What is NLP?

An obvious first choice for a subject of an NLP-based article is the question 'What is NLP?'

With a name like Neuro-Linguistic Programming that is a common question. And the answer is further confused by the many applications that NLP has been used for. Here we pull together some of the more common answers given.

One of the author’s first NLP trainers used to say, “There must be something truly valuable in NLP to have created such an interest with a dreadful name like that…”

Ultimately NLP is a very personal experience. At the end of this newsletter we give you our personal view of what NLP means to us. For those of you out there that are experienced NLP'ers we invite you to let us know what NLP means to you and we will include your comments in our next newsletter.

So what is NLP?

Perhaps the most common and brief answer is ‘the study of excellence’.

Well, man has always studied excellence in the search for improvement. What do we mean by that, you may ask?

Let’s take a few examples:

Imagine experiencing excellence in a field of endeavour for the first time – tennis for instance. You see the movements of the body, the speed of reaction, you hear the clean sound of the racquet hitting the ball dead centre. Watching a match, you become aware of the consistency of play and might begin to understand the game strategy. If you want to play well, you copy what you witness, or you get an expert to help reproduce what you have seen. But if you limit yourself to that, you are missing a large part of what makes that player excellent: the stuff you can’t see or hear that is crucial for success - what is going on inside the player’s head. When the player urgently needs to win a point to stay in the game, what gives that focus, that steadiness of mind, that power, that confidence in the outcome? That is the subject matter of NLP. 

Two people are unwell. They both receive the same medical treatment. One believes he is going to get better, and imagines the state of being well and everything he has to look forward to. The other is scared and pessimistic and believes the doctor when he says that recovery may be long and difficult. Intuitively you know which one will recover faster, and research and the practical experience of medical staff demonstrate that attitude and beliefs have an enormous role to play not only in recovery but in maintaining health. NLP provides tools and concepts to understand what really makes the difference in health and many other areas in our life. 

The leader of an organisation turns it around; profits soar and the people thrive. You witness the decisions made, the actions taken and the strategies realised. But how does this leader generate the loyalty and motivation that she does? You then notice that the leader uses different language, energy and body language when she talks to different people. You seek to find out why and look for patterns in her behaviour. Perhaps one of the components you discover is a consistent positive regard for her people, so you note that as one of the possible elements of her success, and test it further. That is the NLP approach.

The NLP Approach

NLP follows a process that has been used by scientific and artistic creative people throughout the centuries. It gets curious, observes, asks questions, and tests until the difference that makes the difference becomes apparent and teachable to others.

Neuro-Linguistic Programming

Robert Dilts, one of the original group of people involved in the early development of NLP, explains the various components of the name.

“Neuro-Linguistic Programming encompasses the three most influential components involved in producing human experience: neurology, language and programming. The neurological system regulates how our bodies function, language determines how we interface and communicate with other people, and our programming determines the kinds of models of the world we create. Neuro-Linguistic Programming describes the fundamental dynamics between mind (neuro) and language (linguistic) and how their interplay effects our body and behavior (programming).”

Here is a handful of other definitions

NLP has been described as:

• the study of what works in thinking, language, and behaviour. It is a way of coding and reproducing excellence that enables you to consistently achieve the results that you want both for yourself, for your business, and for your life. NLP at Work by Sue Knight
• a field of human endeavour concerned with empirically studying and modelling human performance and excellence, with the goal of creating transferable skill sets. www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NLP
• NLP studies brilliance and quality – how outstanding individuals and organisations get their outstanding results. The methods can be taught to others so they too can get the same class of results. This process is called ‘modelling’. NLP Workbook by Joseph O’Connor
• a useful model of beliefs and techniques that offer a way to use the mind and body to achieve excellence in learning, business, counselling, relationships, sports and other experiences of life.   www.healingartistsofsac.com/Glossary.htm
• the practical science of detecting, evolving and using the conscious and unconscious thinking and behavioural patterns that we are constantly experiencing. http://www.nlpca.com/p3476.html#WhatIsNLP
• the cutting-edge communications field that enhances professional development and personal performance. NLP is about how people learn, communicate, change, and evolve them selves. It was originally developed by studying patterns of communicating and thinking, used by highly successful people. http://www.nlpca.com

We also like this reply given by the NLP author and trainer, Sue Knight, in response to a question:

Now does NLP work? - interesting question that carries a lot of presuppositions, for example that NLP is a topic with an independent identity. When John Grinder and Richard Bandler (the founders of NLP) modelled people like Milton Eriksson and Virginia Satir they discovered that it was not what they did but the way that they did it. And so it is with NLP. It is a process of finding out what is the difference between great and good and what ultimately works. To say does NLP work is to make it a static subject I believe. I may be the wrong person to ask as for me the goal is to find what makes that difference and my use and understanding of NLP changes all the time in that process. I work to enable individuals and companies find their own greatness and if something else were to do it better then that would be my choice and I guess therefore it would be a part of NLP too if it makes that difference! http://www.sueknight.co.uk/AskSK/sa1/sa167.htm

 

What does NLP mean for Judy?

Well, I am a great reader, and NLP was just another subject I picked up in a book.  I was so intrigued by what I read that I decided to try a short course in NLP.  It was there that I saw NLP in action, and realised that its claims to create rapid and lasting change were absolutely true. I witnessed it in others and I experienced it myself.  It wasn’t like being converted – it was more the sense of relief of recognising that I made sense, that my various blocks to being successful and happy were part of an understandable pattern that could be changed. Over the years, NLP has helped me become more focused, more consistently successful, more relaxed, easier to be with – and my friends, family and colleagues agree!

I like the fact that NLP doesn’t claim to be a particular –ism, or church, or philosophy. It is just a process of observing what people do and are, especially those who are excellent in some field of endeavour, and learning from that. We can then use that learning in any way that we wish – to expand our own awareness, to free ourselves from what hinders us and become more of who we can be, or to help others in these areas if they want it.

Just that. Just learning how we can be joyful and magnificent!

 

What does NLP mean for John?

I’ve always been deeply curious about how people work and that led me down the path of doing a Masters degree in business and reading a lot about psychology and human development. Even after years of study I felt there was so much missing and that I really didn’t yet have the tools for truly understanding what makes people tick. I then happened across NLP and that unlocked a treasure chest of discovery for me. Not only did it match my own learning style of ‘learning-through-doing’ but taught me so much about how and why people are the way they are – including some major lessons about myself which have literally changed my life.

In my professional capacity as trainer and coach, NLP is about curiosity and choice: developing a healthy non-judgemental curiosity for what might actually be going on in order to help expand the range of behavioural choices for yourself and others. The impact can be extraordinary and as a life-long learner the tools and concepts of NLP provide endless learning and wonder. It is about ‘what works’ as someone once described it, and there are always new things to learn that feed my curiosity.

Specifically what it has meant for me is that I have a much clearer focus, greater happiness and fulfilment, the best relationships of my life and I’m probably healthier than I have ever been before. I’m much more able to achieve and sustain a sense of wonder about life and to be energised about what the future holds.

 

In the next newsletter we answer the question, “Is NLP manipulative?”. The answer, in our opinion, is “Yes” by the way. Find out what that really means in the next newsletter.

 

One last story to finish on:

 

John was visiting Santa Cruz last year for Robert Dilts 'Coaching and Modelling' course at NLPU. One evening a group of fellow NLP'ers were standing around waiting for a taxi to go downtown. The taxi arrived and the group spent quite a few minutes deliberating where to go, what to eat, when they were coming back, who else might like to come along etc. Eventually as they could see the taxi driver was getting impatient the group jumped in and agreed to head for the middle of town and make up their mind there.

The laid-back and friendly taxi driver (the tend to be that way in Santa Cruz) asked what the group were studying at the University. Someone mumbled something about NLP and the dreaded question came back, "What's that then?"

The group ummed and erred as they all grappled for an appropriate answer and John eventually said, "Well it's sort of the study of communication strategies".

The taxi driver pondered this for a few seconds and said, "Just started then..."

 

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