ACT for Perfectionism and People Pleasing

This insightful and empowering course takes you step-by-step through a compassionate and effective treatment program for perfectionism, or people-pleasing, or any combination of the two - with direct guidance from Dr. Russ Harris via an exclusive forum.

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About the course

4.7
Start date
Starts 13 October 2026
Length
12 Hours | 6 weeks
Who this course is for
For Mental Health Professionals, Health Professionals
Accreditation
12 CE | CME creditsSee all accreditation details
Organization Enquiries
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This immersive training gives you a treasure trove of powerful tools and techniques to work effectively and compassionately with perfectionism, people-pleasing, or any combination of the two. These difficult-to-treat behaviours commonly co-occur with depression, trauma, burnout, and anxiety disorders. Underlying these patterns, we find: harsh self-judgment, high levels of anxiety/self-doubt/insecurity, high experiential avoidance, fusion with rigid rules, and intense fear of negative consequences if they were to reduce the behaviour.

This course shows you not only how to apply ACT, but also to incorporate additional skills that are essential for all such clients - such as how to say no, make assertive requests, know your rights, and set boundaries. This makes it an incredibly useful ‘add-on’ to our courses on Trauma-Focused ACT and ACT for Depression & Anxiety.

ACT Interventions That Work Quickly And Simply

This course is led by Russ Harris, the world’s leading ACT trainer. It includes an interactive forum where you can connect with Russ daily, to ask questions, share experiences, and get feedback.  Through the course and the forum, Russ will guide you through the fluent, flexible use of ACT to effectively target all aspects of perfectionism and people pleasing, including:

  • harsh self-judgment and deep-seated unworthiness

  • common intense fears (e.g. of making mistakes, disapproval, rejection, negative evaluation, hostile reactions)

  • procrastination

  • worrying and rumination

  • excessive risk-aversion

  • excessive self-sacrifice to get good results or appease others

  • rigid rules (e.g. always needing to excel, look good, or put others first)

  • difficulty saying no, making requests, setting boundaries

  • difficulty carving out time for oneself

  • difficulty setting realistic goals

  • a fragile sense of self, largely based on achievement or approval

  • fusion with “should”, “must”, and “have to”

  • and soooo much more!

So if you already know ACT basics and you want to upgrade and streamline your skills to work efficiently, compassionately and creatively with perfectionism and people-pleasing, this is the course for you

ACT for Perfectionism and People Pleasing
$525
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Course starts October 13
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Learn Directly with Russ Harris

Dr Russ Harris
Dr Russ Harris

Dr Russ Harris, MBBS, is an internationally-renowned ACT trainer, and author of the world’s best-selling book on ACT, The Happiness Trap. Russ’s background is in medicine. As a physician, he became increasingly interested in the psychological aspects of health and wellbeing, which ultimately led him to change careers and become a therapist.

Russ Harris has trained over 90, 000 health professionals around the globe, and authored nine books on the ACT model. His best-known work, The Happiness Trap, has sold over one million copies and been translated into over thirty languages.

Russ is considered one of the world’s foremost ACT trainers, and his textbook for professionals, ACT Made Simple is extremely popular. The book's title reflects Russ’s genuine passion for making the principles and practice of this evidenced-based therapy simple, clear and easy to put into practice.

In 2015 Russ created an ACT protocol for the World Health Organisation, for use in refugee camps around the globe. The WHO have published three RCTs based on this protocol, showing that it not only significantly reduces depression and PTSD, but also prevents the onset of mental health disorders in those at high risk.

  • Author
  • Innovator
  • Acceptance
Your ACT for Perfectionism and People Pleasing Learning Experience

There are twelve-hours of training, delivered over six weeks, with two hours of new material released each week. And you’ll have access to all course materials for 12 months in total, so it’s no problem if you fall behind.

Each week, Russ will take you step-by-step through the core principles of ACT, supported by instructional videos, engaging animations, videos of therapy sessions, written materials, audio recordings, client handouts and worksheets, and interactive quizzes to test your learnings as you go.

To complete your interactive experience, the course also includes a fully supported forum where you can ask questions daily, and share your experiences with Russ and your peers from around the world.

Who is This Course For?

ACT for People Pleasing and Perfectionism is open to any professional who works with physical or psychological health. This includes therapists, coaches, counselors, physicians, nurses, psychologists, psychiatrists, social workers, physios, dietitians, occupational therapists, youth workers, BCBAs, speech therapists, and any other type of health professional - as well as students and researchers in these fields.

It's not essential, but we recommend you have a solid beginners level understanding of ACT. This can include:

  • Attend an introductory level 2-day ACT workshop (with any trainer).

  • Complete the online ACT for Beginners course.

  • Work through a beginners-level ACT textbook such as ACT Made Simple, 2nd edition or Learning ACT.

Enrollments

We're happy to help if you can't attend the current intake. Once your purchase is complete, contact our customer service team and we can enrol you in a future intake.

If you need an invoice, please fill out the form here.

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What People Say About This Course

4.7
956 participant ratings
98.6%
Would recommend this course to a colleague.
Richard MillerPsychologist - New York, USA

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Linda TaylorPsychologist - Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

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David AndersonPsychologist - São Paulo, Brazil

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Barbara BrownPsychologist - Brisbane, Australia

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Jennifer DavisPsychologist - Sydney, Australia

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Barbara JonesPsychologist - Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

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Accredited Continuing Education Credits

This ACT for People Pleasing and Perfectionism training is designed for mental health professionals worldwide. Upon completion, you'll receive an official certificate that may be submitted to relevant registration or licensing bodies for continuing professional development, where applicable.

12 CE/CME credits are designated for a range of licensed mental health professions, including:

  • psychologists, social workers, counsellors,

  • physicians, nurses,

  • marriage and family therapists,

  • addiction professionals.

Acceptance for other professions may vary by board and jurisdiction. View the complete CE/CME accreditation details and board approvals here.

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