Intro to NLP

According to Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP), 10% of the mind is conscious,

leaving 90 % of the mind to the unconscious. Now what does this mean?
The conscious mind is simply what we are focused on at any given moment. On the other
hand, the unconscious is the massive store of every experience, belief, habit, method and
thought we have ever had. Think of the conscious being the area of a dark hole that is
illuminated by a torch (our mind). The rest of the hole, where the light cannot reach, is the
unconscious. Or minds can only focus on that 10% at a time, which leaves the 90% to be sorted
through with our unconscious mind.
NLP states that there are programs in our unconscious that dictate how we think and act.
They are the summation of all of our experiences. NLP is focused on being able to read, control
and change these programs so that we can better understand and manipulate ourselves and
others.
A Brief History - During the 1970s, Richard Bandler and John Grinder studied
therapy sessions transcripts from Fritz Perls, Milton Erickson and Virginia Satir three of the
most renowned psychologists of the time. They believe that all masters of human
communication had similar patterns and methods that could be learned by others through
observation. Their goal was to codify the know-how of these psychologists to find out what set
their methods apart from others with lesser success. As they expected, Bandler and Gringer
began to see patterns in the tone and diction of the psychologists and what subsequent reactions
they received from their patients.
After years of studying these transcripts and modeling them in sessions with their own
patients, Bandler and Grinder came up with 3 rules for successful communication in therapy,
business and sales:
1) To know what outcome you want, to be flexible in your behaviour
2) To generate different kinds of behaviour to find out what response you get
3) To have enough sensory experience to notice when you get the responses that you want
Key Principles of NLP -
Matching In order to build rapport with other people, one should match or pace the
verbal and non-verbal language of others. By matching the posture, breathing pattern, gestures,
voice tone, diction, etc. of some you are talking to, you will make them more comfortable with
you which will make them like you more.
Related idea: Many NLP practitioners say that you will appear to be much more
convincing if you speak only when your subject is exhaling. Even if you have to stop talking mid-
sentence, you should aim to speak only when they breath out. Exhalation is a state of relaxation
so the mind is more at ease, making your statements more powerful.
Anchoring The process of associating a past state or response with a particular
stimulus. The stimulus, or anchor, could be anything from a touch to specific smell. NLP
claims that re-calling past states and anchoring them to the a stimulus can make them useful
once again in the present. This idea is similar to when you hear a song that immediately brings
you back to a moment when it was playing. You can feel the emotions, the vibe, and maybe even
the weather conditions of that moment just from hearing the song. The same rules apply for
anchoring.
For example, in Niel Strausss The Game, a book describing the world of pick-up artists
(PUAs), the author describes the anchoring technique of one PUA specializing in NLP. The man
would ask women to describe the feeling of having butterflies in their stomach when they see a
man they are attracted to. While the women would continue to describe (and thus FEEL this
emotion), the PUA would touch their arm or hand repeatedly to anchor that emotion to his
touch. When the imagination game was over, the woman in question would be hopelessly
attracted to the PUA. Hopefully now you are beginning to see why NLP is so fascinating
The Milton Model Based on the hypnotic techniques of Milton Erickson, the
founder of clinical hypnotherapy, the Milton Model aims to overload the conscious mind so as to
reach the unconscious mind. A series of skillfully vague questions are asked that leave gaps for
the subject to fill in with their unconscious mind.

The Complete list of language tools associated with the Milton Model is extremely
extensive. So heres a list from nlpworld.com that does the job for me:

1) Mind Read: Claiming to know anothers thoughts or feelings without specifying the
how you came to that knowledge.
I know that you believe or I know youre thinking

2) Lost Performative: Expressing value judgments without identifying the one doing
the judging.
Breathing is good.

3) Cause & Effect: Implies one thing leads to or causes another; that there is
sequence of cause/effect and a flow in time . Includes phrases such as: If , then ; As you
., then you ; Because then
If you can hear my voice, then you can learn many things.

4) Complex Equivalence : Attributes meaning to something that may or may not have
a cause capability.
Being here means that you will change easily.

5) Presupposition: The linguistic equivalent of assumptions.

Will you be changing your attitude now or later today? It is assumed the person
will change their attitude, the only unknown is when.

6) Universal Quantifier: Universal generalizations without referential index.

Everyone; No one; All; Every

7) Modal Operator: Words that refer to possibility or necessity or that reflect

internal states of intensity tied to our rules in life.
You should care for others. or You must resolve this issue.
 8) Nominalization : Words which are formed as nouns and which are shorthand for
processes.
People can come to new understandings. Here understandings is used as a
noun and is shorthand to describe the on-going experience of understanding or making sense
of something.

9) Unspecified Verb: Implies action without describing how the action has/will take
place.
He caused the problem.

10) Tag Question: A question added at the end of a statement/question, designed to

soften resistance. It is used to ratify to the listener that he has or will actually manifest the action.
It has the structure of a question and often the tonality of a statement.
Your perception of life is changing, isnt it.

11) Lack of Referential Index: An expression without specific reference to any

portion of the speakers/listeners experience.
People can change.

12) Comparative Deletion (Unspecified Comparison): A comparison is made without

specific reference to what or to whom it is being compared.
You will enjoy it more. or That one is better.

13) Pace Current Experience: Using sensory-grounded, behaviorally specific

information to describe current experience.
You are reading this article.

14) Double Bind: Invites choice within a larger context of no choice.

Do you want to begin now or later? or Do you want to go into trance before or
after you sit down?

15) Embedded Commands: This is a command that forms part of a larger sentence
that is marked by using italics or a subtle change in voice tonality or body language and is
picked up by the readers or listeners unconscious.
I will not suggest to you that change is easy. or Do you think this article should
be sent to your friends? or You can learn this material easily.

16) Conversational Postulate: Are questions that operate at multiple levels.

Although they require only a simple yes or no answer, they invite you to engage in an activity in
some way. Often they contain an embedded command .
 Can you open the door? or Can you choose to change?

17) Extended Quote: Is a rambling context for the delivery of information that may be
in the format of a command.
Many years ago, I remember meeting a wise old man who taught me many
useful things. I cherished all of his advice. I remember one particular day when he said to me
Change is easy and can be fun.

18) Selectional Restriction Violation: Attributing intelligence or animation to

inanimate objects.
Your chair can support you as you make these changes. or Your diary tells
interesting tales.

19) Ambiguity: Lack of specificity

a) Phonological: your and youre same sound, different meaning.

b) Syntactic: More than one possible meaning. shooting stars or leadership

shows the syntax is uncertain within the context, i.e. adjectives, verbs or nouns?
c) Scope: Speaking to you as a changed person (Who is the changed
person?) or The old men and women the context does not reveal the scope to which a
verb or modifier applies.
d) Punctuation: is unexpected and does not follow the rules, i.e. improper
pauses, rambling sentences, incomplete sentences all of which ultimately force the listener to
mind read.
Hand me your watch how quickly you go into a trance.

20) Utilization: Takes advantage of everything in the listeners experience (both

internal and external environments) to support the intention of the speaker.
Client says: I dont understand. Response: Thats rightyou dont understand,
yet, because youve not taken that one deep breath that will allow the information to fall easily
and comfortably into place.
Or perhaps while working with a client, one of your colleagues mistakenly opens
a door. Instead of getting frustrated and annoyed with your colleague, you could say to your
client, You may have heard a door opening and let this be an opportunity to invite new ideas
and thoughts into your life.
We can go deeper inside these language patterns to think of examples, getting the
patterns more familiar with you.

Nominalizations -
 If I was to say you know that you can feel confident about some learnings from last
weekend . . . it is much easier for you to agree than If I was to say you know that you can feel
confident about unspecified noun structures from last weekend . . .
Learnings is an example of a nominalisation. To nominalise something means to make a
noun out of something intangible, which doesnt exist in a concrete sense (in NLP, we say any
noun that you cant put in a wheel barrow is a nominalisation). In this example, the process of
learning something is turned into a noun, learnings.
Being happy becomes happiness.
Being curious becomes curiosity.
Being depressed becomes depression.
A state like depression becomes an enormous and sometimes insurmountable,
overwhelming state of being, for example, whereas being depressed to most people is more
likely to imply a state that has a beginning, and more importantly an end. A block is something
much more insurmountable than something that is merely blocking your progress.
So close your eyes and think for a moment about some recent learning, one that may
have given you much surprise and enjoyment.
Notice in the previous sentence the speaker doesnt say how or where, but allows the
listener to fill in with his or her own details.

Unspecified Nouns and Verbs -

People can learn easily under hypnosis. There are a few things in this sentence which
are not clear,
Which people?
How can they learn easily?
What do they learn easily?
When phrases like these are used, the listener is forced to use his or her imagination to
fill in the whos and hows. Again, these types of phrases are useful for pacing and leading when
the speaker becoming too specific could mismatch the listener and break rapport or minimize
influence.
So take a moment and enjoy remembering some of the things you learned and did at
the seminar.
What were your thoughts after hearing that sentence? Did you have a specific
representation?
What did you learn and do, and which seminar did you learn them at?
Nominalizations are one type of unspecified noun.
 Unspecified Referential Indices (not in your NLP manual as this name)
(Dont you hate these silly technical terms?) are nouns that dont refer to something
specific, i.e., :
This is much easier to learn than it looks at first.
This doesnt really tell us what it refers to. We guess and make an internal decision
about the topic of the sentence.
People can relax.
We need to guess which people.
Unspecified verbs and adverbs
also let us fill in with our own experience.
This is much easier to learn than it looks at first.
People can relax.
We dont know how it is easier to learn, or how it looks at first. Nor do we know how
people relax, nor how they can do it.
But we can imagine how.

Commentary adjectives and adverbs (not in manual as this name) are a way that
we can lead people to easily accept our presuppositions.
How soon will you be pleasantly surprised by easily remembering and using the tools
youre learning this weekend?

Comparable As are another type of connection:

If anyone can learn as methodically as you do, they must be extremely motivated and
thorough.
Semantic Ill-formedness (not in manual as this name)

Linkages - imply a cause effect relationship between two things. There are three kinds
of linkages:
Conjunctions:
You are sitting here right now, and you can begin to relax. These include and and but.
Connections in time:
As you listen to the sound of my voice, you are becoming curious. These include as,
while, during and when.

Causality (Cause Effect):

 The occasional sounds and noises from outside make you feel more and more relaxed.
Here you have words like makes, causes, forces, because and requires.
A linkage works by connecting a statement that is pacing something that is already
occurring with a statement that leads the listener to some other (usually internal) experience.

Mind Reading - means acting as if the speaker is doing exactly that. By making use of
the art of speaking generally, a speaker can make an educated guess about the listeners
internal experience to build credibility and deepen rapport ().
I know you are wondering how much you will learn from this training.
You may be curious about how you will use these patterns.
We must be cautious to keep our references as general as possible. If specific details
clash with the listeners thoughts, it will disrupt his or her attention.

Lost Performatives - Its important to know about these structures, because its often
necessary to deliver presuppositions indirectly. These types of phrases contain at least one
judgement or evaluation of which we cant identify the source.
Its important to learn language patterns.
Its essential to have fun learning all this stuff.
Its good that we are all here tonight.
The speaker doesnt state exactly who thinks these things are good, necessary or
important.

Modal Operators - can be used to direct the listeners experience in a certain

direction.
How fortunate you are to be able to learn so easily. It can happen with your conscious
mind reading to know how quickly it may happen.

Conversational Postulates - are requests for action or information masquerading as

yes/no questions.
Can you tell me what time it is?
Do you know what todays date is?
Can you lend me a pen?
Can you go into a trance easily?

Presuppositions - are ways of indirectly getting agreement from a listener. There are
several types of presuppositions:
Existence: She saw the ice cream in the freezer. Implies is, was, may be.
John Didnt see a goat behind a tree well what do we now know that John doesnt?
 Time:
Before, after, during, continue, yet, already, begin, stop, start, still, while, since, as, and
when. You may hear noises in the room while you are entering a state of deep relaxation.

Ordinals:
These assume action will be taken, the question is, in what order, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, etc. Do
you want to take a deep breath or would you like to settle down into your chair first?

Ors
Would you prefer a silk blouse or one in cotton? This presupposes that the listener
wants one of them. The question is which. Its better than asking do you want one? of which it
can be easy to answer no!

Awareness:
These assume the statement is true, all that may be questioned is whether the listener is
aware. Have you realized how common it is to be in a trance? Have you noticed how often
you go into a trance, even by yourself?

Adverbs and Adjectives - presuppose that something is going to happen. The issue
is how will the experience be?
What have you enjoyed the most about driving the new RX-7?
Are you excited about making this purchase?
How easily can you begin to relax?
Fortunately we have plenty of opportunity to practice this material.

Embedded Suggestions - are suggestions or directives buried within a larger

sentence. They allow the speaker to ask more subtly and in a way that the listener can respond
sometimes without consciously knowing he or she has been asked. (We do this all the time
without realizing it).
I dont know how soon youll feel better.
You can learn these patterns easily.

Negative Commands (not in manual) - use the inability of your unconscious to

comprehend language constructions that use negatives (No, Not, Dont, etc.). For instance, if
someone were to say, Dont think about pink elephants, what happens? Using negative
commands can be thought of as sending subliminal messages to the brain. Since the
unconscious cannot process the negative, only the positive message registers.
Dont relax too quickly . . .
 Its important that you dont make this purchase any sooner than you feel comfortable
doing so.
Dont go into a trance too soon . . .

Ambiguity - When words have double meaning, the unconscious mind must process
all meanings. Words like down, left, duck, hand, back all have double meanings. Then there are
words spelled differently and pronounced the same. Hear/here, your/youre, nose/knows are
examples. These can be extremely helpful in helping us produce embedded suggestions.
One of the things thats most interesting about youre unconscious mind is its ability to
scan for hidden meanings.

Tag Questions - According to Milton H. Erickson, Tag Questions displace resistance

to the end of a sentence, dont they? In addition, they set up a place to create an agreement
frame , as well as to strengthen agreement in a pacing situation. Its a fairly effective concept to
utilize, isnt it?

The More, The More (not in your manuals) - Once some degree of rapport is
established, this construction the incorporation and utilization of otherwise resistant behaviors.
The more you try to resist going into a trance, the more you find your eyes wanting to
shut all by themselves.

Milton Model: Hypnotic Language Patterns (not in manual) - The Milton Model
hypnotic language patterns encourage the listener to move away from detail and content and
move to higher levels of thinking and deeper states of mind. Some patterns are used to establish
a trance state (or downtime or relaxation in the body). Other patterns are used to loosen the
listeners model of the world from which he is expressing his current behaviours and to consider
a more expansive interpretation of what is possible.

You will notice that many of these language patterns are identical to those of the Meta
Model. The difference being that for the Meta Model, the client is being vague and we ask
specific questions to assist him in getting clarity on his issue/problem. For the Milton Model, we
use some of the same language patterns, but this time we wish to be vague so that the client
can easily go into trance and/or from the vague suggestions choose a suggested course of
action that will address his problem/issue.