Introduction to NLP Part 2: Meta-Model Warmup
August 14, 2007 – 1:29 pm | by Carl Zetterlund
This is part 2 of the introduction to NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Programming). It offers some background of NLP and leads up to the meta-model. Please read the Introduction to NLP Part 1: The First Bite to build a proper lead-in to this post.
It all started at the University of California at Santa Cruz. It was there that a student of psychology, Richard Bandler, and an assistant professor of linguistics, John Grinder, met to lay the foundations of NLP. Both were interested in understanding why people do what they do.
Both were also fascinated with modeling, which is taking a skill and finding out how it is done so it can be taught to others. They believed that modeling successful performance leads to high achievement. If one can learn how to be great, then it is possible to model that person and use it to teach others to be great as well.
They agreed that modeling would be deemed successful if they could help others achieve similar results by following the model.
Initially, Bandler and Grinder were largely influenced by three people. The first one was Gregory Bateson who was working and living at Santa Cruz University. He studied systems thinking, cybernetics, biology, and psychiatry.
The next two influential people were two psychotherapists. One of them was Fritz Perls who was the founder of the school of Gestalt therapy. The other was Virginia Satir who was a family therapist. Both were very successful at their jobs, but they also had very different personalities.
Bandler and Grinder studied these psychotherapists meticulously. They were looking and found what patterns they had in common. They were looking for a clue as to how they used language to challenge the assumptions and limitations of their clients as well as to clarify meanings of what their clients said.
Bandler and Grinder took their notes and improved these language patterns they discovered to create the book, The Structure of Magic Volume 1, which was published in 1975.
In the book, they called their discovered patterns, the meta-model. Meta means above and beyond, so it goes beyond any individual usage of language. The meta-model is a systematic way of understanding of what we say, what it means to us, what it means to others, and how the meanings differ.
NLP explores the captivating question of how does what we say represent what we think. What is the magic of language that we take so much for granted?
We experience a situation. We think of the experience. We then somehow use words to convey that experience.
These words can invoke emotions and actions. Language has been the basis of incredible human achievements as well as the building of great civilizations. In fairy stories, myths and legends, magic spells are the special words of power that greatly affect other people. In a sense, all language is magic. When you hear words, you try to make meaning out of it. You don’t even have to react visibly since language affects your internal thoughts.
Questions set our minds searching for an answer. Sarcasm can hurt us. Word can be used to console, heal, and help us.
Where do words get their power from? What effect do they have, and how do they do it? The answer to this enables us to find the exact words to have the exact effect on others.
This is what NLP is all about.
The meta-model is the first step to answering some of the questions presented above. It is also of great practical use, which I will reveal to you in later posts. Once we understand how language works, we can identify and question the assumptions that limit us. Meta-model questions can be used to cut through possible misunderstandings of others. It can also clarify our own thinking.
Tomorrow I will introduce NLP’s meta-model. I feel it is important to give you a foundation before you venture into using NLP.
Relax and enjoy the rest of your day.
Carl
P.S. If you want to get a head start, I recommend buying a book that introduces you the basics and some advanced tools. A great book I recommend is NLP: The New Technology of Achievement
1 Trackback(s)