By: Sebastien Wiertz
NLP and Communication Patterns
NLP has principles of how the mind, brain and body work together, communicating between each other and the external environment. Repeating the same patterns of internal and external communication gets the same results. Understanding how we’ve created this helps us change to different, more effective patterns. The foundation to this process is the NLP presuppositions.
NLP Presuppositions
- The map is not the territory. Our internal mental maps are just that, they’re not the world as others see, hear or feel them
- Experience has a structure. Our thoughts and memories have a pattern to them. Changing that will change our experience.
- If another person can learn to do something so can we.
- Mind and body are parts of the same system.
- People already have all the resources they need. You are your own expert, your own therapist. Mental images, emotions and personal experiences can all be utilised to bring about change.
- You cannot, not communicate. We are always communicating, internally and externally.
- The meaning of communication is the response (feedback) you get. Everyone has filters on the world: what we say goes through their filters so they may hear something different from what we meant. Noting how our communication was received helps us to adjust it.
- Underlying every behaviour is a positive intention. Even negative, unwanted behaviour has developed for a reason; avoiding situations to feel safe, shouting to be heard may be childhood patterns that had a positive intention and value at the time.
- People are always making the best choice available to them at the time. We make choices based on experience, resources and information available. As these constantly change so do our choices. Even intensely negative acts (perceived by general society) will be made with a positive intention by the perpetrator using the available resources they have at that time to cope.
- If you always do what you’ve always done you’ll always get what you’ve always gotten.
- If you don’t get what you want change until you’re happy with the results.
