me their “once in a lifetime” chance to enhance myself, I make them the same offer as I did with the guy with the NLP course. Gets rid of them every time.
Seems like you could have avoided the whole thing with a bit of research..
I do agree, and my hope is that sharing my story will help someone else find it on google easier next time.
Thank You for your truth and your kindness to save others from being dupped and I dare say…swindled.
Thank you… :o)
Thank you for sharing this. I had a similar experience. The consultant I worked with, in her efforts to get me to purchase the program, downplayed the amount of time the program would take. She said “one hour a week.” But, in fact, at each weekly call she would assign me homework that required 2 or more hours a day. I simply don’t have that much free time and so I slacked off and lost motivation to continue. I also had scheduling problems, which when I tried to work them out with her would always result in her simply cancelling that weekly call with me. I thought that we would cancel the call and continue where we left off, but in fact when I cancelled it meant that I would miss that lesson altogether. So, I paid for 24 45 minute 1-on-1 sessions but only got 20. I have low self-esteem and never complained or asked for my money back. To be honest, I just wanted to get it over with and forget I ever spent that money. Towards the end, I felt that the sessions were not at all supportive or helpful. The consultant seemed to have become bored or irritated with me and the sessions started to feel kind of abusive. As you said, the program is oriented around repetition….writing, speaking, reading and listening to affirmations over and over as a way to raise your vibration. Although I think this can work, I also think that there are other ways to do it. And, when someone loses momentum or lacks motivation, there are better ways to get that person to feel their own spark of motivation than to reprimand them for not doing the work. I happen to be a certified lifestyle coach trained in positive psychology and motivational interviewing, so I was really struck by how clueless my consultant at least was about these skills. Instead of getting curious about why I was no longer motivated to do the program, she used punitive techniques and talked about accountability, which just turned me off even more. I would definitely NOT recommend this program. Maybe it works for old white men and others who relate to Bob Proctor’s very linear, logical, disciplined approach to live, but it was not worth the expense for me and the way my brain works. This is a very inflexible program, so make sure you know what you’re getting into before making the investment. Ask a LOT of questions, get stuff in writing, then if you do go forward with the program hold your consultant accountable, don’t let them put all the responsibility and blame on you if you stumble and falter. They are supposed to be there to support and guide you. That’s what you’re paying them for.
Dear Jennifer,
Thank you for sharing this experience! I made an even worse financial decision to become a PGI consultant and lost USD $32,495.00 finding myself in debts. I found the world “appalling” a very good one. I know people who lost their apartments and families because of PGI. Let’s raise voices so as many people as possible can avoid making such mistakes. Below, please find the official complaint I filed to BBB.org in April 2021.
Initial Complaint: 06/04/2021
Complaint Type: Problems with Product/Service
Status: Answered
Dear BBB, I would like to file a complaint against Proctor Gallagher Institute for: – misleading information and lack of information – unethical business tactics – the abuse of Bob Proctor’s authority I signed up to become a PGI consultant on August, 6th 2019, and I paid for this program $32,495.00. When I was signing up, and I said I wanted to promote PGI in France, I wasn’t told that the program wasn’t available in French. It’s after signing up that we, PGI consultants, discover many things, like paying for EVERYTHING, every sales training, events, and extension fees! I was told I would be easily able to double my income within a year. I left my job because I believed and trusted this organization that is represented by Bob Proctor. Basically one pays over $K30 to have access to videos and group Q&A with no real support or coaching. I asked for a full refund of my payment and my request was rejected. I have information to prove that my request is legitimate. Thank you for your help.
definetely sad to read such experiences like Jeniffer’ and Maria’s but indeed thank you for sharing. A lot to learn from it.
We try to find happiness abd achievement and various ways and there is always definetely a risk to be scammed.
Thank you for sharing your experience with PGI’s TIR course. I also purchased this course. I was one of the few clients who succeeded (I “achieved my Type C Goal”). However, I was an exception within my group, and believe I was successful because of some particular support already in my life combined with some previous experience with Self-Development programs which offer minimal leadership and mostly expect clients to do the learning for themselves. Upon off-boarding, it became clear that PGI employs MLM tactics to retain clients and attract new ones. Following my “graduation and leaving” I received many communications which crossed both professional and personal boundaries (including insults and accusations). In the summer of 2024 I was signed up to the consultant’s email list for a third time without my consent (I left in Fall of 2022.) As I had already been through this twice in the past with the consultant, as well as requesting her “Dream Team” members to also stop sending me marketing materials (which they did not stop), I decided to leave a 2/5 Google review (with no comments, because PGI is masterful at shaming clients into silence). My Google review prompted an email from the consultant accusing me of destroying her business with my negative comments (even though I didn’t leave any). In response, I left a new 1/5 review and stated: “Disrespectful communication. Breach of client confidentiality. Email marketing without consent” (all which I personally experienced). The consultant’s PA then accused me of libel and slander and threatened legal action if I did not remove my review. The letter also called me “sick in the head” for leaving the review, and said I was having an “adult tantrum”, among other insults. Buyer beware: PGI Consultants position themselves as Life Coaches, but are simply MLM sales consultants.
Thank you for your comment. This is common place where you are threatened with legal action if you are honest, and in my case when I asked for a refund I was presented with a legal document that “bought my silence”. I refused obviously and in return the money was kept from me.
I think it shows clearly how the business is structured that the money is the goal, rather than the person’s individual experience.