Techniques, Methods and Practises

NLP contains many techniques that can be applied in different situations and contexts. These techniques were developed from modelling people who were excellent in their fields, and playing with the principles of excellence to generate new techniques.

Consequently within the field of NLP there is an increasing range of techniques. Most experienced NLPers have created techniques at one time or another, or at least improvised them on the spur of the moment. This improvisation is a little like jazz musicians jamming, or actors well, improvising.

So you will find some of my improvisations here.

You will also find practises here. I distinguish these from techniques as they are there to build skill rather than necessarily have a direct application.

Skill and change require practise. It usually takes some repetition before a concept gets sufficiently into the muscle before it can be applied in the changing conditions of the real world.

The act of practising not only helps make a skill habitual, it also informs and refines that skill. There is a saying ‘practise makes perfect’. My old martial arts brother Tim Cartmell once told me ‘Practise doesn’t make perfect, perfect practise makes perfect.’

What is perfect practise? I’m not exactly sure, but I suspect it includes

1. A maximum of attention and absorption
2. Openness for ways to improve – thus a doubt in the perfection of the practise.

Sometimes it is useful to separate out the doubt until after the practise has ended. but without the doubt progress will eventually plateau, and learning will become stifled. Too much doubt and learning never gets started!

People often advertise their seminars as the 'cutting edge' of NLP or whatever skill they teach. I hope that they are teaching at their cutting edge. I think that a more relevant question is what is your cutting edge, and how are you working on it. I any of these are useful to you then great!

Pass this on to any boring coaches you know (but don't tell them why...)

NLP, magic wands and smooth moves

the submodalities of meditation

An exercise to increase Physical Intelligence

Three kinds of questions

Three freedoms

5 years more - perspectives in time

Shadows and Light

Fish and Piranhas

Getting into your Skull

Some positive double binds

An outcome you cannot argue with

Two moments to change your life