Hi,
I just finished this year's Advanced Language Patterns (ALP) Module of the NLP Practitioner Training last week. I like to share some of my ideas about ALP.
1. ALP are the most important models of NLP. NLP is the study of the interaction between thinking (Neuro) and Use of Language (Linguistics). We never know what others or even what we think. Thinking is inside our mind. They are the Implicit Part of NLP. The Explicit Part is the Language we use. So Language becomes the "Monitor" of our "Human CPU" (our thinking)!
2. The Content of our language reflects the Content of our thinking. They are very important but they are also too complicated to be understood by normal persons, like you and me. The Patterns of our language reflects the Patterns of our thinking. They are also complicated but much simpler than the content. NLP is the study of the Patterns (context) of our thinking through the Patterns of our Language!
3. Apart from the many other language patterns taught in the module, Meta Model, Milton Model, Presuppositions, and Sleight of Mouth (Reframing using language) are the most important four.
4. Meta Model helps to get more detail information (deep structure) of people's thinking. This eliminates misunderstandings of our perceptions of the environment and behaviors due to our filters of Values, Beliefs and Rules (i.e. Distortion, Deletion and Generalization)
5. Milton Model distorts, deletes and generalizes our thinking so that we change our behaviors without much efforts (i.e. capabilities). This can be good or bad, depending on the content. But Milton Model reflects how we think.
6. Presuppositions also works on our perceptions of environment and behaviors so that we can change easier without much efforts. NLP is also the study of our internal presuppositions, i.e. Filters. It is the Filters that causes the discrepancies of our internal world (Our Perceptions) and the external world (i.e. Reality). The greater the discrepancies, the less realistic we are and the more problems we face.
7. Reframing is the temporary adoptation of another set of Filters instead of the dorminated set so that we can see something differently (gaining more information through a different perception). This is an external way to affect the internal filters. It is difficult or even impossible to work directly with our filters as they are internal and hard to identify. With a new set of filters, we can see more about our Reality and thus decreasing the discrepancies.
8. Meta Model is the easiest of all as it is quite mechanical. You observe the Meta Model Violations and then apply the respective Meta Model to make others or yourself to go meta to see more.
9. Milton Model is also easy. It is just filling in the blank and apply. The only difficult part is deciding what to fill in. The secret is "Pacing & Leading". There are always at least 2 parts of a Milton Model. The first part is Pacing and the second part is Leading. Only the stupid or someone who doesn't really understand NLP will tell you to just fill in anything and you can then persuade others.
10. Presuppositions is again easy. It is also filling in the blank and apply. The secret is there must be lots of "Truth" and a bit of "Falseness". If the "Fasleness" is too false, make it less false before filling in.
11. People find the above 3 difficult because they are unable to see the Meta Model Violations or what to be filling in for the Milton Model or the Presuppositions. Why? Because they are at the same level of the speaker! You must go meta first before you can see them! Einstein once said that we can't solve the problems at the same level of the source of the problems. He is very right.
12. Reframing is the hardest of the fours because Reframing is working on the Filters (Beliefs, Values, Rules), which are already in the upper level which governs people's lower level of capabilities, behaviours and environment. If we need to go meta to see our lower level, we need to go meta-meta to see our upper levels. I had talked about Meta-Meta in Master NLP Practitioner Program. It is difficult to grasp. I will talk about it in greater details in my later messages.
Here is an easier way to understand. If you want to refarme others, you must see the other frame(s) first before you can lead someone to see through that new frame(s). It is NOT a simple filling in the blank. You see something before you can tell someone how to see it! If you are stuck or not being flexible, you can never see the possibilities of any new frame.
13. The best way to judge someone's understanding of NLP is to ask him/her to demonstrate the ALP. One can memorize all the patterns, but using them is another story!
Keith
Explore, Exceed & Excel
