What is NLP?

Neuro-linguistic programming (NLP) is an approach to communication, personal development, and psychotherapy. NLP is useful wherever human communication skills are required to enhance results, this can be through:

Business, Coaching, Sales & Influence, Psychology, Sports, Healthcare, Negotiation, Education.

NLP also provides an understanding of how people organise their thinking, feeling, language and behaviour to produce the results they do. NLP provides people with a methodology to model outstanding performances achieved by leaders in their field.

The Name

Neuro refers to the neurological system. The system is the building block of our experience and processed through our 5 senses; seeing, hearing, feeling, smelling and tasting. Linguistic is the way we use language to communication to express our experiences and communicate with others. This is both verbal and non verbal communication. Programming refers to strategies and behavioral responses that occur as a result of how we communicate the inner processes of our mind.

The fundamentals

1. Know what you want (Outcome / Direction) One of the key NLP questions is ‘What do you want?’. The human nervous system can be thought of as goal-seeking, and you tend to get what you focus on. Well-formed outcomes are an important tool for ensuring that you get more of what you want in your life.

2. Get the attention of the conscious and unconscious mind (Rapport) "The map is not the territory." You must start where the person you wish to influence is (the ‘Present State’.) Rapport is the process of getting the attention and trust of the conscious and unconscious mind.

3. Know whether you’re getting what you want (Sensory Acuity) Once you know where you want to go, you need to be able to notice (using one or more senses) whether or not you are going there. Sensory acuity refers to the ability to notice the signs that you are moving in the right direction (or otherwise.)

4. Adjust what you’re doing accordingly (Behavioural Flexibility) "Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, expecting a different result." When you notice that you are not getting what you want, you need the flexibility to change what you are doing in order to get a different result. "Intelligence is the ability to have a fixed goal and be flexible about how you achieve it."

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