What is the Structure of Magic?

In the 1970s, Richard Bandler and John Grinder set out to answer the questions: ‘how do wildly successful people create their success?’ and ‘can these methods of success be replicated?’.‘can these methods of success be replicated?’.
They studied the best therapists of their time, and through observation, testing and trail and error, codified what they found into sets of prinicples and techniques. When they taught and used these strategies and found that they could reproduce the success these therapists had, they knew they were on to something.

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Throughout history, NLPers have been hunted down by the Evil League of Anti-NLPers, who have waved the Torches of deBunk (+2 agility) at us and angrily shouted big, big words like ‘pesudo-science’, ‘quackery’ and ‘you’re too hot for NLP’ (I get this one all the time).

For every claim for NLP, you can find one against. What’s going on?

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It was confusing; here was this bright, strong young woman who clearly had goals she passionately wanted, but somehow something held her back from going after them.

As I worked with her through the roots of her beliefs, I thought we were almost on the way to breaking her limiting patterns and on to action, when her face fell and she said she couldn’t continue.

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This belief which enabled master therapists like Milton Erickson and Virginia Satir to help people whom other people had labeled ‘hopeless’ is also known as:

There are no resistant clients, only inflexible coaches/ therapists/ salespeople/ teachers

Also phrased sometimes as:

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Had enough rolling your mind over the Pygmalion effect? Because the next NLP presupposition ties in nicely with it:

Everyone already has all the resources they need or the ability to get them

which also complements nicely the presupposition that people are not broken.

Neuro-Linguistic Programming believes that experience has a structure, and that structure is composed out of 5 senses: visual, auditory, kinesthetic, olfactory or gustatory. And if every experience is composed out of these same building blocks, so is every state or resource.

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The next NLP presupposition is a pretty integral one to making things work with Neuro-Linguistic Programming:

Experience has a structure

Neuro-Linguistic Programming believes that experience has a structure, and that structure is composed out of 5 senses: visual, auditory, kinesthetic, olfactory or gustatory. And because every experience is composed out of these same building blocks, so is every state, habit, skill or resource.

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Something came to me so obviously connected with the NLP 101: You Cannot Not Communicate post that I regret not putting it up.

Have you ever heard of the Pygmalion effect? It refers to situations in which people perform better than other people simply because they are expected to do so.

In a study conducted by Robert Rosenthal, teachers of students were told that certain students were more gifted than others, when in fact, they were just students that were randomly selected. The amazing thing is, compared to an IQ test they took at the beginning of the year, and the same test at the end of the year, those randomly selected students showed more improvement than the other students!

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People are not broken

In Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP), we believe that people are not broken, and they work perfectly.

For example, a phobia is normally considered a ‘bad’ thing, someone who has an irrational phobia of envelopes is considered ‘broken’.

But the phobia works perfectly, there is never an instance when the phobia doesn’t work. If you have a phobia, it doesn’t break down one day and come back the next. The person above wouldn’t hold an envelope for 5 minutes normally, and then suddenly remember to scream!

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If I told you that one of the key presuppositions in Neuro-Linguistic Programming was:

People are always making the best choices they have

you might think I was off my rocker.

“Alvin,” you might say, “what about people who abuse their bodies with drugs and alcohol, take it out on their kids, and listen to euro-trance? You can’t say those are the best choices anyone can make!”

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The obvious follow-up to a post like The Meaning of Your Communication is The Response You Get is this next Neuro-Linguistic Programming presupposition:

You Cannot Not Communicate

We’re all always communicating, even when we don’t mean to or want to. Remember when I wrote that words only form 7% or so of our communication, the rest is 38% tonality and 55% body language? You might be pretty slick with your wordplay, but how aware are you of your tonalities and body language?

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In Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP):

The Meaning Of Your Communication is The Response You Get

Ever have a time when you were sure you were being totally clear, but the other person heard something else?

One way to deal with that is to blame: it’s their fault they didn’t get it. But then they didn’t get it, you didn’t get it, nobody got anything.

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The most controversial and easily misunderstood of all the Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) presuppositions:

Every behaviour has a positive intention

Widely contested and misunderstood, until you add in this second half that makes it easier to understand:

Every behaviour has a positive intention, just not always for everyone else

Every behaviour you, I and everyone else engages in, has a positive intention behind it, even destructive behaviours like violence, drugs and listening to euro-trance.

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Continuing with the NLP 101 series, we come to the next presupposition:

There is No Failure Only Feedback (I prefer to say Learning Experience)

In NLP we say there is no such thing as success, failure, happiness, depression, good taste (accounts for euro-trance). Not that people don’t feel these things, but that they’re convenient labels we tack on things. Your subjective experience of happiness is quite different from mine.

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What are The NLP Presuppositions?

The most basic and essential parts of Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) are the presuppositions.

Think of the NLP presuppositions as the guiding principles or beliefs holding the NLP model up, like how a programming language maintains an entire computer operating system. Without the programming language, you can’t build the operating system and it collapses. But if you use the coding principles, your ability to create is limitless.

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Hold the press! Extra Special Definition for the Super Hardcore NLPers!

For the non-hardcore NLPers (I know you’re out there), take a chance. Read on, and see what new thoughts and ideas emerge, and tell me if you think I’m the greatest genius since Da Vinci or talking smack. Don’t look for me if your head explodes.

For the non-NLPers amongst us, you don’t have to read this, as I go a little more in-depth into the territory and you need some prior experience, and it’s not exactly life coaching stuff.

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Throughout history; men and women have sought the answer to the question: what is NLP? who is NLP? when is NLP? is NLP better than sex?

In these next few posts, I shall reveal the ancient secrets as they were exclusively given to me in a top secret location by a Very NLP Person (VNLPP). While you’ll notice my slightly flippant take on the subject, you’ll also hopefully find some useful gems along the way.

I’ve been an NLP junkie for 10 years now, becoming a practitioner at the tender age of 16 to a master practitioner a couple of years ago. In between I’ve devoured whatever NLP books, audio programs, and videos I could get my greedy hands on.

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