August 2020 - Brilliant Minds

[Video] The Map Is Not The Territory

Posted on August 26, 2020August 25, 2020 by noisegate

In this video I talk about what’s often regarded as the first presupposition of NLP – ‘The Map is not the Territory’.

This has been talked and written about a great deal and, if you haven’t come across it before, it’s simply a way of expressing the fact that our perception of the world is more like a map than it is the real territory. The reason why this is included as a cornerstone of NLP, is that it recognises that everybody lives in their own subjective version of the world.

So what does it look like when someone really takes on the NLP presupposition of ‘The Map is not the Territory’? Find out how adopting this filter can reduce your daily stresses…

To learn more about this, and the other presuppositions of NLP, take a look at our Executive NLP Practitioner Module One training here.

[Article] Choice and control – a window on my world

Posted on August 19, 2020August 17, 2020 by Mary McNeil

The time had come. I had to make a plan, make some decisions, get the ball rolling. I had already put it off several times and I knew I was only going to create a bigger headache if I left it any longer.

The question – how to deliver NLP Practitioner training in 2020?

Let’s step back a few months. In February I ran Module One of a programme that was intended to carry on to June. In March, I put it on hold. We were in lockdown, it just wasn’t possible. And it was a small group so we needed everyone involved if it was to go on any further. Could we have carried on using virtual technology? With hindsight, maybe we could, but at the time it didn’t seem practical and I was assuming we could resume our ‘in person’ sessions fairly soon.

Four months on, it still wasn’t clear to me whether running workshops at my usual venue was going to be possible. And if it wasn’t, was I willing to adapt NLP Practitioner to be delivered on-line? I had a lot of questions…

Firstly, would the hotel be open? Would it be COVID-secure? Would they be open to conferences and events or just leisure guests?

It turned out that they are open, they are accepting conference bookings and they have very good COVID protocols in place.

Secondly, assuming the hotel could support us would people come to a course?

I rang around a selection of HR Directors and canvassed opinions. They were diverse – predictably. Some said yes, if the venue was safe to open then they’d allow their staff to come to the course. Others said it was academic because their business had suffered financially and they had to ‘tighten their belts’. Others said they were staying in lockdown for now. One had an embargo on all travel.

Thirdly, how easy would it be to deliver NLP using virtual means only?

I’m a Master Trainer of NLP. I can be flexible. Virtual delivery might not be ideal, but it’s way better than nothing. I have a good e-learning platform and some capability with zoom. I’m okay about talking to a camera. How hard can it be?

But still the questions persisted. What I really wanted to do was to deliver the training ‘in person’ at the hotel, the way I usually do. It just didn’t seem that it would work. What if there was a second wave and a second lockdown?What was the fall-back position? Was I just being a Luddite and refusing to accept the inevitable?

I knew I had to commit to a plan so I sat down with a large sheet of paper, my ubiquitous coloured pens and a large mug of tea and started to empty my head. Within 20 minutes the decision was made.

I realised that I had many options about to deliver NLP Practitioner training in 2020. There was only one option that was entirely under my control and gave me the chance to do a really great job for my clients. The virtual option. It’s the only way I can make a plan and know that nothing will get in the way of it.

So here’s the plan:

I’ve fixed the days in the same pattern as the original programme. Module One is three days, Modules Two-Four are five days each and Module Five is the two days for assessment and certification.

However, the days will not be eight-hour marathons on zoom. It will be a ‘blended learning’ approach with some material available for self-study and some done ‘live’ on zoom. I’m still working on the exact programme and it’s going to take a while to get everything in place, but I’m enjoying the challenge. It’s been a while since I‘ve designed a major programme like this and it’s a great opportunity to re-visit the content and re-evaluate the exercises and examples.

If you’d like to join in, you can get the details here: https://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/executive-nlp-practitioner/

You don’t have to commit to the whole programme, you can sign up for Module One and then see how you feel about carrying on to Module Two.

You’ll find the details for Module One here: https://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/module-one/

[Video] The 5-Minute NLP Seminar

Posted on August 12, 2020August 12, 2020 by noisegate

People often ask me “What is NLP?” and there are lots of definitions, but when it comes to what you actually do in the practice of NLP, there is a very quick version of it.

So this is NLP in a nutshell – or at least, how to operate like an NLP Practitioner…

If you want more than 5 minutes’ worth of NLP knowledge, you can always take a look at Module One of the Executive NLP Practitioner Training here.

[Article] When the first flush of enthusiasm wears off

Posted on August 5, 2020July 30, 2020 by Mary McNeil

We’ve all done it. Started the year, month, week or even the day full of big plans and enthusiasm only to find that the goal was more challenging than expected and that the initial enthusiasm wasn’t enough to carry us through to successful completion.

What to do then?

Here are some thoughts about how to stay productive and how to succeed at the difficult things.

1. Start with why

Simon Sinek was right. You have to start with WHY. Why are you undertaking this project, task, goal, job or contract? Many years ago, as a member of a voluntary organisation I undertook the preparatory training of all the incoming chapter Presidents for one year. As part of the training weekend I gave them each a bright yellow card. The heading at the top read,

“The reasons I am taking on the role of President:”

I asked them to complete the card and to take it home and put it somewhere special. “There will come a day when you ask yourself – Why did I agree to do this? That’s when you go and get this card and study it” I told them.

It worked. The organisation saw fewer mid-term resignations than usual that year.

Your turn. What are the goals you’ve got bogged down with, the tasks you’ve lost enthusiasm for or the projects that have slid down to the bottom of the priority list? Ask yourself, “What are the benefits I will see when I succeed at this?” “Why did I originally want to do it?”

Sometimes, the world has changed so much since you made the plan that it’s no longer relevant to pursue that outcome. More often it’s simply a matter of remembering why it’s important and you’ll rekindle the enthusiasm.

2. Know your preferences

Do you prefer to focus on one thing at a time or are you more productive when you have multiple projects running? It’s important to know this about yourself.

Linked to cognitive styles and your preferred hemisphere, there’s a real personality difference here. Left-brainers usually prefer to work on one project and see it through to the end before starting the next one. Right-brainers often do better with multiple projects and regular shifts in the type of work.

If you’re more left-brained and you find yourself running out of motivation for a task or project, you might regain some enthusiasm by re-visiting the overall plan. The complete story will usually be more exciting than the particular bit you’ve reached right now. Seeing how each stage sets up the next and the way the result build up to the successful conclusion is often all that’s needed to get a left-brained thinker back on track.

If you’re more right-brained in your approach, you may find that switching to another project and doing something completely different is the way to stay productive. If that’s the case for you, you may find it helpful to plan a period of time with two or three major projects running concurrently. When your enthusiasm for one begins to ebb, you can switch to another and give yourself a change of pace or style for a while and still work on important tasks.

3. Plan your rewards

When you achieve a significant goal or complete an important project you may feel that is a reward in itself. That may be true. However, if you are finding it tough to sustain the level of activity that will get you the results you want, consider building in some form of reward.

For example, you might plan to reward yourself when the whole project is done. The reward could be some time off to make a trip somewhere enjoyable. That doesn’t have to mean an exotic foreign holiday – it could simply be an afternoon in the local park or a weekend visiting a special friend or relative. This can then serve the dual purpose of rewarding your achievement and relaxing before you start the next big thing.

Perhaps more usefully, you could build in more regular rewards for achieving smaller tasks that contribute to your overall goals. A half-hour break for a cup of coffee and a chat with a colleague might be a good reward for something that’s had you focused at your desk for 2 hours or more. Treating yourself to some new music or a movie could be the reward for making a series of phone calls or selling a certain amount of products. Setting aside an evening to spend on a neglected hobby or to meet up with a friend might feel like a good compensation for reaching a milestone in your major goals.

The important thing to consider is what makes you feel good. What would you enjoy looking forward to? What would motivate you to stick at the current task so that you could complete it and enjoy your reward?

4. Don’t suffer in silence

There are times for all of us when we feel overwhelmed by either the amount of work we’ve taken on or the challenging nature of that work. When that happens, you may be inclined to hunker down and try to work through the problem on your own. That doesn’t always work. In fact, most people find that once they get into that state of feeling overwhelmed, they become less and less productive.

So what’s the answer? Talk to someone.

If you have a coach, that’s easy. Your coach is on your side and will help you think through the difficulties and re-focus on the important tasks. That kind of conversation will break you out of the overwhelm and put things back in proportion.

If you don’t have a coach, talk to a friend or colleague you trust. (And make a note to find a coach for the future!) Two heads really are better than one and sometimes just the process of explaining your difficulty to someone else will begin to make it clearer to you.

…and finally

If you’ve done all of the above and you’re still not making any progress, call it a day. Go home, relax, do something you enjoy and accept that you’re not perfect. Recognise that you can begin again tomorrow and the fact that today wasn’t as productive as it could have been isn’t the end of the world.

The real secret of success is not to give up. In NLP we say, ‘there’s no failure – only feedback’. George Bernard Shaw put it more eloquently:

“In a good cause there is no failure, only delayed success”

Month: August 2020