so, in the original work published
"Structure of magic Vol. 1" with the metamodel appeared
for the first time visually
Bandler and I called it "Modal Operators"
we borrowed this term...the three levels of logic ...
are typically going to confront when you take the university level
in logic there's the
A is true B is true what's the truth value
of A and B
so, that's the most basic propositional logic
and then you get quantification
all humans are mortal
Simon's a human, Simon's a mortal
and then the quantification of some of blablabla
and finally the third level is model opertors
and that's what we are doing here
the must, can, can't
must...
have to, etc
now
that's sort of the background for where the name comes from
and if you're interested it gives you a
screen to pull and go back and see what they've actually done
informalizing what we plan to do
in terms this application is a
and it's used in the metamodel
it's primarily a way of identifying the edges of somebodys thinking
if in fact the verbal productions that people made
are reasonably a faithful reflection of the thinking patterns
in our systems, visual, auditory, kinaesthetic, etc
as well as verbal
then you've been treated to a gift
they just told you where the edge of their map is
what are the challenges if I say to you: "We can't do this"?
what are the challenges?
and you challenge that?
yes, but what specific verbal challenge we make to a statement
in other words, like "we can't do that"
"we can't do the programme we've just done
there's actually two challenges
one points to the future and one points to the past
so if I say: "we can't do this"
and you say: "what stops us?"
you ask: "what's is the impediment? what is the obstacle?"
"what is is in the world that makes it impossible
or you can't do this particular thing?"
so you are asking for sort of
what's the obstacle?
which is really a past present oriented question
the other one is more interesting
what would happen if we did?
and that gold
is business, in research, in management practice, in family
it'll take a little extra time with your teenagers
but they should be taught this
"You can't go to the dance"
"mum, but what happened if I did?"
there may be an answer to that or may not
but it will teach the child
as they move into other parts of their life
to identify intuitively this sort of
conversational hinders
and to push past it and explore the consequences
of doing things that you're claimed you cant' do
"I can't do x" or "what happen if you did"
"I must do x" or "what happen if you didn't"
so it's the same challenge
there's a flip in the affirmative mediation
parts of it, so
it's that part clear? it's that challenge clear?
and to me of the challenges that you can make this is the most profitable
the boss says: "Yeah, great idea
but we can't implement that"
"boss, excuse me, respectfully
help me understand, but what happen if we did?"
and now you've opened a conversation
you're doing a research project
I can't get the results that I'm attempting to get
but what would happen if you did
or in that case that is quite useful to ask
"what specifically stops you? what's the impediment?"
so, the question which I
endorse unequivocally
is "what would happen if you did?"
"what would happen if you didn't?"
depending on whether is a can't or must
and the one that explores the present obstacles doing that
and the past ones is "what stops you for doing that?"
what makes you do
depending on whether it's a
have to-must or unable-can't
so, if somebody says, you know
"we have to do this" and you go
or "we can do this" and somebody...
and you respond with "what stops you? or what stops us?"
there's an implication that
there's a cause-effect relationship between the thing you are proposing
and the present obstacles in the world
and I don't like much endorsing any cause effect
in human discourse
so, I'm very sympathetic to those proposal here
and that's why I have been endorsing the future question of
what happen if we did do it
what would happen if we didn't do it
must or can, etc
but sometimes if you ask what prevents you
you can actually take you into unresourceful...
it often does, and notice, you know
there's always moms going
"Why can't you clean up your room before you leave in the morning?"
so, often such things lead to
as you correctly stated
states of inaptitude
essentially you would justify
the thing that you can't do as opposed to explore the consequences
of what would happen if you did do the thing
the consequences exploration is what I endorse here
not the investigation of what stops you
the cause of the implications
but the cause effect is implicit in the question
but that is a good question
what will happen if you did take time
and that's like...
- But I don't have time -
you never have time?
what if you substitute reading a book for this ridiculous conversation we are having right now
so, there's always a relative device to the immediate experience
move which I endorse
- How to actually get her out of that
she's living in second position
she is living a the service of the means of other people
there's no first position well developed
otherwise this wouldn't be an issue
the issue actually runs deeper
the conversation we talk about earlier this morning
about people who don't have first position
how do you develop that
but is not a bad beginning
to go: "well, you don't have...
you can't do it because you don't have time
you always are busy
always
you never sleep, you never stop you find yourself
you can explore that issue
what would happen if you did take the time
and reduced the commitment to these other activities
spread it out over a long... you know
lots of ways to negotiate it
but underneath I think you are gonna uncover the lack
of the well developed first position
she doesn't know what she wants
my mum was a complete exception
she was...
she was her own person
but in her generation women in the States
were sort of evaluated on knowing what the needs
of their children and husbands were
before they knew what their needs were
and the other way encompasses by living in their
in their position
so... sense, calibrate, second position
and that's why the "empty nest " syndrome
was so strong in their generation
once the children are gone
suddenly you're confronted with this person who...
your husband, your wife
and you know
there's nothing to be done and now suddenly you are confronted with the void
what I'm gonna do with my life
- that's when they go and buy the most expensive car they can find -
often it resolves in some cases
the so called mid-life crisis
they try fill the void with things
material things
- How do you develop a first position? -
I so don't have any idea
(laughs) It's always, I've always known what I want
that helps immensly
and sort of presuppose the first position
I can sense what I want
If you ever get the chance to watch Carmen Bostic
at a buffet
it's very instructive
she'll walk through the buffet
sniffing, looking, pausing and she will take nothing
and assume she's has the time
and she goes back and she'll get a plate
and she walk up and stand in front of this offering
waiting for a movement or a lack of movement
so she let's her unconscious pick
the portions and the sequences and conbinations
which are healthiest as far as the human body can
there's a lot of other things to say about eating and weight management and so forth
we are very corrupted by sugar
and refined flour and so forth
in the most of western European cultures
but there's an old experiment happened in the...
late 30's I think
take an infant, year an half who can more or less feed themselves
and give them what at the time
in this era were consider the major food groups
which in some proportionality were consider to be a perfect diet
It's changed
behind each our attempts to make this happen
but nevertheless you can give the kid
let the kid feed itself
and cover the floor around
then you weight the containers
and you keep track of how much of each one of his major food groups
over any single feeding or any single day
or any single series of 4 or 5 days
horribly unbalanced diet
over about a week or 10 days he starts to close
on average
and this is sometimes you heard wisdom of the body
notice I use a year and a half old baby as the model here
because they are less corrupted
by the things I just mentioned, sugar and refined flours
so there's something very nice about having enough self calibration
sensitivity to what you need in your body
that you seek certain things automatically
and if you have access to those sensations
and you can allow the to unfold rather than overriding them
with more conscious decisions about I want something sweet