“I think it's great to experience NLP even if you don't have any major issues - you can get even more results then - kind of like transforming in leaps and bounds!”

What is NLP?

About NLP

NLP is a revolutionary field of study which explains how our minds work and how we can change or improve patterns of behaviour, thoughts and beliefs that hold us back from living happy successful lives. NLP means:

NLP allows us to find the answers to many burning questions, such as:

• I know I can be successful, so what's holding me back?
• Why do I feel so much emotion when I don't really want to be feeling it at this moment?
• How can I change this habit when I've had it for so long?
• How can I feel more in control of my time and my energy?
• How can I feel relaxed more often?
• Is it really possible to feel different?

NLP allows us to solve these dilemmas and choose how we think, feel or act. Find out how it can do this in your life.

Sometimes when we want to make changes, such as lowering stress, letting go of grief, or stopping smoking, it feels difficult or like hard work. Our emotions and behaviours are created unconsciously. While we can make a conscious choice to change them, the actual change only happens at an unconscious level. This is where all change and learning takes place. This is where NLP comes in. It is extraordinary coaching!

Imagine you didn't have an instruction manual for your mobile phone and you were using it only to make and receive calls and save numbers - enough to get you by but only the basics. Then, one day you found the instruction booklet, and suddenly you could re-set it and programme it to operate, sound and respond the way you really wanted it to.

We each have resources inside ourselves we're not utilising right now, and NLP is the instruction manual for discovering these resources and using them to their potential.

Because all change and learning happens unconsciously, when someone wants to stop doing something they've done for a long time, such as over-eat or bite their nails, they often don't know why they do it. Therefore, they don't know where to start or even what to change. This is often because what is driving them to do it is an unconscious intention. NLP helps to identify those unconscious patterns, so that they can be changed to suit what the individual wants in his or her life.

This all might sound a little complicated. I mean, how do you know what's conscious or unconscious for goodness sake?! The beauty of NLP is that the techniques used are extraordinarily simple, and the potential for our minds to make positive change for us is boundless.

The key is to know what you really want and that you really want to change. The rest is relatively straightforward! NLP techniques are powerful, specific and usually create immediate changes. The changes are created within you, by you, simply facilitated by the practitioner. This also means that it isn't 'done to you'. You are always in charge of the changes you are making.

One of the central principles of NLP is that we each have a map, which is our 'version' of life. It's not an accurate representation of our experiences; it's our own description or picture of reality. We develop this map throughout our lives through our experiences, unconsciously taking notice of what we think is important, and editing out what isn't. We make generalisations about things, and unknowingly distort them sometimes to make sense of them. In this way we concoct a version of life that is solely our own.

In NLP it is often described as our 'model of the world'. It's how we see the world, and it guides us through life. Your map is not the same as your neighbour's, your friend's, or anyone else's on the planet.

Can you think back to a time when you had a conversation with somebody about one thing and eventually realised they thought you were talking about something else entirely? We get our wires crossed when we assume our map (and way of thinking) is the same as everyone else's!

When we are communicating with others, problem solving or making decisions, we do the best we can with the map we have. Sometimes we don't choose the best behaviour because our map is inadequate. NLP allows us to open up our map (our model of the world) and see what else is there, what we can add to it, how it can be improved.

NLP is often described as the study of excellence. When someone does something well they have a 'strategy' for doing it; a sequence of behaviour and thought patterns that gets a result. NLP allows us to find out a particular strategy and learn it or teach it to others. NLP change processes were designed through the study of excellence in the field of therapy and personal change, enabling us to reproduce the same results for ourselves that highly experienced practitioners spent years perfecting.

Many areas of traditional psychology and counselling are based on the study of people suffering from mental and emotional ill-health. NLP models were developed by studying healthy successful people. Like other areas of coaching or therapy, NLP helps the client change and improve their life. Moreover, NLP techniques are simple and relatively fast, making the experience of clearing unhelpful negative emotions or healing phobias or trauma, gentle for the client. The emphasis is always on positive outcomes and the techniques focus on creating wholeness and emotional well-being.

NLP is also often described as the activity of modelling strategies. For example, one of the key strategies within NLP is building rapport with another person. Anyone can be taught rapport skills such as matching body language or tone of voice that help to make the other person feel comfortable, foster trust and ultimately build relationships.

The skills taught will be based on what people do, who are very successful in this area; how they act, what they think about, how they feel, and so on. Charismatic people like Bill Clinton and the late Princess Diana are shining examples of people using fine rapport skills that others can learn.

Other examples of creating new strategies might be as simple as someone wanting to feel more confident when they speak in front of an audience (pretty common isn't it?!) or perhaps a person wanting to feel happier in themselves after years of feeling sad, guilty or depressed. Using the concept of modelling, an NLP practitioner is able to discover the client's map and the 'blips' in their strategy causing problems for them. This way, those parts of their map can be improved, opening up new possibilities for choosing how we think, feel and behave.

If you're ready to make an appointment or would like your questions answered, simply call or
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You can also try something yourself - a simple technique that will give you an idea of how you can change these responses. Can you recall a time when you were feeling nervous? Once you have a time in mind, read through these instructions in full, then take yourself through them from start to finish all in one go. You may even like to ask a friend to talk you through it for ease - preferably someone who will be curious and kind about it, and non-judgemental. It's a slightly absurd technique, but I guarantee it works. Your friend will probably want a turn too!

Here goes:

1. Think about that time you were nervous. Can you get the feeling back and remember what it was like? What is the feeling like in your stomach, the rest of your body?
2. Now stand up. Lift your arms above your head, and shake your hands as if they are rattles, shaking vigorously.
3. Then look up to the ceiling and turn up the corners of your mouth. As you look straight up, notice it's not easy to have a serious thought when you do this - it is in fact difficult to have a serious thought as you look up! And when you turn up the corners of your mouth, did you know that serotonin is automatically released in the brain? It is a biological response, so you can keep enjoying turning up the corners of your mouth!
4. Now, as you bring your hands down and relax your body, is that old nervousness there, or has it gone now? I expect it is gone.

And you can do this whenever you want to be able to change your state. Try it when you need a burst of motivation, confidence or energy, or when you're feeling frustrated about something, and see what happens!