NLP: Neuro-Linguistic Programming

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NLP

NLP stands for Neuro-linguistic programming. Neuro is the brain and neural network that our bodies send, store, and receive signals. Linguistics is the verbal and non-verbal content that moves through the neurological system. Programming is the way in which we use the content running through the neurological system. The brain directs, sequences, and changes signals based on prior stored experiences and our beliefs. In short, NLP is the study of the mechanics of the mind.

NLP is also a “study of excellence” based on the language, behavior, strategies, beliefs, and patterns of successful people. The logic is that if an individual can duplicate the model of a successful person, then they, too, will be successful.

The basic premise of NLP is that once we understand our own perception of reality, called a “map”, we can change our perceptions in order to achieve what we are wishing for. Our perceptions are self-fulfilling prophecy.

NLP was developed in the early 1970s by Richard Bandler, a mathematician, and John Grinder, a linguist, at the University of California at Santa Cruz. NLP incorporates ideas and models from various roots. The three major ones are:

• Milton Erickson – Hypnotherapy
• Friz Perls – Gestalt Therapy
• Virginia Satir – Family Therapy

In addition, other ideas originated from the work of:

• Noam Chomsky – Transformational Grammar
• Gregory Bateson – Logical levels
• Moshe Feldenkrais – Body Work
• Eugene Galanter, George Miller, and Karl Pribram – Systems Theory
• Alfred Korzybski – General Semantics
• Ivan Pavlov – Stimulus-trigger-response Conditioning

WHAT TECHNIQUES ARE USED IN NLP?

Not only is NLP the study of linguistics and models but it also has a language of its own that must be learnt by a new practitioner.

The practice of NLP consists of specific techniques called technologies. Included in the list of techniques are: Anchoring; Congruence; Ecology; Eye Cues; Mapping; Modeling; Neuro-logical Levels; Pacing & Leading; Perceptual Positions; Rapport; Reframing; Representational Systems; Sensory Acuity & Calibration; States & Emotions; Strategies & Goals; Submodalities; Values & Beliefs; and Well-formed Outcomes.

BODY LANGUAGE

Body language is read through various ways such as an individual’s use of representational systems, submodalities, and eye cues.

REPRESENTATIONAL SYSTEMS

Our representational systems are how we use our senses to perceive. In addition, how we store and remember information is connected to the senses. Some believe individuals have preferred representational system (PRS) and process information primarily in one sensory modality. Others believe that we use all of the representational systems to one degree or another. And yet others believe that when an individual is under stress, one representational system will more dominate than the others. The representational systems are:

• Visual (images)
• Auditory (sounds)
• Kinesthetic (touch and internal feelings)
• Gustatory (tastes)
• Olfactory (smells)
• Digital (thought including internal dialog)

An individual’s use of representational systems can be observed by tracking their breathing, eye movements, gestures, posture changes, skin color, tone of voice, and use of sensory predicates.

SUBMODALITIES

The qualitative and quantitative details of representational systems are called submodalities. Submodalities include characteristics such as aspect, brightness, color, clarity, contrast, density, direction, distance, intensity, fragrance, frequency, location, movement, orientation, perspective, pitch, pressure, rhythm, shape, size, symmetry, taste, temperature, texture, tone, transparency, volume, and weight.

Analyzing and clarifying the submodalities helps us to consciously understand how something is linked to the senses, what emotion it may illicit, and how it is held in the mind. NLP techniques that change submodalities can alter responses to specific stimuli.

EYE CUES

Eye flickers in specific directions can often indicate internal mental processing. The common NLP model for eye accessing cues is:

• Upwards to the left – Visually remembered (Vr)
• Upwards to the right – Visually constructed (Vc)
• Level toward the left ear – Auditorily remembered (A)
• Level toward the right ear – Auditorily constructed (A)
• Down to the right — Kinesthetic (K)
• Down to the left – Internal Dialogue

Note: This is one of several different models of Eye Cues. In addition, all individuals are unique and many individuals may not fit this model. The best way to test, is to observe the client and calibrate their personal system.

VERBAL LANGUAGE

There are two models that focus directly on verbal language: the Meta and the Milton.

META MODEL

It is common for individual’s to distort, generalize, or delete important information in everyday communication. The Meta Model helps the NLP practitioner gather information from the client by asking questions designed to clarify an individual’s meaning in what they are communicating. In other words, it drills down to the finite essence of meaning. The Meta Model helps uncover the missing information by asking questions in the following forms: according to whom, compared to what or whom, how, how do you know, how does X cause Y, what, what would happen if, where, when, which, and who. Note that “why” is not one of the questions that is asked as it usually puts an individual on the defensive.

MILTON MODEL

The Milton Model is the opposite of the Meta Model. It is purposely vague and metaphoric language. This form of language allows the client to fill in their own meaning for what is being heard. The Milton Model is derived from Milton Erickson, a skilled hypnotherapist, who used vague and ambiguous language to induce trance. It works by distracting the conscious mind while the subconscious can be accessed. The Milton Model uses ambiguity, double binds, embedded suggestion, metaphor, multiple-meaning sentences, and pacing and leading.

CHANGE ACTIVITIES

There are hundreds of different NLP techniques that have are presented in books. In this section I will cover a few of the major ones.

WORKING ON DIFFERENT NEURO-LOGICAL LEVELS

Working a technique through six neuro-logical levels facilitates belief change. The six levels are:

1. Environment – The context and how it affects behavior.
2. Behavior – Actions, habits, and patterns of behavior.
3. Capability – Skills and knowledge resources for behavior.
4. Beliefs & Values – Higher resources that motivate and drive behavior.
5. Identity – Sense of self.
6. Spirit or Strategic Vision – Higher purpose and values that create identity.

MAPPING ACROSS

Mapping across is the process of transferring elements of one state or situation to another. It involves employing successful strategies, beliefs, behaviors, and processes to bring about successful performance.

One example of this is called “the Circle of Excellence”. The client thinks of a situation where their current behavior is not working for them. The NLP practitioner asks the client to identify resources that would support a new behavior. The client remembers a situation where they felt the strong use of these resources or they visualize a person they know who has these resources. With this feeling present, the client steps into a circle visualized on the floor and there they experience this positive resource state. The resources are tested in a future pace scenario (see below). So the positive resources are now “mapped across” into present and future situations that will generate a new behavior.

REFRAMING

A frame can refer to a limiting belief. The basic concept of a reframe is that if we change how we perceive an event, our response and our behavior will also change. Reframing can occur in one of three ways:

1. Context Reframe – The content remains the same but the context in which it exists changes. The meaning of the behavior remains the same but can be seen to be positive in a different context.

2. Content Reframe – The context remains the same but the content within it changes. Content is usually about changing an old behavior to a new behavior.

3. Double Reframe – Both the content and the context is changed.

ANCHORING

An anchor is a process by which a particular state or response is accentuated or reinforced through the use of a unique sensory stimulus. Common anchors are gestures, voice tone, or touch. In my practice, I also use ritual to anchor change.

ECOLOGY & FUTURE PACING

Ecology is the practice of checking a client’s desired outcome against the consequences. One technique of ecology is called future pacing. After a change activity of behavior has been completed, the client is asked to visualize a related scenario happening in the future. If the client is still feeling positive then it is believed that when the client finds themselves in a similar future situation, the new behavior will occur.

PERCEPTUAL POSITIONS

There are four perceptual positions from which an NLP practitioner can observe. The ability to shift through all four positions greatly enhances an individual’s ability to establish rapport and facilitate effective communication skills.

1st Position Perceiving from within one’s self, seeing through one’s own eyes, hearing through one’s own ears, and feeling one’s own body.

2nd Position Perceiving and experiencing from another individual’s point of view. See, hear, feel, taste and smell another’s reality.

3rd Position Witnessing from an external perspective, standing back and perceiving the relationship between one’s self and another individual.

4th Position The gestalt experience of being in the other three positions simultaneously. Feeling connected, at one, with all individuals involved.

WHAT HAPPENS IN AN NLP SESSION?

The flow of a typical NLP session is:

1. The NLP practitioner checks state of the client.

2. The NLP practitioner establishes rapport with the client.

3. The NLP practitioner gathers information by analyzing the client’s verbal and body language while describing an issue. From this, the NLP practitioner can determine problems in a client’s perception and identify a root cause.

4. The NLP practitioner assists the client determine a desired outcome.

5. The NLP practitioner utilizes the resources they have in order to bring about a shift in the client’s preconceptions.

6. The NLP practitioner tests to see if the changes have taken effect with the client.

7. The NLP practitioner future paces with the client by mentally rehearsing and integrating the changes into their life.

One additional step is taken in transpersonal NLP:

8. The NLP practitioner helps the client integrate the shift in perception by calling in the client’s Higher Self to agree, support, and sustain the new perception.

WHY MAKE AN APPOINTMENT WITH ME?

NLP techniques work well with changing beliefs, depression, habit disorders, learning disorders, phobias, psychosomatic illnesses, and post-traumatic stress syndromes. NLP techniques also work well in the business world, specifically in sales and management.

In my sessions I include techniques from NLP as well as other modalities such as EFT (tapping), energy medicine, hypnotherapy, and shamanism.

QUOTES

Brains aren’t designed to get result; they go in directions. If you know how the brain works you can set your own directions. If you don’t, then someone else will. –Richard Bandler

In NLP, we don’t “treat” patients; we give people lessons on how to think and make better choices. —Richard Bandler

NLP is an attitude and a methodology, which leave behind a trail of techniques. —Richard Bandler

For me, NLP comes as close as anything I have discovered to providing the technical foundation of the art of the whole human being. –Lara Ewing

Copyright © 2015 Drake Bear Stephen. Except where acknowledged. www.DrakeInnerprizes.com

 

Breakfast with the Birds

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Bird Watching, Wild Birds

I am single. In fact, I have been single so long I can qualify as a professional single. And one of the curious habits of singles is we tend to eat a meal over the kitchen sink on a regular basis. After all, why fuss with setting up a table place for one? There is a perfect tree just outside my kitchen window from which I hung bird feeders. And so wild birds became my breakfast companions.

At first I hung only a couple feeders; a nectar feeder for hummingbirds, a tube feeder for seeds, and a bird bath that doubled as a drinking pond. But once the word got out on the chirpagraph, the flocks started coming by for brunch. All the birds were inviting their friends and family to eat for free. That created a big battle of wing flapping to see who got to sit at the feeders.

So I began experimenting with different types of feeders and seeds. Through trial and experimentation, I have developed a great feeding system that attracts many different types of birds. The essential principle to attracting different species is using a zone system to feed them. There are basically 4 different zones that wild birds feed from:

1. Take Out – These birds (Chickadees, Titmouses, Woodpeckers, Jays) come to the feeder alone, select the choice nut or seed and take it away to eat (or bury) somewhere else. They spend very little time at the feeder. They like to eat from open trays and/or suet feeders.

2. Dine In – These birds (Finches) come to the feeders in flocks and stay for long periods of time, sometimes all day. They like to perch on feeder tubes and thistle socks.

3. Curbside Service – These birds (Sparrows, Juncos, Towhees, Quail, Doves, Robins) do not perch but scratch for seed on the ground. They feed alone or bring some friends and family.

4. Nectar Feeders – These birds like sweet and syrupy fluids (Hummingbirds, Orioles).

Maybe it’s not true that the early bird gets the worm. Maybe the worm gets got about mid-morning because the peak of bird activity at my feeders is 8 to 10 am. Not too many birds like to hang around at dusk. I guess they must not like to fly after dark.

I marvel at the differences between the species. Some birds hop (like Robins and Jays). Others walk or swish (like Doves and Quail). The bigger the bird, the slower the movements and the smaller the bird, the faster the movements. The ground feeders dig around in the dirt completely oblivious to an entire feeder full of seeds just 6 feet above their heads. The perchers would never think of lowering themselves to the ground to search for seeds. Some birds (like Jays, Crows, Titmouse, and Chickadees) like to work for their food by picking shelled seeds to eat. Other birds (like Finches) only like the faster foods like shelled seeds they can gobble right up.

When the big Jays come they clear the deck. All the other birds co-exist pretty peaceably. But when the Jay comes swooping in every other bird vanishes instantly. Jays love take away but they like shopping, too. They pick up and drop each shelled peanut until they have determined which is the biggest. Then they take it away to bury it. Jays, like squirrels, are hoarders. Once it’s buried they return to repeat the process again, weighing each peanut before making their choice.

When I put out sunflower seeds and thistle I get a flurry of Finches. They hang out in flocks and may be called flying pigs. They can chow down a $20 bag of seed in a few days! I don’t know how they keep their figures when they hang out at the feeder all day.

The Chickadees are dive bombers. They come to the feeder like carrier pilots lined up to land on a deck. They grab a black oiled sunflower seed and off they go to eat it in private.

The Sparrows, not the robins, are the early birds. They usually arrive first and stay the latest at dusk. Sometimes, the doves are their companions at dusk.

The Hummingbirds are hovercraft that refill on the fly, suspended in air while feeding from the bright red nectar port.

A single tiny Kinglet comes to hang out with the big birds. He is always alone and cavorts in the bushes never still for more than a second.

When the Titmouse sings, he sounds like he has a sore throat. I love the way his feathers stick up on his head, like a big dab of Brylcreem couldn’t make them lay flat.

The Towhee and Sparrow look like little Irish dancers doing jigs in the dirt, trying to churn up more seeds.

As I watch my birds each day I wonder why calling someone a “bird brain” is an insult. Birds are smart. They can construct nests, they can weave, they can drop nuts in traffic in order to crack open the shells, they can impale lizards on thorns, they can migrate without maps by day or by night, they can fly thousands of miles and land in the same tree year after year.

Top Reasons Why I Like Wild Birds

1. They are lovely to listen to.
2. They are beautiful to look at.
3. They are fun to watch.
4. They have wonderful innate skills to admire.
5. They are symbols of Nature, The Wild, and Freedom.
6. They are messengers between Father Sky and Mother Earth.
7. They are outdoor pets to love with no indoor cleanup required.
8. There is no daily bird walking required.
9. There is no bird hair on the furniture and my wardrobe.

My List of All Time Favorite Birds

Best in Snow: Penguins
Best Singer: Mockingbird
Cutest: California Quail
Most Amazing: Ruby-throated Hummingbird (These tiny birds migrate 18 hours non-stop over the Gulf, a total of 600 miles)
Most Beautiful: Cuban Tody (They look like little puffs of multi-colored cotton candy)
Best Chameleon: Rock Ptarmigan
Most Colorful: Painted Bunting
Most Creative: Bowerbirds
Most Entertaining: Acorn Woodpecker
Most Sexy: Northern Cardinal (Bright red for passion)
Prettiest Song: Canyon Wren
My Closest Relative: Mallard (Drake)
My Spirit Bird: Steller’s Jay (This is the bird that watched over me during Vision Quest)
Teddy Birds of the Sky: Chickadees
Longest Migration: Arctic Tern (Migrates 21,000 mi/yr, roundtrip Arctic to Antarctic)
Longest Nonstop Time in the Air: Sooty Tern (Spends 4-5 years in air without landing)

Copyright © 2015 Drake Bear Stephen. Except where acknowledged. www.DrakeInnerprizes.com

Friday the 13th: Lucky or Unlucky?

Some cultures consider the number 13 to be unlucky but not all cultures do. Phobia of the number 13 is called triskaidekaphobia. An example of our fear of the number 13 is demonstrated by the fact that tall buildings often do not have a 13th floor, by the belief that Friday the 13th is an unlucky day, and by the belief that it is unlucky to have 13 guests at a table. The belief that the number 13 is unlucky may be derived from the idea that Judas, the 13th disciple, betrayed Jesus.

On the other hand, in Italy, 13 is considered a lucky number. 13 is also a prime number, the number of full moons in a year, the number of Mayan heavens, the number of Aztec day periods, and the number of people in a coven. The number 13 is really neutral and it is our individual expectation or intention that will make Friday the 13th be lucky or unlucky. Which one do you want to believe?

Copyright © 2015 Drake Bear Stephen. Except where acknowledged. www.DrakeInnerprizes.com

The Beauty and Symbolism of Pine Cones

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Pine Cones

#1: An altar of grounding, woodsy, ripe Earth energy.
I have always had a special fondness for pine cones. I collect them whenever I travel. I have them all around my house and use them on my altars, portable and permanent, as representations of Nature. I got to wondering why I am so attracted to pine cones so I started researching the meaning attached to pine cones. This short series is a result of what I found and a tribute to the pine cone.

#2: Providing Beauty of Nature in arts & crafts.
Pine cones are used in a great variety of arts & crafts, including wreaths, holiday decorations, decorating décor, fire starters, bird feeders, and toys. I love walking into craft stores before Christmas because the cinnamon scented bags of cones drives me wild. Wanna make a natural, homemade birdfeeder? Smear peanut butter on a pine cone and hang it in a tree.

If you want to use pine cones in the house, here is a way to do so dry, bug and seed free.
1. Lay cones on foil covering a cookie sheet.
2. Bake for about 45 minutes in an oven at low temperature (about 200 degrees).
3. Let cool.

#3: A vortex of fertile forces dripping with sexuality.
The pine cone is a symbol of sexuality and fertility. The Romans associated the pine cone with Venus, the Goddess of Love. Celts gathered pine cones to use as fertility charms. A woman wanting to conceive would put them under her pillow. Dionysus (Bacchus) held a rod tipped with a pine cone that represented masculine generative forces. I find it ironic that the pine cones we see are symbols of masculine generative forces since it is the feminine version of the tree, called the seed cone. It produces pine seeds when it becomes fertilized. The male cone, called the pollen cone, are found at the ends of the lower branches. Their purpose is to release pollen and once done, they die. Pine pollen is the most potent source of testosterone from plants.

#4: Potential for growth stored in a pretty package.
The pine cone is a symbol of growth. All the parts are there to create a new life but since it has not yet taken root, it is still purely potential. That is why I like to use pines cones as an offering to sacred fire. I blow my prayers into the energy of potential and then let the flames free them into the universe.

#5: Beauty in Nature, Nature in Us.
The pineal gland is a pea-sized gland located between the cerebral hemispheres in the brain. The pineal gland was got its name because it looks like a tiny pine cone. It has several functions but most importantly is known as our spiritual center or intuitive center, called the 3rd eye.

Here is a process you can use to stimulate or activate your pineal gland:

• With your eyes closed, stare at the tip of your nose, then raise your gaze to the 3rd eye.
• Visualize the opening and clearing of your pineal gland.
• Tap your 3rd eye 3 times to inform and seal.

Ways to keep the pineal gland healthy:

• Avoid fluoride, which is believed to calcify the pineal gland.
• Avoid meat, which is believed is disruptive to the pineal gland’s abilities.
• Breathwork is important to activating the pineal gland.
• Remove all sources of light from a dark room in order for the pineal gland to effectively secrete melatonin.

#6: A symbol for the Eye of Intuition.
Since the pine cone is sensitive to light, it is a symbol for enlightenment. The pine cone as a symbol of spiritual illumination is found in many ancient cultures including Christian, Babylonian, Egyptian, Greek, Indonesian, Mexican, and Roman cultures. It also appears in the esoteric traditions of Freemasonry, Gnosticism, and Theosophy. Modern scientists are finding that the pineal gland, the seat of our soul, is also sensitive to light. Retinal proteins have been found in the pineal gland cells, which suggests that photon flashes of light are occurring in the pineal gland. So, lightworkers, gather ye pine cones as a symbol of the soul’s light.

#7: Opening itself to us as a symbol of Spiritual Illumination.
The pine cone is a symbol for the 3rd Eye. The 3rd Eye has been called by various names throughout history, including the “Inner Eye,” “Mind’s Eye,” “Eye of the Soul,” and “Eye of Reason.” The 3rd Eye was portrayed in ancient Egypt as the Eye of Ra. Almost all Hindu gods and goddesses, as well as many humans, wear a bindi between their eyebrows, which is a physical representation of the 3rd Eye. Even the single horn of the unicorn represents the 3rd Eye and was adopted as a symbol of an illumined spiritual nature.

Kundalini, the spiritual energy that sits at the base of the spine, can awaken the 3rd Eye when it rises up to the forehead, where the 6th chakra is. The kundalina energy travels along the left (ida) and right (pingala) energetic pathways, weaving back and forth as it ascends the central pole (sushumna). This is the symbolism of the caduceus, which is the symbol of Western medicine.

To awaken the 3rd Eye, your “sight” must be turned inward. I learned how to see with my 3rd Eye quite by accident. I was attempting to put on a necklace. I kept trying to line up the two ends of the clasp behind my neck with my hands. I was sending the message to my hands to move here and move there. I absolutely had no luck. But then I pictured in my mind the two ends joining, and I connected them immediately. I was turning my sight inward to see the joining of the necklace. It works every time.

When you are able to see with the 3rd Eye, you will feel expanded perceptual abilities, increased sensitivity, increased sense of peace, and a higher consciousness.

#8: The symbolic seed to Everlasting Life.
Pine cones are a symbol of everlasting or eternal life. They are used to pollinate the Tree of Life. Pagans revere objects from Nature that represent eternal life, such as the evergreen tree and its pine cones. The seed of the pine cone gives birth to trees that in turn outlive humans by hundreds or thousands of years. In this way, a pine seed can represent the Fountain of Youth or the Fountain of Forever. The fact that the pine cone also represents spiritual enlightenment lends even more support to an everlasting life, because it is our spirituality, our energy body, our Higher selves that gives each of our souls the gift of eternal life.

#9: The male cone spreads his pollen to perpetuate life.
Since so many honors were paid to the female pine cone, the male cone needed equal acknowledgement. Without him, trees would not be. Our lives on Earth are like the male pine cone. We come, we pollinate the world with our unique gifts, and we are gone again. How are you pollinating the world?

#10: Nature teaches through metaphor.
I very rarely post someone else’s photo but this is one I saw on a Facebook post and it was so relevant to the pine cone series that I had to share it. I will close this series with this: Descartes, a French philosopher, called the pineal gland the “Seat of the Soul”. The pine cone and the pineal gland are powerful symbols of Earth energy, sexuality and fertility, spiritual illumination, and everlasting life. Will you ever look at a pine cone as simply a pine cone now?

Copyright © 2015 Drake Bear Stephen. Except where acknowledged. www.DrakeInnerprizes.com