We’re all products of our environment, and we’ve all been programmed to function a certain way.
It's a fact that our personalities get molded by ways of patterns that our brain creates over time.
Our beliefs make us speak, act, and rationalize in specific ways
that sometimes are hard even for us to understand, let alone others.
Try to deny that as much as you’d like,
but no amount of self-worth and sense of individuality
is going to separate you from who you were raised to be and how you feel about yourself inside.
We’re not the tiny, precious snowflakes we were once led to believe, and perhaps to some extent,
we’re all fated to act in ways that are influenced by our past experiences.
As true as that may be, we’re not helpless when it comes to changing the trajectory of our lives.
NLP or Neuro-Linguistic Programming can be one such tool among many others,
which can help you do just that.
Neuro-Linguistic Programming - not to be confused with Natural Language Processing,
can be used to lead a better, happier, and more productive life.
However, there’s a dark side to this story that people don’t like to hear about.
We’ll explore that later in this video, so keep watching.
First, what is NLP?
Now, it probably doesn’t come off as a surprise to you that our environment
and the way we think and feel have a tremendous impact on every aspect of our lives.
Be it in work-related matters or relationships,
NLP can be used to improve our chances of success.
That’s because the practice of NLP aims to look at our ideas, thoughts, and feelings
as factors that we are in control of rather than something that “happens to us.”
Since it’s not possible to describe every NLP technique because there are so many,
some of the most common ones are the following:
#1 Anchoring
This very popular NLP technique involves connecting a positive thought or feeling to a specific phrase,
gesture, smell, or image, known as the anchor.
Anchoring helps us take an active role in controlling our emotions
and makes us less prone to feeling overwhelmed or helpless.
Let’s say, for example, you have the problem of getting stage fright whenever it’s your time to perform.
Of course, you wish you didn’t feel that way,
so you decide to take ten deep breaths to bring back a sense of calm within yourself.
Those ten deep breaths are your anchor.
That anchor works for you because you associate breathing with meditation and positivity.
#2 Visualization
This is another highly popular NLP technique that athletes use all the time!
The point of visualizing is to trick your brain into thinking it is real and has already come true,
thus releasing a wave of positive emotions tied to the act of accomplishment.
Ask yourself what thoughts and images align with accomplishing your goal.
For example, if you want to ace your upcoming university exams,
practice visualizing how great life would be if you did great.
You could hang out with your friends again, go on a holiday that you always wanted to,
and have enough time for video games and other hobbies.
It is these visualizations that will encourage you to put more effort into learning for the exam.
#3 Meta-modelling
This powerful NLP technique can be used to identify subconscious constraints and fears
that may be preventing you from becoming a better, happier version of yourself.
The easiest way to practice this technique is by observing the language you use in your daily life and finding potential negative patterns.
Do you say “Why must it always be me?” or “Why am I so unlucky?”
whenever something doesn’t go as planned?
Or maybe you make sweeping generalisations like “Oh! All jocks are dumb.
All men or all women are the same.
Or perhaps self-sabotage by saying, “I’m never gonna be beautiful, and nobody will ever love me.”
You can use meta-modelling to identify the WHY behind such language
and find ways to avoid saying them.
This technique can help develop healthy habits such as introspecting,
challenging your existing thoughts, and becoming more resilient to cognitive distortions.
But there’s a dark side to this story as well.
Even though NLP practices have their place in the world of self-improvement, advertising,
marketing, and persuasion, they can be used for unethical purposes too.
Since we’re talking about altering human behavior, NLP is often called out as a tool used by liars,
fake gurus, and charlatans to make money off their followers.
To make money, they provide easy solutions to people’s problems that require a deeper understanding
and a far more nuanced approach.
In some extreme examples, cult leaders masquerading as life coaches or spiritual gurus
may also use NLP on their followers to keep on exploiting them while projecting themselves as godlike figures.
We’re not going to take any names here or discredit anyone in particular;
our reason for mentioning the downsides of NLP is just to create awareness.
If you’re going to learn NLP from someone, be sure to research extensively about their background,
qualification, and philosophies.
The relationship you’re going to build with your therapist, trainer, or coach will play a crucial role
in determining to what extent NLP serves its intended purpose.
From a purely scientific, evidence-based perspective,
there’s still much to learn about the intricacies of NLP and the validity of its claims.
As science-y as the term “neuro-linguistic programming might sound,"
it wouldn’t be unfair to say that the results you get from implementing the techniques
are nothing but the effects of placebo working its charm.
Much like homeopathy, NLP doesn’t have much scientific credibility but does help if you believe that it works.
Kurzgesagt made an informative video
The problem when it comes to studying the effectiveness of NLP -
much like any other form of psychotherapy -
is that we cannot adopt controlled and randomized, double-blind studies to assess its efficacy.
Since there’s always an element of bias involved,
we cannot say for sure if NLP can be termed as ‘therapy’ or if it’ll work for everyone.
What we can say is that NLP is a popular framework in the field of applied psychology
because it allows the practitioner to get results faster with models, techniques, and patterns.
And the only way to know if it “really works” is by experiencing it.
What are your thoughts and opinions on the subject?
Do let us know in the comments below!