NLP States – The Basis Of Our Responses

NLP States – The Basis Of Our Responses

In Neuro-Linguistic Programming terms, State can be defined as the internal emotional state of a person. As a coach, did you know that you are able to help your client change it at any time through a few simple processes?

If you think of the word State, it is the energy we carry, and also the way we feel, look and sound.

It is the way we respond to our external environment, and it changes all the time depending on our food, the oxygen we are receiving, what we are thinking, and our belief systems.

The words we use also affect our state. Have you ever said ‘hello, how are you?’ to someone and they replied ‘not bad’? In my mind, I always think, ‘what? So you’re not good?’

Such a simple word, but as we discuss at Live it Now and teach in our trainings, the unconscious mind does not process negatives so someone is continuously saying to themselves and others that they are feeling ‘bad’ when asked how they are….

You may have noticed that before a big competition sportspeople get into State. Tennis players do things like bounce the ball before serving; New Zealanders do the Haka, beach volleyball players high five between points. All of these are physical actions that put the athletes into a focused, high energy State.

Negative State

To give you the feeling of what I am talking about, firstly I’d like you to think about being sad or upset, and represent that physically in your body. Close your eyes for a minute and feel sad.

Do it now.

How do you hold your head, where are your shoulders, how are you breathing, what are you thinking and saying to yourself?

Positive State

Now keeping your eyes closed, immediately change your body into a powerful, confident State.

How do you hold your head, where are your shoulders, how are you breathing, what are you thinking and saying to yourself?

Can you see and feel the difference between these two States?

In a positive State you can achieve a lot more than in a negative or depressed State.

The Three Components of State

– The first is language – this is what you say to yourself and others. Phrases like ‘I can’t’ can be replaced with ‘How could I?’, and excuses that follow the word ‘but’ in a sentence can be eliminated.

No longer will you ‘try’ to do something, you will either do it or not. The job of a Coach is to catch their clients on any negative language they may use. Much of our language is habitual, so as a Coach, we are here to make sure people are using empowering language that will get them closer to their goals.

– The second component of State is Beliefs –these have been created by what a person has chosen to believe from their environment; work, school, parents, religions, friends, media. By continuing to look at results over time, a coach will begin to uncover more and more of their clients’ belief systems. Whilst most people have lots of good belief systems, they may also have negative ones that keep them stuck, and therefore unable to achieve what they wish to. Many of these beliefs are unconscious and can lead to self-sabotage when seeking to achieve goals and dreams.

– The third component, and most easily recognisable, is Physiology. This is how we hold our body, how we breathe, and the energy we exhibit. This is easy to change and is just a matter of changing how we are standing or sitting, like we did in the beginning of this article.

In NLP we call this being in a resourceful state, and there are several ways to trigger this state through a process called ‘anchoring’.

Imagine being able to build an anchor of positive State which you can call on at any time in the future when you feel like you are being negative, your energy is low, or you need to be empowered. You can call on this anchor regularly to help you achieve your goals, in much the same way sportspeople do.

State, and how to change or anchor a state, are just some of the things that we cover in our Excellence Now program. It is so simple and empowering at the same time. I have multiple anchors that I use when required and it takes me seconds to change my state!

Bianca van Riet – Your Future Now

 

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