For those who are looking to improve your NLP skills or acquire new ones, it’s worth first taking a look at what NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Programming) actually is. Now, I can’t speak for Richard Bandler (co-founder), but I have trained with him and what follows is my interpretation of what he has taught me about all the NLP skills.
NLP is essentially an attitude supported by a method. This in turn gives rise to an ever-developing and expanding toolbox of techniques. It has been said to be the study of the structure of subjectivity. You question and model how people do things and achieve excellence. You then ask how you can use this to effect lasting change both quickly and easily.
You look at how people filter their experience of the world through their belief systems. How they map this in their nervous systems in terms of the quality and location of the pictures that they make, the sounds and voices they hear, their feelings and emotional states. Sometimes their beliefs and mental maps serve them, sometimes they don’t.
The great thing about someone who has mastered NLP is their attitude and approach. They are able to harness a ‘go for it’ resource state whenever they want, no matter what. Without this, all the NLP techniques are worth very little. To practise NLP effectively and elegantly, your mindset needs to exemplify the combination of a number of things.
Richard Bandler says that he likes to slay a sacred cow everyday. To do that, you need to be curious about what’s possible. You must persevere, even in the face of failure. Always suspect that there is something more to find out – never assume you know it all. Have the desire to learn more, make it yours and improve on it. You constantly ask questions and ask yourself questions about the questions that you ask.
It is important to bear in mind that if you want new NLP skills or to brush up your existing ones, then these extend beyond the techniques, hypnosis, learning distinctions and patterns in language. These skills are underpinned by your ability to create the necessary resource states in yourself.
You can certainly gain value and improve your NLP skills by reading about these areas and watching videos. Moreover, you do have to practice. You have to experience it. When you do this, you’ll not only see new possibilities for how to apply the NLP techniques, but you’ll combine them in new ways and even create your own.