Try a little experiment. Look way up at the ceiling or sky, smile, raise your arms and ... try to be depressed!

Now, lower your head and look down to your right, slump your shoulders and try to be happy. Tough, isn't it?

Which state of mind did you prefer? You can choose to experience it, now or any time. And, you don't need to go through your whole day staring at the ceiling either.

Pick a state you want to feel. By reliving a time when you experienced these feelings strongly you will be able to have that state now. Make sure you really are in the situation: See what you saw then ... hear what you heard then and ... FEEL what you felt then.... Hold that for a minute and it's your's NOW!

There is obviously more to being in control of your internal states and ways of responding than this simple exercise. Yet it demonstrates a measure of self-determination that few ever get to experience.

WHAT IF YOU COULD?

Here's another experiment to try.

Every time you catch someone saying "I can't..." try saying, "What if you could?". Notice how they HAVE TO consider doing the very thing they said they couldn't do!

Of course, you can always ask yourself the same question...!

APPLICATIONS OF NLP

Perhaps most easily recognisable, NLP is being used in sports psychology to help access those states of mind and body needed to ensure the repetition of peak performance. The key is being able to reproduce the peak state at the precise moment required. An athlete can use positive statements like "I'm going to win this race," but if a little voice in their head is saying "No, way" there's not much chance of success. With NLP, that voice can be changed to "Go for it!"

Neuro-Linguistic Programming is being used in education to teach spelling and highly effective learning strategies to children. Did you know that most good spellers use a very similar method to spell? NLP has discovered the HOW TO of good spelling which can be taught in under an hour.

Also in education, teachers are learning how children who sort and store information visually have different learning strategies from those who sort and store information auditorially or kinesthetically (internal feelings). Having this information enables teachers to adjust their language so that what they say can be comprehended by more children.

In different fields, doctors and barristers are making use of the same NLP techniques for gathering high quality information from patients and clients alike.

NLP is also used to study how belief systems influence illness. It is beginning to be realised that HOW doctors give information can either be a powerful tool for recovery, or unwittingly introduce a 'thought virus' into their patients thinking. No where is the maxim, "If you believe it's possible, or you do not...you're probably right!" more true as in the area of health.

NLP in personal development focuses on what you want, how you want to be, and how to find the resources and attributes you already have to assist you in making changes. NLP offers a radically different approach to traditional psychotherapy and counselling methods which tend to focus on the problem and the causes of the problem, rather than the solution.

It also means dramatic improvements in people's lives can be accomplished in a relatively short period of time.

One of the more unusual applications is its use in teaching driving skills. A recent study indicates 66% fewer accidents in those who had taken a two day NLP training than the control group.

BENEFITS TO BUSINESS

Whilst NLP is a powerful tool for change at the level of the individual, the potential benefits to business and organisations can be nothing less than phenomenal.

A perfect opportunity to measure the effectiveness of NLP in an organisation was in 1986. After employing an NLP consultant, the U.S. Army were able to reduce their small arms marksmanship training from 6 weeks to 3 days with no detrimental effect on the pass rate!

In business and industry NLP is already being used to improve sales performance, decision making, presentation skills, motivation, stress management, team building, and almost every other area you can think of. Members of the business community trained in NLP are coached to excel with their own personal success strategies, as well as to incorporate proven formulas of excellence from others. How would you like to have access to Walt Disney's Creative Strategy whenever you needed?

You can also apply the same powerful NLP tools and techniques on a macro level within your corporation so the whole organisation will benefit.

Fiat in Italy is a prime example. For a number of years they have employed NLP experts to study "natural leaders" in their organisation so that these special leadership skills can be transferred to others. Fiat is exploring in detail what business in general is discovering. A new type of manager and leader is required to see business through these turbulent economic times and into the next Century. Concepts of corporate identity, vision, mission, and aligning the individual and the organisation behind shared values are pointing the way to the future.

The framework of the individual in business, the larger system (the political, social, and physical environments) and how these interrelate and inter-depend, form the basis for the new systemic approach. This needs to be underpinned with long-term wisdom and demonstrably living our values. In other words... learning to "walk our talk." It is in this area that NLP can make a unique contribution.

AND FINALLY...

There are many, many different NLP techniques you can use to improve yourself, and others. We can have control and choice over our lives in ways only dreamed of before NLP. And this article is just a taste of what is possible.

NLP can enable you to achieve those professional and personal goals you desire, to keep on the leading edge of the latest technology of change, to manage your own life, and to have the excellence and skills of anyone you have ever admired.

As Anthony Robbins is fond of saying, "What would you do if you knew you could not fail?"