NLP Now! April 2007

What is NLP? By Sean Steele

Doesn’t it seem that more-than-ever we are looking for the fastest, easiest and cheapest way to achieve success? Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) has become renowned as a field of study devoted to doing this, but remains one of those I’ve-heard-of-it-but-don’t-understand-it terms in Australia.

So What is NLP?

Technically speaking it is the study of the mind (neuro), how we communicate with ourselves and others (linguistic) and how to control those processes with volition (programming).

But what is it really? It is the study of success and excellence and how to replicate it. It demystifies how humans think and behave, and how they experience the world. Put simply, it is a set of easy-to-learn techniques that allow people to quickly and effectively change thoughts, beliefs, behaviours and self-imposed road-blocks to success.

Think of it like this.. think of your mind as a computer, and if you want to do something (achieve a goal) you buy software or applications (empowering strategies, beliefs & values) to do that right?

For example, you buy accounting software so you can do the bookkeeping, or iTunes so you can listen to music.

NLP helps us understand what software we currently have running but also turns you into a programmer, where you can create any program you need to create any result you want. Why? Because your mind is software and that means it’s programmable.

If someone else is running a really great program that’s working well, why try to re-invent the wheel when you can borrow the program (modelling) and install it on your computer?

Unfortunately, sometimes computers get viruses (limiting beliefs, diseases or negative emotions) don’t they? Or.. you are running far too many applications at once (unruly internal dialogue) and the computer slows down and loses it’s precision and effectiveness.

Sometimes we need a good virus cleaner or the task manager to either restore the programs to a good working state, or to close down the ones that are adding little value to free up some memory.

That way, when you’re trying to achieve an outcome using your computer you can be free of viruses and have all the applications you need to achieve the outcome.

Where did it come from?

The model stemmed from the work of linguist John Grinder and psychology student and mathematician Richard Bandler in the early 1970’s. They got together to look at what tools, techniques and skills were being used by the top therapists of the day to assist people in creating rapid and lasting change in their lives.

The pair modelled the world’s foremost Hypnotherapist (Milton Erickson), Family Therapist (Virginia Satir) and Gestalt Therapist (Fritz Pearls) and broke down into processes what was allowing their clients to achieve such amazing results.

What are some of the applications?

One of the resulting key applications of NLP is the process of modelling. By studying the decisions, beliefs, values and strategies of the most successful we can replicate and install that model in ourselves or others, thereby achieving similar levels of success in a much shorter time.

For example, if you wanted to achieve investment success like Warren Buffet then you could learn to model the keys to his success and install that in yourself, accelerating your investment results in the process.

In business some applications include outcome (goal) orientation, improved communication, effective questioning techniques for coaching and mentoring, state (stress) management and overcoming presentation anxiety.

Covering even wider contexts in human interaction it offers simple skills to gain rapport quickly with a greater variety of people, an understanding of verbal and non-verbal communication and uncovers people’s motivations, behaviours and self-sabotaging beliefs and attitudes.