Ericksonian Hypnotic Language Patterns

There are two ways of using the word “yet” that are both very effective.

1. You can use “yet” at the end of a sentence or question to imply that in time, whatever was missing will be supplied. I find it very effective to pause - meaningfully - before saying the word.

“That’s true, you haven’t mastered these skills… yet.”

“Perhaps you won’t go into the deepest level of trance… yet.”

‘Now, I know you haven’t become totally sold on this proposal… yet.”

2. The second way to use “yet” is to use it as a connecting word in a punctuational ambiguity. I love this way of using the word “yet” because it can have dual meanings. You can use it with the same meaning as in the above examples, or you can have it have a meaning synonymous with “and” or “but” connecting to the next phrase.

Check out the following quote that Chris Hall attributes to Richard Bandler. Once, as a student at one of Bandler’s early NLP trainings, she found herself confused by instructions Richard gave for an exercise. She went up to Richard to ask for clarification. This is what she reports he said:

“Well, you know that you can
sometimes feel confused and not know…yet…
continue to learn because…
your conscious mind is very smart and…
(etc)

Because of the punctuational ambiguity in this sentence, it could be read one of two ways. It could be read like Method #1 above: “…feel confused and not know… yet.” (implying that you will in time). OR it could be read like this “…feel confused and not know, yet continue to learn.” (as simple connecting language)

BUT - BECAUSE of the ambiguous way it is said (as in Method #2 above), with pauses in the right places and the right tonal emphasis in the right place, the listener gets BOTH meanings. It’s way cool.

Perhaps you are not quite sure, yet, are enjoying learning more and more with each blog post… Now… I don’t know if you are one of those who really do write out your own original examples… yet…

you will

won’t you?

Ericksonian Language Patterns
An “Extend Quotes” pattern is a sentence that contains more than one quote so it becomes ambiguous as to where one stops and the other begins.

As you read the following examples, remember that these are being spoken, so the punctuation is far more ambiguous to a listener than it is to a reader. Remember also that you, as the speaker, can shift your tonality and emphasize certain phrases as embedded commands.

“I was talking with a friend of mine who said that when she had told her colleague about this workshop she said she’d heard it was the best class on language she had ever taken.”

 

“Interestingly, just last week a client of mine came in, sat in that very chair that you’re sitting in now and said to me, ‘my mother once told me it’s not very polite to stare with your eyes wide open at another person. She said it’s perfectly acceptable to listen and pay attention deeply when you  close your eyes, now.’”

If you would like to imagine a business context, imagine you’re a coach talking to a prospective client:

“One of my coaching clients I worked with last year said he told two other people, and he told them directly, ‘you should hire me now,’ and that each of them had told other people to seriously consider it because it is so valuable, and he knew I had limited availability.”

I don’t know if I mentioned that a good friend last week told me that he downloads every new pattern every week and writes out dozens of examples that are pertinent to his own life. He said “doing this catapults you to new levels of competence” and that’s a simple and easy way to take full advantage of this opportunity, don’t you agree?

Ericksonian Hypnotic Language Patterns
A compound suggestion is made up of two statements. First, a statement that makes a suggestion, second, a statement of fact to cover up the suggestion… a statement with which it would be really hard to disagree.

“NLP is the best model of communication in the entire world. It is important to communicate effectively, isn’t it?

“You are drifting deeply into trance. It’s nice to feel comfortable in a comfortable place.”

One can imagine a business context…

“You really want to take advantage of this opportunity now. It’s so important to minimize costs while maximizing profits.”

There might a parental context…

You’re a really brave cub scout doing really well up there in camp. Tomorrow’s the 4th of July and there will be fireworks over the lake.

Please bear in mind the there is a difference between practicing patterns and using them in an actual therapeutic situation. I believe there are tremendous advantages and much to be gained by writing out patterns and even whole hypnotic scripts. I don’t suggest that you would then actually USE that script in a session with a client. When you are with a client you want your undivided attention on THEM. You do not want your nose buried in a script. I’m sure you know that and that I’m preaching to the choir here - and - I felt I should be clear.

Ericksonian Hypnotic Language Patterns
The language pattern “Switching the Referential Index” is a sentence or paragraph in which the speaker switches of whom they are referring from themselves (”I” or “me”) to “you.” That’s why it can easily be referred to as “The I–You Switch.”

The beauty of this language pattern is that it is a very common turn of phrase that people do without thinking. Thus it is unlikely ever to be picked up by the listener’s conscious awareness.

The following is an actual quote, guaranteed overheard:

“I was driving down the highway feeling fine, making good time, but the constant repetition of the lines on the highway, the hum of the car and the flow of the traffic all work on ya and before you know it you’re just kinda zoning out. I had to stop and get coffee.”

So you see how the speaker started out referring to themself - “I was driving…” and halfway through the sentence switched to referring to you - “you’re zoning out.” The average person saying such a thing is just describing a common human condition and has no intention of giving a hypnotic command. But we, as savvy linguists, recognize the opportunity to … pause… shift our tonality… and deliver the suggestion.

Here’s how the late, great Dave Dobson used it in his classic “Beach Trip:”

“I like to take a trip on a beach. I like the smell of the salt air, the sound of the waves as they come in and go out. I enjoy the feel of the warm sand as it pushes up between my toes, and you can actually feel the weight of your body shifting as you walk through that warm sand.”

It’s seamless, isn’t it?

Perfect for the Hypnosis practitioner. An easy way to turn just about anything into a suggestion.

One can also imagine a business context…

“Speaking for myself, I particularly like the ease of use of this product. It just fits your hands so nicely and is so instinctive to use you never have to consult the owner’s manual.”

Some might consider a social context…

“I need to sense a psychic kinship with someone before anything can develop. You know? Like in a conversation when you’re feeling a real, deep connection with a person and time just melts away.”

Now, I have always found that you learn best by doing, haven’t you? So I found that if you write them down, and pay close attention to your tonality when you say them, you get better quickly. You can even practice delivering them to another human being.