Most readers of the Beyond Mastery Newsletter and this blog already know what the letters stand for: Neuro-Linguistic Programming, and most have some idea of the meaning behind the term. Our use of language, our mental “programming,” and our neurology are interrelated. When one changes, the others change as well. The interrelationship is dynamic and ongoing. A standard definition for the term is, “the study of the structure of subjective experience,” which means that those who “study” NLP are studying the various ways subjective experience is structured.
This concept presupposes that our subjective—internal—experience differs from objective—external—reality. In Korzybski’s famous phrase, “The map is not the territory,” the “map” is a metaphor for “mental maps,” or subjective experience. We know from experience that physical maps are not actually the territory they represent. Details are omitted, and some details are just plain wrong. The better the map, of course, the more useful it becomes. That’s why NLP is such a useful collection of concepts.
The impetus for this article was a message to an NLP discussion list that denigrated much NLP training and many of those who call themselves “Master Practitioners” and Trainers of NLP. Much of the bias against NLP is a direct result of sloppy practices by some of those affiliated with NLP. Any tool is, of course, neutral. Hammers, screwdrivers, and chainsaws can be used in a variety of ways for a variety of purposes, and the same is true for NLP. The ethics of use for any tool reside in the user rather than in the tool.
Even with a perfectly wonderful purpose in mind, however, not everyone who picks up a hammer has the same level of skill in using it. I can use a hammer, but it sometimes takes me 20 swings to drive a nail a skilled carpenter could drive with 3 or 4. Practice may not always make “perfect,” but practice makes better—when the practitioner has the desire to improve and makes an effort to increase his or her skill. Most who take piano lessons will never have the skill level required for Carnegie Hall. Only a relative few develop to the level of being able to play for friends and family. That does not mean that pianos are bad or useless tools.
None of the bits and pieces of NLP is especially complicated. The bits and pieces can, however, be combined in a wide variety of ways. Introductions to NLP and most NLP books focus on what are essentially “therapeutic recipes” for common problems, such as phobias and compulsive behaviors. Those who have completed a “practitioner” level training should be able to facilitate change for someone else. It is a should, however, and not a will. Some who take an NLP workshop learn quickly. Others don’t. This isn’t NLP’s fault. Did you have a course in statistics in college? Can you quickly (now) clarify the differences between descriptive and inferential statistics? If you can’t, it isn’t the fault of statistics or your statistics professor.
Even if you can remember most of what you learned about statistics—or French, Spanish, or English—in school, that doesn’t mean you’re fully qualified to do professional work as a statistician—or as a simultaneous translator at the U.N. Those who are doing serious therapeutic work with NLP (and/or hypnosis) require additional training to be prepared for the kind of things that come up unexpectedly. What kind of training is a question, as most psychotherapists who scoff at NLP are not especially effective at “therapy.” Human thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are complex, and while the best therapists really can and do help people, most are at best well-meaning. And some actually amplify their clients’ problems.
Debra and I often use the martial arts as the metaphor for studying NLP. In martial arts, black belt (Shodan in Japanese and Okinawan forms) is considered the beginning of serious study rather than the end of study. The same is true of Practitioner level in NLP. Those who are serious about NLP continue to study. There’s nothing wrong, of course, with exploring a subject and deciding that something else is more interesting. Most who start studying a martial art quit long before black belt, and quite a few more quit shortly after earning dan rank. Even so, the discipline they learn in having studied a martial art will serve them well whatever else they choose to do.
The same is true for NLP. However much you study will benefit you because you will have learned more about the structure of subjective experience. If you also learned that the ethics of NLP reside in the practitioner rather than in the technology itself, your study will also benefit those with whom you interact.
