10

Hypnotic Communication

If linear communication and injunctions were effective, there would be little work for executive coaches. When people are able to respond to direct suggestions for change or improvement, they do. They take feedback, make an adjustment, improve, and move on. This happy scenario, however, is rare. More often than not, people resist feedback and resent it when they get it. Even when they accept feedback, it is often true that they cannot seem to do anything useful with it. They cannot translate the feedback into effective and lasting action. These sad observations are well known to anyone in the personal change business. Humans have a hard time with change. We say we want to be different, we make New Year’s resolutions, we go on diets, and we vow to do better. People know that they would be better off if they maintained a clean desk or if they submitted their expense reports in a timely manner. They know how to exercise, and they know that they should communicate more effectively with their team. But sometimes, they just cannot get themselves to do it.

Influence and Resistance

It is also true that attempts by one human to influence another often create resentment and resistance. “Who does he think he is?” is the unspoken reaction to suggestions to be different. We do not like people who try to change us, and divorce courts are brimming with couples that suffer from the curse of interpersonal influence gone wrong. “If I change, that means he was right, and I am wrong” is another underlying source of difficulty.

Most humans resist injunction (“You do this”). We dislike being told what to do. We resent it, partly because it means that someone else is smarter or better than we are, and partly because it means that we are not presently doing it properly, and partly because it represents a loss of control. We resist out of habit. Once you have done something for a long period of time in the same way, it seems uncomfortable or weird to try to do it a different way, even when you tell yourself that you should change.

This chapter is for those coaching situations when well-conceived change attempts are not working, when clients are stuck and coaches are stalled, and when behavior is refractory to good advice. Such situations are common and frustrating to all involved. They also represent opportunities for the coach to make his or her “mark.” One successful intervention in a situation that previously seemed impossible can help establish a reputation that is valuable. Organizations are willing to pay for help that they cannot provide from within. The ability to break a behavioral logjam is the coach’s inimitable competitive advantage. This is why they will call you back.

Hypnosis and Communication

At first, the relationship between hypnosis and business communication may seem mysterious, and it requires some explanation. How could trance be used in corporations? The answer is to be found in an understanding of hypnosis; what it is and how it works in its broadest sense.

Hypnosis has a long and storied history and shamans and stage performers have practiced it for centuries. Mysterious figures used trance states to cause witless victims to do strange and embarrassing things. These images have contributed to wide public misunderstanding of hypnosis over the years. The view that most people have of hypnosis probably came from watching a stage show in Las Vegas or at a county fair—or even a cartoon.

There are several ways to define and understand hypnosis, both with and without obvious trance states. Single-factor theories describe hypnosis as a state. One important view is that we are always in and out of trance, or that we are always in one kind of trance state or another, that life consists of a continuous series of overlapping and changing trance states. The late Sidney Jourard captured this view:

In this view, hypnosis represents the larger trance states that we live in, the ones that define and shape our reality, the fish’s water and the bird’s air. This view is explored by the constructivists (and cognitive therapists, as well). We live the world of our own personal perceptions and are limited by the boundaries of that perceptual world—boundaries that we have put in place ourselves. Watzlawick, Beavin, and Jackson’s 1967 exploration of paradox in patterns of human communication led to several of the interventions described later in this chapter, as well as a basis for some of what cognitive psychotherapists and systems therapists do in their therapy offices. Milton Erickson spent 50 years exploring the ways that hypnosis could be used to communicate, and Jay Haley (1967, 1986) and others (Gordon & Meyers-Anderson, 1981; O’Hanlon, 1987) have documented his complex legacy in detail. There are other theories of hypnosis, referred to as Socio-Cognitive (Lynn & Rhue, 1991) that are contextual and social in nature. Coaches are well advised to do their homework in this literature, as hypnosis is difficult to describe (especially in a brief chapter), and the necessary patterns begin to take shape only when one samples several of the available sources over a period of time. The readings are fascinating and well worth reading. Examples are listed at the end of this chapter, and the Zilbergeld, Edelstien, and Araoz (1986) and the Watzlawick, Weakland, and Fisch (1974) texts are special. A more complete definition of the various types of hypnosis, its history, and associated myths can be found in a practical explanation written for the dental literature (Peltier, 2006).

Principles and Attitudes

The hypnosis literature contains a variety of useful viewpoints for coaches. Several come from observations of Milton Erickson (Haley, 1986; O’Hanlon, 1987). Some of these ideas can be found in the book Change by Watzlawick et al. (1974). For example:

1. Human change is nonlinear. This is a classically postmodern idea. The present does not directly lead to the future, and efforts to direct change in a linear way are doomed to failure. The past did not directly lead to the present situation, and efforts to explore the past (as a vehicle for change) are futile. Paradox is at least as likely to prevail as sensible logic. Study the real patterns (or lack of patterns) if you want to understand how to change.
2. It is impossible to not communicate. All behavior, including silence, is communication (Watzlawick et al., 1967). Many ways to communicate do not involve talking or talking about the “problem.”
3. People have (within them) what they need to evolve, to change, and to improve. It is rarely necessary to actually teach them anything but specific skills. They can figure out the important things for themselves in their own unique way. It is more important to study a person’s ways than to try to teach them something. Start from your client’s point of view. The way that someone already does things reveals their path to growth or change. Study, in particular, the ways that people stay the same and keep things the same, even as they declare the need to change. How do they do it? Most limitations are systematically self-imposed and outside of conscious awareness.
4. It is often easier to influence through implication than injunction. Injunction here means a directive in the form of “You do this.” People listen hard for the implications of things and are curious about them, even when they do not realize they are doing so. They are also more open to implication than injunction. People like to figure out things for themselves and do not like to be told what to do.
5. More of the same will not produce a new result. (Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose.) You cannot keep doing the same thing and expect to change. Effective solutions are often “strange” ones. They are also often uncomfortable to initiate. The only solution to difficult problems is often of a second-order nature; that is, the solution violates and changes the rules of the system.
6. The map is not the territory. Things are not the way we explain them, nor are they the way that they seem. The explanation is not the reality, and we live in both worlds: the “real” concrete world and the world of our perceptions, attributions, and construal.
7. The more flexible person gets her way. It is inflexibility that usually constrains us, not simply a lack of information, or lack of skill, or bad habit. People often continue to do self-defeating things out of a false sense of honor or pride in consistency. All of those deficits can be resolved if we can be flexible and persistent. Encourage and support more choice rather than less. Offer choices even when the choices are somewhat illusory. Most parents understand how to do this with their children: “Would you like to take out the trash first, or would you rather pick up your room?” This is called the illusion of alternatives. People respond well to the perception of choice, even if the choices are not so hot. Choice is typically preferable to injunction (for example, “You do this”).

Several of these ideas eventually led to what business people have come to refer to as out-of-the-box thinking.

Hypnosis without (Obvious) Trance

A view of hypnosis limited to trance is of little use to an executive coach, and much of the work of posttrance thinkers is complex enough to be problematic. But there is a way to define hypnosis that makes it extremely useful to business coaches. Much of what hypnosis offers coaches has this definition in common: Hypnosis is communication that bypasses critical analytic thought. We use hypnotic communication when we influence each other without making a direct request. We bypass resistance. There are many ways to do this, and some people devise ways to influence without realizing it. You may know someone who naively does this—a favorite teacher, an uncle, your mother, or even a local community leader. Somehow these people are influential, and you cannot quite put your finger on why that is so.

Some “Practical Magic”

Here are some techniques that come from the world of nontrance hypnosis. Most of them derive from multiple sources, and when a single source is known, it has been cited. Those sources can be found in the “References” and “Recommended Readings” at the end of the chapter. (Many of these ideas came from a lecture given by Paul Watzlawick at the San Francisco Academy of Hypnosis in 1988.) People who make their living in sales and those who practice neurolinguistic programming (NLP) might find them familiar.

Indirect Suggestion

You can suggest things without directly suggesting them, thereby sidestepping the resistance that accompanies injunction (“You do this”). Indirect suggestions involve a creative process, and there are many ways to do them. The key is to plant an idea or set up a situation that causes someone to do something without being specifically asked or told to do it.

For example, one way to make an indirect suggestion is to “wonder” about something. Wonder is a strange and powerful word. It tends to predict the future in a positive way and seems to direct energy and an open mind to the effort. It opens the door to possibilities. “I wonder what would happen if we didn’t go to market by the 30th” is entirely different from “You need to get this product to market by the 30th.” Other alternative ways to communicate might include “I wonder what it would take to develop a new product to do this,” “I wonder how we could get to know someone inside the Acme Company,” and “I wonder how you establish contact in a country like Vietnam?” These are not injunctions or even requests, but they plant an idea in a gentle, positive way. To plant an idea is to use indirect suggestion. When executives plant ideas, people who report to them listen and react.

You can make indirect suggestions by saying things to someone else. Imagine that you want to suggest to your client that he enhance his appearance in the business setting. Instead of saying it directly to your client (“You dress poorly and should dress differently”) and creating resistance or resentment, you could (carefully) say it to someone else while your client is present. “If my client weren’t listening, I would tell you that he would be a lot better off if he wore a white shirt to marketing meetings. I think people would take him much more seriously.” Although this is certainly a “tricky” way to communicate, when done skillfully it can become a powerful way to say things that could not be spoken directly.

Similarly, you can make your messages more powerful by preempting them; that is, prefacing them with information that makes them paradoxically seem more important. For example, You know, I’m really not supposed to tell you this, but … is a way to make your message very powerful by indirect suggestion. Another way to preempt is to begin your message with “I know that this is going to sound kind of stupid, but …” Yet another way to say something by not saying it is to start out with “If you tell anyone I said this, I’ll deny it, but …”

You can also create a straw man of the possible resistance by beginning your suggestion with “I don’t know, the thing that you want would require an awful lot of work …” The possibility of extra work is the straw man, easily knocked over by your client who responds, “I don’t mind work! I like hard work.” You can substitute many other desirables for the word work in the equation, such as effort, time, attention, listening skills, or money.

You can use comparisons to your advantage. For example, you can say, “A lot of people don’t seem to understand this next part …” (you’ve suggested that it is difficult or complex, and further that an average person cannot understand it). This challenges many people to focus their attention and to work hard to get your message. You can also use the indirect effect of comparisons in the following way. Choose a kind of client who is attractive to your current client. Then you can say, “You know, I once worked with a client who was a (insert Rhodes Scholar here), and she picked up on this concept right away. You wouldn’t believe how hard she worked at improving.” Conversely, you can choose a kind of client who might be unattractive to your client and say, “I once worked with a _______ (prostitute, drug addict, drug dealer, and so forth) when I was working as a psychologist, and he never seemed to be able to get the hang of this.” Your present client, not wanting to be grouped with this unattractive kind of person, then works hard to be different. You have set up an indirect suggestion to work hard at something without actually having asked for it.

Specific Language

Certain words have the power of implication built into them and should be used carefully or should be avoided. For example, the word try has failure built into it. Failure is implied in the word itself. When you “try” to do something, you are not saying that you will get it done. Rather, you are saying that you will make efforts and attempts that will likely fall short. Can’t is another such word, as it implies that something is impossible. Often a more accurate word is won’t. Won’t carries entirely different connotations, and the connotations are powerful and instructive. Yet is a very useful and powerful word, as it can be applied to action that is desired in the future: “You haven’t learned how to do this yet” is a way of planting the suggestion that you will learn how to do it in the future. Right now is a similar phrase, and it can be used in much the same way: “You aren’t putting in the time right now.” As is another such word, and it implies that you can do something: “Notice how things change as you learn how to listen to your team members.” The word need is strange and powerful, in that it implies necessity, even when people do not think they are using it that way: “I need more time and resources” implies that you could not exist without them and that it would be disastrous if you did not get them. It is entirely different to say, “If I can get enough time and resources we could finish the project in 90 days. Without them it would take much longer and would result in significant market losses.”

The power of these specific words is in their shared implication. They say one thing (in common usage), but they imply something else. Sometimes the implication is clear and shared, and sometimes it is not. But it is always helpful to observe the use of such words, to calibrate one’s own usage, and to align one’s implications with one’s goals. Listen to clients and help them master these kinds of words and use them powerfully yourself. Pay attention to implication.

Specific Nontrance Hypnotic Communications

There are many ways that language can be used hypnotically (outside of explicit trance states). The first principle is to be careful with positive and negative linguistic formulations; that is, use positive words and sentence structures rather than negative ones. For example, think about what happens when you hear the phrase “Don’t think of a rooster.” You have to do the very thing that you are being asked not to do in order to comply. You must think of a rooster to try to accomplish the requested task of not thinking of a rooster. It is automatic and unavoidable. Instead, offer the following: “Think of a big green elephant.” When you think of the elephant (which is explicit and interesting enough to capture almost anyone’s interest) you have to let go of the rooster image. It gets replaced, using a positive sentence structure. The mind is not able to directly respond to negatives. When you use them you complicate things and make action much more difficult. It is analogous to trying hard to relax.

Storytelling

Effective leaders and persuasive people have always used stories to make their points. This is because we use a different part of the brain to process a story than the part we use when trying to follow linear instructions. Stories are full of indirect suggestion, and the plot of a story is often one great indirect or direct suggestion about how life really works. You can make all kinds of suggestions through a good story. Examples are the same way, as they tell people how things work along with expectations for them. Remember the powerful motivating stories you hear. Write them down and memorize them. If you are a good storyteller, take advantage of this asset. If not, learn how to tell stories. Create opportunities to practice. Make up your own stories, formulated especially for this client or that one. Use previous clients (while maintaining confidentiality) for relevant anecdotes. Integrate one or two important indirect suggestions (along with an appropriate outcome) into each story. Be careful that you do not repeat your stories and never explain them. Let your clients figure out what they mean from their own point of view. In fact, ambiguity is often the most powerful way to react to the indirect suggestions that you plant. Clients often feel compelled to fill in the blanks in the most important ways. Sometimes clients fill in the blanks in wonderful ways that would never occur to you.

Often people can “hear” a message in a story that they cannot hear in any other form. When you tell a story about how someone accomplished something, you can access the principle that goes like this: If it is possible for someone in the world, it is possible for me.

We process images differently from other kinds of language forms. Images get us. They are powerful and can really move us when well presented. Notice the difference between the taste of butterscotch and a recipe. There’s no comparison. The sensory experience of taste always wins. Pepper your language and coaching with sharp, compelling images. Exhort your clients to imagine themselves doing something or experiencing something. Help them imagine what it is like to learn something new or to accomplish something difficult or to complete something satisfying. Help them feel what it is like to be in that position. Use images and use the word imagine regularly.

Find out how your client handles images. Some people have a stilted imaginary life. Help them grow their imagination, and remember, when the imagination and reality come into conflict, the imagination has more power. This is true when people use their imagination to hurt and constrain as well as help themselves. Beware, however, that a small number of people do not seem able to make pictures in their minds. With these clients, help them use images in whatever form is comfortable. Some people can create images without making mental pictures. They somehow use a “sense of things” to accomplish the same tasks that others might do with mental pictures. Begin with an imagery assessment. Discern how clients presently use images and what form the images take.

Here are some specific examples of the ways that imagery can be used. Many come from Rian McMullin’s 1986 reference listed at the end of the chapter. These are examples of types of images you can help your client develop as resources for growth and change.

Coping or Mastery Images

Use images that help a person cope with a difficult situation or task. For example, you can help your client create an image of himself or herself successfully asking for a raise or a new assignment. These images can be large, general images or small, detailed ones. The detailed images tend to help when one is learning a new skill or attempting something novel.

Modeling Images

Your client can imagine someone who is already excellent at a desired task or skill. He or she can go through the steps (in his or her imagination) as if he or she were the skilled person. This can serve as a transitional learning experience, making it easier to actually do the new thing when the time comes. “Imagine that you are Andrew Lee asking this client for business. See what it feels like to do that if you were him.”

Idealized Future Images

Help your clients imagine how they would like life to be in 5 years. Where do they want to be, how do they want to be, what do they want to be doing, and how do they want to feel? Help them to use their imagination to experience what the future can be like. This can make things more real and can make them more accessible. A variation on this approach is to imagine yourself at the age of 85, looking back on your life. Is there anything to be learned about the current situation?

Leveling Images

Use leveling images when it is difficult for your client to confront or deal with someone else. Public speakers use this technique to successfully get through (or over) their fears. “Imagine your audience in their underwear” is the classic image used for this purpose. “Imagine your boss in his gardening clothes or in his robe, when he has just gotten out of bed.” “Imagine your client with you at a baseball game or at a picnic with all of the kids.” Then go through the future interaction, and do it successfully. Eventually move to an image that is exactly like the one you have to confront.

Corrective Images

You can use corrective images to undo and redo mistakes that you have made. Go back over the same situation and do it again. This time change something significant and see what difference it makes.

Worst-Case Scenarios

When faced with a difficult or intimidating situation, help your clients develop an image of the absolute worst possible scenario. Help them decide whether they could stand that outcome (they always can, even though it might involve a very undesirable situation). Then back off a couple of notches or levels and determine what the realistic worst case might be. Decide how bad that would be and whether some preparation must be made for it. Then develop a plan for success, knowing that you can handle any conceivable result.

Ultimate Consequences Images

Imagine, in detail, what the outcome might be if you actually do what you are now considering. Imagine what might happen if you take another path. “Imagine what a day or a week would be like if you took that new job with the start-up company.” Imagine what might happen if you are able to successfully learn what you are striving to learn. What are the benefits? How will life change? Help your client go through these images in sharp detail.

Cathartic Images

Imagine blowing up at your boss or your team. Just let yourself go in your imagination. See what this is like. Then you will not have to experience it in real life.

Empathy Images

Imagine yourself in the shoes of an important other. Go through a situation in their position and allow yourself to envision what they might be thinking and experience what they might be feeling. This is a great way to learn how to read people better and to become a more cooperative leader or better salesperson. It helps build empathy.

Security Images

Develop and practice images that make your client feel safe. “Imagine that you are in your backyard, at home, on a warm, sunny day.” “Imagine yourself in the presence of someone you trust, someone who makes you feel safe.” They can then keep those images around for times when things get difficult.

Metaphors

We also process metaphors differently than “regular” day-to-day language. Metaphors help us to understand and to change, and they bypass normal resistance to change. They give us another way to view the same old problems and situations, and they encourage us to engage our intuition. Some of what constitutes great literature is metaphor, as it has no intrinsic meaning or purpose other than to instruct us in larger ways. Metaphors make us think and cause us to notice things that we had never noticed before.

Alice in Wonderland, The Wizard of Oz, Star Wars, Kafka’s The Trial, and Plato’s Allegory of the Cave are examples of metaphors. Much biblical material is metaphor. Religious lessons are frequently taught this way. Metaphors are available from Judaism and Christianity, from Asia and India, from science fiction and literature, and even from children’s stories. Sheldon Kopp (1971) explored the use of metaphor in his book Metaphors from a Psychotherapist Guru, and defined a metaphor as: “a way of speaking in which one thing is expressed in terms of another, whereby this bringing together throws new light on the character of what is being described” (p. 17).

Kopp also quoted Paracelsus by observing that the guru should not tell “the naked truth. He should use images, allegories, figures, wonderous [sic] speech, or other hidden roundabout ways” (1971, p. 19).

David Gordon, in a metaphor “cookbook,” makes the point that “each therapy or system of psychology, then, has as one of its basic constituents a set of metaphors” (1978, p. 8).

Metaphors allow the storyteller to get away with things he or she could never tell us directly. For example, let’s say that you are working with someone who dresses inappropriately for the business situation. The way that she presents herself is ineffective, and some relatively simple changes might cause her to be taken more seriously. It might be difficult to give this feedback directly or it might be hard for the client to hear it in a way that motivates or mobilizes change. This is a time to consider a metaphor or anecdote. Create an example of someone who looked or presented herself in a way that did not work. For example, Richard Nixon lost debates and perhaps a presidential election because his makeup and presentation were poorly suited for television cameras. Often the metaphoric message will come across loud and clear and in a way that will not create hurt feelings or resistance. A coach can always use a metaphor or story first, observe its impact, and give direct feedback later, if necessary. But, you usually do not need to explain your metaphors or stories.

Metaphors also encourage risk taking without actually asking for it. Remember how you have felt more daring after having read a good book or watched an athletic event or gone to a movie with an inspiring message.

Humans are always trying to make meaning out of things. With a metaphor, you invite the listener to make sense of what is in it, to pass it through a personal filter and to find the logic and the moral. Great teachers, leaders, coaches, and motivators have always known this, so they build repertoires of metaphors and anecdotes and use them liberally. Moderation is important, and metaphors should be used judiciously, especially by beginners. Too much of a good thing can turn a wise teacher into an annoying irrelevancy. “When I ask you to take an aspirin, please don’t take the whole bottle,” the old golf teacher Harvey Penick used to say (Penick & Shrake, 1992).

Modeling

As a coach, turn yourself into a model of positive attitude and action. Do this in your own way, with your own style. As a consultant and “expert,” others will read you to determine how things are going. If you are confident and at ease with yourself and the process of coaching, problem solving, and growth, clients will read this confidence and feel assured. It is as if you create a small, positive trance state, a set of assumptions about how things are and will be in the future. You do not need to say that you know what you are doing, you do not need to say that things are going to be all right, you simply behave as if that were true. This creates a powerful suggestion. You are then in a position to “predict the future” by stating that goals will most likely be accomplished. You can state them almost casually: “Oh, I imagine you will learn this quite quickly.” You assert with calm self-assurance.

This requires excellence on your part. You must do your homework, learn and know your stuff, and make yourself do the right thing. When you lack a certain skill, you must go out and learn it. In this way, you can develop the experience necessary to speak with authority and confidence.

Reframing

Much meaning is derived from context. Standing in your underwear means nothing if you are home alone. But it has a very different meaning if you are at a corporate cocktail party. Watzlawick et al. (1974) define reframing in a technical way:

Coaches can help clients shift contexts to derive new and important meanings. The way we feel is determined by the way that we look at things, how we ascribe meanings, and what we see as the context. It all depends on how we look at it. We can help our clients flex up and change the context. We can offer an alternative context, as no context is ever completely fixed.

There is a great example from the athletic coaching arena, where a coach seems very hard on one specific player. She yells at that player and notes every error, following it with corrective action that sometimes seems punitive. The player finally confronts the coach. “Why do you hate me?” she asks. “I know I’m not a great player, but I work hard, and try to do everything you say.”

“I don’t hate you,” replies the coach. “I yell at you because you have potential. Don’t worry when I yell at you. Worry if I stop yelling at you.”

Ambiguity

Although you may value clarity and precision in your communications, it is not always the most effective way to coach. Intentional ambiguity has its uses, because humans tend to fill in the gaps. When presented with ambiguous stimuli or confronted with words or situations that have multiple meanings, humans are naturally inclined to complete the picture, to connect the dots, to make sense out of abstractions, and to create personal meaning in unclear situations. Clear and complete communications have their advantages, but ambiguous ones require the listener to work, to sort things out, to think. Sometimes this is exactly what the speaker wants and what the listener needs. Sometimes it is a good idea to let the listener chew on things himself or herself for a while. Often clients will fill the gaps in ways that will surprise. Sometimes clients bring in information that neither the coach nor the client would expect had they approached the problem from a linear point of view. This is not a recommendation to make things intentionally vague, which can be annoying to the learner, but occasional incompleteness and ambiguity can be powerful. You do not always have to fill in all the blanks. Your client is smart, and they have some answers inside. Their answers are usually better than your answers.

The “As-If ”

To learn something new or difficult we have to put ourselves in position to do the learning. You cannot learn to ride a bicycle unless you are on the bicycle and moving. You cannot ride a bicycle while it is not in motion. But you cannot sit on it when it is in motion, because that would be riding a bicycle and you don’t know how to ride a bicycle. So, how do you make the transition from being a nonrider to being a rider? The key is in the as-if. You have to behave as if you already know how to do it in order to learn how to do it. This is true in real (grown-up) life as well. You cannot make a sale as a real estate agent unless you are out there showing homes and writing up offers. You act like a real estate agent before you actually are one. This is how you become one. You cannot become a writer unless you write, and you have to write as if you already know how to write, even though you really do not. You cannot write without starting to write.

The as-if is exemplified in the following story told by Paul Watzlawick (1988):

Final Thoughts

The point is that there are many ways to skin a cat, and that direct, linear presentation of recommendations for change (in the form of injunctions) are not always the most effective or powerful. A good coach must develop a wide repertoire of influencing strategies and must know that just because a client shows up to meet with you, it does not necessarily follow that he or she is ready, willing, and able to change. Most people resist direct injunctions (such as “You should do this; you must be different than you are”). These techniques are called hypnotic because they influence in a way that bypasses critical thinking, not because they make use of observable trance states.

Many of the ideas in this chapter are creative and some are manipulative. Most are nonlinear. They do not move in a direct fashion from point A to point B along a straight line. They must be used carefully, with respect for your coaching client. Take care to ensure that no one ends up feeling foolish as a result of your interventions, and make sure that you have your clients’ best interests in mind.

These hypnotic approaches require a special rapport, and they help to build rapport as well. Take care of that rapport, as it is the glue that binds your client to you and to the process of growth.

One more thing: Loosen up and have a little fun with your work and your clients. Here’s Paul Watzlawick again with the title of his 1983 book: The Situation Is Hopeless, But Not Serious.

References

Franklin, B., Majault, M. J., Le Roy, J. B., Sallin, C. L., Bailly, J. S., D’Arcet, J. et al. (1784). Rapport des commissaires charges par le Roi, de l’examen du magnetisme animal. (Reprinted in Skeptic, 4(3), 66–83, 1996.)

Gordon, D. (1978). Therapeutic metaphors: Helping others through the looking glass. Cupertino, CA: META Publications.

Gordon, D., & Meyers-Anderson, M. (1981). Phoenix: Therapeutic patterns of Milton H. Erickson. Cupertino, CA: META Publications.

Haley, J. (1967). Advanced techniques of hypnosis and therapy. Selected papers of Milton H. Erickson, M.D. New York: Grune & Stratton.

Haley, J. (1986). Uncommon therapy: The psychiatric techniques of Milton H. Erickson, M.D. New York: Norton.

Hilgard, E. R. (1991). A neodissociation interpretation of hypnosis. In S. J. Lynn & J. W. Rhue (Eds.), Theories of hypnosis: Current models and perspective (pp. 83–104). New York: Guilford.

Jourard, S., & Landsman, T. (1980). Healthy personality (4th ed.). New York: Macmillan.

Kopp, S. (1971). Metaphors from a psychotherapist guru. Palo Alto, CA: Science & Behavior Books.

Lynn, S. J., & Rhue, J. W. (1991). Theories of hypnosis: Current models and perspectives. New York: Guilford.

O’Hanlon, W. H. (1987). Taproots: Underlying principles of Milton Erickson’s therapy and hypnosis. New York: Norton.

Peltier, B. (2006). Hypnosis in dentistry. In D. Mostofsky (Ed.), Behavioral dentistry (pp. 65–76). Ames, IA: Blackwell-Munksgaard.

Penick, H., & Shrake, B. (1992). Harvey Penick’s little red book: Lessons and teachings from a lifetime in golf. New York: Simon & Schuster.

Watzlawick, P. (1983). The situation is hopeless, but not serious. New York: Norton.

Watzlawick, P. (1988, February 25). Hypnotherapy without trance. Lecture presented at the Academic Assembly of the San Francisco Academy of Hypnosis.

Watzlawick, P., Beavin, J. H., & Jackson, D. D. (1967). Pragmatics of human communication. New York: Norton.

Watzlawick, P., Weakland, J., & Fisch, R. (1974). Change: Principles of problem formation and problem resolution. New York: Norton.

Zilbergeld, B., Edelstien, M. G., & Araoz, D. L. (Eds.). (1986). Hypnosis: Questions and answers. New York: Norton.

Recommended Readings

Bry, A. (1978). Visualization: Directing the movies of your mind. New York: Harper & Rowe.

Camus, A. (1957). The fall. New York: Knopf.

Grimley, B. (2008). NLP Coaching. In S. Palmer & A. Whybrow (Eds.), Handbook of coaching psychology (pp. 193–210). London: Routledge.

Hoorwitz, A. (1989). Hypnotic methods in nonhypnotic therapies. New York: Irvington.

Kroger, W. S., & Fezler, W. D. (1976). Hypnosis and behavior modification: Imagery conditioning. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott.

Lankton, S. (1980). Practical magic: A translation of basic neuro-linguistic programming into clinical psychotherapy. Cupertino, CA: META Publications.

McMullin, R. E. (1986). Handbook of cognitive therapy techniques. New York: Norton.

Sheikh, A. A. (1984). Imagination and healing. Farmingdale, NY: Baywood.

Watzlawick, P. (Ed.). (1984). The invented reality. New York: Norton.

Watzlawick, P. (1988). Ultrasolutions: How to fail most successfully. New York: Norton.