Is neuro-linguistic programming (NLP) some sort of mysterious or dark art practiced by people dancing naked around an effigy in the forest at night? Is it just another form of "psychobabble" to rank alongside all those other things like psychometric testing? Could it be a means of making money out of those gullible enough to believe anything that a quack might offer?

Or is it actually something that everybody can use to gain win-win results out of every contact with another human being?

You guessed it - it's the last one (although the first one has some appeal...).

The next question is how do you define it? One definition I've seen is, "NLP represents an attitude, characterised by a sense of curiosity and adventure and a desire to learn the skills to be able to find out what kinds of cummunication influences somebody and the kinds of things worth knowing; to look at life as a rare and unprecedented opportunity to learn". Quite a mouthful but it certainly gets the idea across.

NLP is a methodology based on a presupposition that all behaviour has a structure which can be modelled, learned, taught and changed. It enables people to achieve results that they might have considered unachievable.

NLP is about the nervous system, your brain processing experiences through your five senses; your verbal and non-verbal communication and how you transmit meaning; structuring your neurological and linguistic systems to achieve desired states and outcomes. It is the study of excellence that can help you and others around you.

Quite frankly, it's an astonishing tool that you can use instantly and never stop learning about. When used on it's own or with coaching, it can provide extraordinary benefits to the recipient.

It's not magic but it can certainly seem like it.


Simon Donnelly

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