NLP Training for Success

Ensure That Your NLP Training Really Boosts You Forward

Topics:

Why consistent practice is so important
How to maximize benefits from the seminar content
Where to find partners for practice groups who will train with you regularly
Which resources you can use to practice NLP on your own

I’m happy you downloaded this e-book and started reading it. You’ll soon see how crucial it is to put some of these ideas into practice.

Foreword

Congratulations on your decision to take an NLP training. This is a big step toward a new life. NLP can yield so many rewards:

Achieve more of your goals
Build better relationships
Live more creatively and freely
Resolve conflicts and problems more effectively

No doubt you have a vision of what you’d like to do or change in your life using NLP. That’s excellent, because typically we need a specific motivation in order to learn something new and then actually apply it to our lives.

If you’re still unsure what you want from NLP or how you might use it, start by clarifying that. Write down everything you hope to gain. Be as specific as possible to maximize the chances of actually getting it.

NLP is a fantastic method. I’ve seen it help thousands of people. But let’s distinguish a one-time application (for instance, an NLP coaching session you receive for a certain problem) from a regular, ongoing practice of an entire set of techniques.

Many NLP techniques do indeed help with a problem if you just do them once in a coaching session. But if something else arises, you’d have to go back to a coach or read about it again.

However, if you truly learn NLP and internalize it until it becomes part of you, you open the door to becoming whomever you want to be, with all possibilities available to you!

Success Requires Consistent Training

When it comes to our bodies, we know it’s not enough to exercise or eat healthy only once. We need consistent exercise—ideally several times a week—and a basically healthy diet. Yet people rarely apply this logic to the psychological domain. It’s equally valid here. Doing an NLP format one time in training might help in the moment, but the real transformation occurs if we apply it repeatedly and develop ourselves. The resulting change isn’t just on the behavioral level, but on the identity level. You’ll form new patterns, positive habits that empower you in many situations.

Just learning a technique once or twice during the course doesn’t guarantee your life will automatically shift. You must practice. “Use it or lose it” holds true for mental muscles too.

That’s why this e-book provides ideas to multiply the benefit of your NLP training. Most people are rather weak-willed. It’s easy to fall into daily distractions, ignoring what we know would help. After a seminar, one might plan to review the material, try out the new knowledge, or explain it to a partner—but too often it never happens. Soon you’re back to normal routines. Yet it doesn’t take much—just a few minutes of daily practice—and everything could be different. But until it’s as automatic as brushing your teeth, many people lose the “battle against their weaker self.”

If you already know that might happen because of past experiences—like returning from a great seminar or finishing an inspiring book but never implementing it—then it makes sense to create systems now that will help you follow through this time. Below are a few systems you could adopt:

Practice Groups
The Buddy Principle
Practicing with Others
Self-Coaching

Chapter 1: Practice Groups

NLP peer groups (or practice groups) are among the best ways to train. When I was doing my NLP Practitioner training, I actually joined three different practice groups at once—I was so eager to master this “NLP stuff” once I grasped its potential. Those groups weren’t necessarily close by. I sometimes had to travel hundreds of kilometers, which was expensive for me as a student. But I knew the training was worth it. At that time, I wish I’d had the kind of system we offer now. The great thing about practice groups is that you train with equally motivated folks. Everyone agrees to a schedule, you put it on your calendar, and you feel a social commitment to show up.

We make it easy to find potential partners for such a group. Periodically, the Landsiedel NLP lead trainers host free practice group evenings that you can attend at no cost. This means you get qualified guidance. These gatherings also take place online from time to time.

Chapter 2: The Buddy Principle

“Buddy” means a friend or partner. The concept is to find someone to help you incorporate the training’s content. I’ve recommended this for 20 years. Find a person you connect with, then agree on supporting each other’s success with NLP. Decide on a schedule—maybe you’ll meet or call every two weeks—and spend one hour each time, half for them, half for you. In each half-hour, you share your plans, challenges, or results, and the buddy listens, asks questions, maybe offers some light coaching. Knowing you’ll soon account for your progress can spur you to act. It’s embarrassing to tell your buddy you lazed around instead of practicing. If your buddy has good coaching skills, you might extend the call. I once had a buddy arrangement where we spoke daily at 5:30am. I got up two hours earlier than usual because that was the only time we both were free.

It’s a matter of commitment. Our happiness might hinge on whether we do what’s necessary to change. Small steps can make a huge difference over time.

Chapter 3: Practicing with Others

Keep your eyes open for opportunities to practice with people in your environment. Many simpler NLP methods can be exercised daily dozens of times: for instance, the Meta Model, or skills in observation, calibration, rapport, and body language. Maybe you can practice some short tasks with a friend or family member. Ask them if they’re up for a short exercise. Start easy, then expand if they enjoy it and find it helpful. These can also greatly enrich a relationship. During my own Practitioner days, I lived in a dorm with 123 other students—plenty of daily “volunteers” who needed help with test anxiety, fear of public speaking, heartbreak, or coping with a failed exam.

Depending on your own job, you might find daily practice with coworkers or clients. A salesperson, for instance, can incorporate NLP elements in each conversation. Everyone who communicates can embed NLP all day long. If it’s personal, do ask permission first. Another approach is to watch TV or a movie with “NLP glasses,” noticing elements that demonstrate or contradict NLP principles. On our website we list some “NLP-themed” Hollywood films (Don Juan DeMarco, The Matrix, Changing Lanes, Avatar, Martin Luther, etc.).

Chapter 4: Self-Coaching

If you’re disciplined enough, you can develop your own training plan. Schedule a certain time for your NLP practice, specifying what you’ll do. This may combine any of the ideas above with the following:

a) Exercises on yourself
b) Subscribing to an NLP email course
c) Keeping a success diary
d) Attending webinars
e) Studying on your own

Exercises on Yourself

In my view, self-application is critical. Use NLP on yourself frequently, for example:

Recalling your best life moments
Creating and activating anchors
Reframing unwanted habits with six-step or parts negotiation techniques
Defining your goals using well-formed criteria
Using the Timeline to envision your future
Exploring your success strategies from the past
Resolving conflicts by adopting the 1-2-3 perceptual positions
Doing self-hypnosis to heal any concerns
Unleashing your creativity with the Disney Strategy, and so on

You have a huge toolkit – use it! Use it or lose it!

NLP Email Training

Another helpful resource is our free 50-lesson NLP email course for our clients. If you sign up, you’ll get weekly emails for a year featuring:

A short NLP lesson
Practice suggestions
Selected metaphors
Inspirational quotes
Book recommendations
Numerous valuable links to free NLP articles
Audio and video training downloads
Optional self-check questions
...and other surprises

Participate and get a little reminder each week, a small step that eventually leads you beyond your old self. The best part of an email course is that the prompting comes externally—if you forget your practice for a while, the next email arrives to remind you. It covers much of the NLP material systematically.

Keeping a Success Diary

Make it a habit to spend ten minutes daily updating an “NLP diary.” Write down experiences, which techniques you tried, who you practiced with. Now and then, read previous entries. This keeps NLP as a deliberate part of your daily life and allows you to observe your progress over time.

Attending Webinars

Another convenient way to refresh or deepen NLP is to join the Monday evening webinars from our NLP Online Academy. Each Monday, you get a 75-minute session from our NLP Master Trainers, free. Just log in from home. If a session is recorded, you can optionally buy the replay. But participating live is recommended—via chat, you can engage and ask your questions.

Studying on Your Own

Also schedule times to read NLP books or watch videos. We have plenty of resources for that. We also offer an NLP podcast with many hours of audio lessons and interviews, so you can re-learn or discover new topics. At the back of your course handouts (in the Practitioner, Master, or Trainer modules) you’ll find an annotated reading list. It’s often enlightening to consult the classic, original NLP works, not just summary or intro-level books. We also list many NLP works, audiobooks, and videos in our NLP shop online.

In Closing

Whichever approach you choose (or combine), do something with it. It’d be a shame to let your newly acquired knowledge go unused. It’s a loss for you and the people around you. We need more people committed to developing themselves and expressing their potential. NLP is far too valuable not to use it. I wish you all the best for your NLP training and for your life.

Sincerely,
Stephan Landsiedel