A common barrier to people exploring the benefits of learning NLP is the false perceptions that people have about it. Similarly, these fears and false perceptions create hesitation for people to learn hypnosis. One of the most common questions I get is "Isn't NLP mind control or manipulation?" Now, while you might be expecting me to rebut and say "why no!!!" the answer is that it actually IS mind control BUT it's that YOU are the one who is doing the controlling. And yes, it IS manipulation of the mind, but (and you might see this coming) you are learning to manipulate your own mind.

Let's break this down.

Most people walk as if they are at the effect of their thoughts, beliefs, and feelings. Now, if it is your thoughts, beliefs, and feelings that drive your decisions and behaviors (conscious and unconscious) then you can imagine that most people are walking around as if they completely at the effect of their circumstances and they react and behave accordingly. This is not an empowering place to be.

However, a person who knows and understands truly what NLP is understands that one of the first assumptions of NLP is that you are in charge of your mind and therefore you are in charge of your results. And so someone with perhaps an NLP certification and training who gets into a space of "problem thinking" knows how to use the methodologies and tools of NLP to reframe themselves to a more resourceful place that allows them to move into "solution thinking" so that they can have the best outcome to their challenge. What did they just do? Manipulate their mind!

Let's take a parent who teaches a child how to see things from a different perspective. I was playing basketball with my 7-year-old in the driveway a few months ago, and he was missing shots. After missing about 8 or 9 in a row, he got extremely frustrated. He threw the ball down and said "I'm so bad at this, I'm the worst!" So, instead of running to encourage him, I said to him "Wow you're frustrated aren't you." He replied, "Yes, I feel like I'm never going to be able to make a basket". And I said "Never? Ever? Ever?" and he said, "well, maybe if I practiced I could". I said, "like you practiced Kung Fu and got better… got your yellow and then orange sash?". He perked up and said, "Yeah, I guess". I then said, "so what do you want to do?" He smiled and said…"keep going!" I gave him a few form tips, and he made the next shot…and the next… and the next.

 While there seems to be a magical nature to the way people who are trained in NLP utilize language to create amazing results in themselves and other people, neurolinguistic programming is not magic, it's based in neuroscience.

NLP (which stands for neurolingustic programming) is the study of how language impacts our brain… what we think, feel and do… and how that influences our behaviors. NLP takes scientific research in linguistics, cognitive and behavioral science, neuro-psychology, neuroscience and the psychology of language and it teaches practical effective techniques and tools that allow us to turn the science into daily application that improve outcomes in all areas of life.

A few examples of this include the use of anchoring, strategies, and using the sub modalities of our 5 senses to create change.

Let's first take anchoring:

Back in the 1890's a Russian scientist named Ivan Pavlov did an experiment with dogs. Each day at the same time, he'd ring a bell and when the dogs came he would feed them meat. Now eventually, when he'd ring the bell, the dogs would come already salivating in anticipation of getting the meat. One day Pavlov wondered what would happen if he removed the meat from the equation, so he rang the bell, and the dogs came running but there was no meat. The dogs still salivated. This is because they had associated the bell (dinner bell) with the meat and it created an automatic link in their brain which caused the physiological reaction of salivation.

Have you ever met someone who can just say what they want and it seems to magically happen? Do you know someone like this? Someone who seems to have no trouble manifesting things in their life whether it be new relationships, more money, the perfect job. It seems almost like magic. Some might call it the law of attraction, but in my line of work, we call it mastering the NLP mind. What is the NLP Mind? It's the mindset that anything is possible and that you have all the resources you need to make things happen in your life.

In my work as a Master Practitioner of NLP (neuro-linguistic programming), master hypnosis practitioner, an NLP trainer, I have studied what makes people like this effective. I have also trained others to achieve this type of attraction mindset as well. The truth is that this is not magic. Anyone can learn neurolinguistic programming. People often ask me, however, how do I become an NLP practitioner. What is the first step? While some trainers will tell you to jump right into training, I advocate for a little pre-work to make sure that you are clear and moving in the right direction. Here are 3 steps that will move you exponentially faster toward achieving an NLP Mind and getting the life you want.

Get Clear On What's Important To You.

This may seem obvious, but I have talked to countless students and clients who are fuzzy on what they actually want in their relationships, career, and family. When you are unclear about what you want, you send mixed signals to your unconscious mind, and that results in mixed results coming back to you. Here is a simple exercise to do:

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