Your brain is an incredible organ. Weighing only 3% of our total body weight, it uses around 20% of our body’s energy. Including the limbic system, and closely connected to all other systems of the body such as the immune system it is the key to health, happiness, energy and performance.

It used to be said that we only use 10% of our brains capability, but more recent research suggests that we may actually use as little as 3% to 5%!

NLP studies the secrets of how our brains work and can help to unlock the vast potential of this most powerful ‘Super Computer’.

Language and communication are much more involved than you may think. When we are face to face with another person only 7% of our emotional message is communicated via the words we use; 38% is via the sound of our voice – pitch, intonation etc; and a staggering 55% of emotional communication comes from subtle (and sometimes not so subtle!) body language. It’s not surprising that more misunderstandings can occur over the telephone, and even more so with e-mail. NLP studies every aspect of communication both verbal and non-verbal to help us create clarity and precision in our interactions, not just with others but with ourselves also… How well do you communicate with the Inner You? Do you take notice of the messages from your unconscious mind? The greater our understanding of ourselves, the greater our understanding of the world and people around us.

 

The How! How to program our personal 'Biological Super Computer' (our brain) to achieve peak performance. NLP copies {models} the mental processes {strategies) of the top performers in every field, be it business, health, sport, relationships, etc., and teaches us how to apply these mental models of Excellence so that we too can achieve similar results in our own lives.

 

Neuro Semantics {NS} is the latest extension of NLP. In the mid 1990’s L. Michael Hall PhD and Dr. Bob Bodenhamer, both NLP Trainers, founded the International Society of Neuro-Semantics. Hall and Bodenhamer took the already powerful tools of NLP and greatly added to and expanded the model to create Neuro- Semantics.

Semantics refers to our higher and more abstract brain functions. Beyond language and expression we have Meaning. The Meanings our brains assign to the input from the world are the most powerful drivers of behaviour. In short, NLP is the expression or our NS.

 

 

Until the invention and first use of chemical anesthetics during the nineteenth century, hypnosis was widely used for pain control. During the nineteenth century also, British surgeon James Esdale performed over 300 operations – including serious amputations – whilst working in a hospital in Calcutta using nothing but hypnosis as anesthesia. Hypnosis is now making a comeback in many hospitals worldwide, and many dentists use hypnosis for its aesthetic quality, to reduce swelling, control bleeding and speed recovery time. Much scientific research is currently being done to support the effectiveness of medical hypnosis.

 

Hypnotherapy simply means “Therapy done whilst in hypnosis”. During hypnotherapy this natural state is accessed and deepened in order to re-program the non-conscious mind and resolve specific psychological ills such as phobias, depressions, anxieties etc.

NS/NLP and Hypnosis are not just used as therapeutic tools. People don’t only go to the gym, work out, jog or cycle on doctor’s orders when they become ill or unfit. Mostly it’s perfectly fit and active people who enjoy the benefits of exercise to further improve already good health.

You can never really have too much exercise. The more you do the fitter you become and the better you perform – stronger, faster, more endurance - better health.

Much neglected by many though is the fact that our minds need exercising too. Just as if we neglect our bodies they become slow lethargic and perform poorly, the same is true of our minds.

It has been said that as we get older our minds deteriorate and there’s nothing we can do about it – NOT TRUE! Studies show that the more a person – of ANY age – uses their brain the more their cognitive abilities increase. It’s just like physical exercise – the more you do, the better you get. There doesn’t have to be a ‘problem’ in order to improve our “Mental Muscle”.

Top athletes in virtually every sport use psychological training techniques. Sport psychology is a recognized field in itself, and as NLP is a psychology based on the study of Excellence and Peak Performance, what better tool to improve your game. From changing limiting self-beliefs, mental rehearsal, visualization, improving focus and concentration… NS/NLP and Hypnosis can give you that winning edge!

A 20 day study in the USA took college basket ball players and divided them into three groups; Group one practiced ‘shooting hoops’ for one hour a day for 20 days. Group two practiced for one hour on day one, and one hour on day 20, but did nothing during the 18 days in between. Group three did one hours practice on day one and on day 20 and spent the 18 days in between merely visualizing shooting hoops for an hour a day.

When tested on the court, the results were remarkable; Group one improved by 24%. Group two (not surprisingly) showed no improvement at all. Group three, who had simply visualized for 18 days showed an amazing 23% improvement – almost as much as the group who had put in the ‘hard yards’! Similar studies all show similar results. And visualization is just one of the many tools which NLP and Hypnosis can utilize.

In short, NS/NLP and Hypnosis can help build Mental Muscle and Psychological Fitness, which results in increased physical performance.

 

Whether dealing with a boss or an employee; or with family members, friends or partners, the lack of clear communication can cause misunderstanding, tension, stress and frustration. Being able to send exactly the right message and having it understood in exactly the way you intend is a real skill that comes from understanding both yourself and the person with whom you are communicating.

Most relationship problems and broken marriages occur when communication breaks down. We each have different ways of communicating and understanding. Knowing how your partner understands and communicates is vital. A couple in relationship experiencing difficulties may quite simply be speaking in different languages. “What?” I hear you say! Here I refer to our ‘internal language’; internal representations, ‘meta-programs’ and our own unique values, beliefs and meanings.

In business, greater understanding amongst departments and personnel creates a more harmonious working environment and leads to greater productivity. In dealing with clients; repeat business and better client retention. In sales being able to identify exactly what the customer needs – and being able to fulfill those needs – results in greater turnover and increased profits.

Avoiding conflict is essential. Conflict resolution skills are invaluable in your business and personal areas of life. NS/NLP can help you to understand both your own and others’ ways of communicating.

 

NS/NLP Teaches us how to ‘Run our own brains’. Have you ever been trying to do something only to find that you keep sabotaging your own efforts with seemingly ‘silly’ mistakes? Curiously enough most people are unaware of their sub-conscious drives and often find they get ‘stuck’ and at odds with themselves. Do you run your own brain?

Ask yourself this question; what do you want from life? Consider your answer carefully. Do you even have an answer? The vast majority of people don’t ever consider their life direction and drift aimlessly along without a thought as to how they would really like to live life, what they really want to achieve and what potential they really have.

Do you set goals? Do you even know how to set goals? NS/NLP can identify you’re your sub-conscious values and help to clarify your life path. Once identified, NS/NLP can help to make your goals both realistic and achievable – and don’t think that just because goals are realistic and achievable that they can’t be major life changing events!

Health should be approached holistically. One of the presuppositions of NLP is that “Body and Mind are One System”. It is a proven fact that the mind affects the body and vice-versa. Many physical illnesses occur as a result of poor mental well-being. Depression, anxiety, worry and stress in the mind can create tension, headaches and lack of energy in the body. Left untreated these symptoms may go on to cause serious illness. By addressing the psychological ‘root causes’ many illnesses can be cured or simply avoided altogether. This is not to say that all illness is purely psychological. We are mind and body and both need to be considered for complete health and well-being.

 

Unfortunately, psychological well-being is often the neglected area of the two. Often people treat the physical symptoms of illness only to have them return or re-manifest in a different way. Someone who finds themselves constantly going to the doctor for a string of niggling illnesses, or always having to take medication for headaches, backaches, tension, lack of energy, etc., should consider the fact that there may be an underlying and unresolved psychological issue that they may be unaware of.

 

The mind can also be a powerful tool in recovery from serious illness. The use of NS/NLP and Hypnosis can speed up the physical healing process and vastly shorten recovery time.