Skip to content

40 NLP Techniques

Welcome to the fascinating world of Neuro-linguistic Programming (NLP) – a realm of transformative techniques and powerful insights that can unlock the full potential of your mind. NLP is an innovative approach to understanding human behavior, communication, and personal development. In this article, we present you with a curated list of 40 NLP techniques that are designed to empower you with the tools to enhance your communication skills, overcome challenges, and create positive change in your life.

Rooted in the belief that our thoughts, language, and behaviors are interconnected, NLP offers a unique set of strategies to reprogram the way we perceive the world around us and, consequently, how we respond to it. Whether you seek to improve your relationships, boost your confidence, or break free from limiting beliefs, these NLP techniques are versatile and applicable in various aspects of life.

Each technique you'll encounter in this list has been carefully selected for its efficacy and adaptability. From the foundational principles of anchoring and reframing to the empowering practices of visualizations and pattern interrupts, these tools will equip you to overcome obstacles and tap into your inner reservoir of potential.

The power of NLP lies in its ability to illuminate the patterns that shape our thoughts and actions, enabling us to rewrite our narratives and design more fulfilling lives. As you explore the techniques within this article, we encourage you to approach them with an open mind and a willingness to explore the depths of your mind.

Here you will find the 40 most important NLP techniques for more success in your life!

1. Eye access movements

Teenage girl's eye, extreme close-up

The eyes are the true mirror, the gateway to the soul, as an old saying goes. In fact, much more is hidden behind your organ of vision. No other muscle in the human body is used as often as the eye muscles. It also houses the only muscles in the body that cannot be (completely, permanently) controlled consciously. Using your eye muscles, which are directly connected to the prefrontal cortex, you call up information and memories and use them to imagine the future. Your eyes let you call up images, sounds, emotions and thoughts and move depending on the train of thought - also in a different direction of view.

Example:

If your eyes wander upwards, your counterpart is currently visualizing, so he calls up an image in his head. If the eyes go down, there is either "feeling inside" or an inner dialogue, for example when we clarify with our inner voice whether we like a certain offer. It is important to note that the eyes move during the thought process move and not during the verbal answer to a question - the information must of course be called up before answering. If the eyes remain in a central position, auditory channels are often called up, i.e. a noise or tones. The frame in which these gaze directions can take place differently depending on the person.

2. Analog marking

In * NLP * one describes the use of certain stylistic devices, such as the conscious use of the voice (volume, speaking pauses, emphasis, speaking speed, speaking in a different direction, speaking with dialect coloring) or physiology (facial expressions, gestures, direction and space anchors) as analog marking. It is used to anchor, to embed suggestions during conversation hypnosis, or to emphasize certain keywords and stimuli. Texts can also be marked in the same way.

Example:

For example, you can intentionally include "misspellings" in e-mails and always start special words with capitalization (visual, analog marking). emotional words and anchor their effect in the subconscious with capital letters.

3. Anchoring techniques

An anchor is understood to be the link between a certain reaction and an external stimulus. They can be set in any representation model. Any stimulus that can be perceived with one of the five senses can be used as an anchor. Every emotion that you have experienced so far is stored in you and can be accessed at any time with the help of anchors.

Anchoring means executing a certain reaction to a certain action, movement or just a certain word. People with phobias also use these forms of anchoring, for example. For example, anyone who is afraid of crossing a high bridge automatically reacts anxiously when a bridge suddenly appears - it is so deeply anchored in the subconscious.

Example:

Anchors accompany us throughout life. They shape you even in childhood. Your parents' wedding ring, maybe even your own, are arguably the strongest anchors of human relationships. The song that was played when you first kissed or the smell of the sea, all of these make you feel something specific. Anker also uses advertising in a targeted manner to trigger feelings in potential buyers: theme songs from films and series, the smell of gingerbread, the image of a sandy beach.

In everyday communication, anchors are particularly well suited to quickly leading other people out of undesirable, restrictive emotions into resource-rich states. This means that you can quickly give a bad-tempered friend, for example, the opportunity to feel better.

4. B.A.G.E.L model

A model of NLP, which deals with the externally recognizable signals (access instructions) that can be perceived by a person. It is an artificial word made up of the following terms: Body Posture, Accessing Cues, Gestures, Eye movements and Language Patterns. The idea behind it is based on perceiving people as a whole and not on the basis of individual systems of representation. Access notices are always available, but often hardly noticeable. Many of these access instructions, such as scratching your head, snapping your fingers, or breathing speed are typical for a certain sensation. Others, however, need to be calibrated first to understand what they mean.

Example:

People who represent visually usually have an upright posture. Individuals who listen carefully to a conversation tend to lean back and sit with their heads bowed or arms folded. People who represent kinesthetically tend to have a bent forward posture and deep breathing. The first conclusions about the current emotional state of a person can be drawn from these access instructions.

5. Ground anchor

Ground anchors are usually labels attached to the ground with the help of notes, which stand for a point in time, a condition or an event. They should help you to put yourself in the anchored position.

Example:

Ground anchors are very often used in conjunction with a time line. They help to build up this time line in a targeted manner, to go through the steps one after the other and to visualize them. Ground anchors are a good means of perceiving people's reactions and changes to specific situations.

6. Chaining

A chain anchor or a anchor chain denotes the stringing together of different anchors, which allow the client to experience different states one after the other. The aim is to react immediately to a stimulus such as boredom by triggering the anchor chain with motivation and zest for action. This process can take place within a few seconds. Chain anchors, like anchors, can be set in any representation model. There can also be a string of different sensory channels or a combination of several impressions for an anchor. So the client reacts positively to a stimulus that is actually negative for him. This is achieved by triggering the first anchor, which brings about the intermediate steps between the undesired and the desired state and lets them run in seconds. Several steps lead you to a goal, with the advantage that you no longer really have to go through these intermediate steps (which normally takes much longer and often means getting stuck in a resource-depleted state), but in the future it is enough to release the anchor .

7. Change history

Change history is a time-line therapy technique. Earlier (emotionally charged) relationships are dismissed and worked through. What is important here is a process that implies that every person has a positive intention for their behavior. Negative behavior can only be explained by the lack of alternative behavior. This process is not about reliving the past, but rather learning from it. The point is to build a best-case scenario about the possible perfect situation and to use this knowledge for future similar situations.

Example:

In the course of the change history, many questions about past resource requirements are processed. Examples of central questions are: What would you have needed in this situation? What did you miss in this situation? Have you ever been in a certain situation that you ...?

8. Chunking

Chunking is a meta-program from NLP and refers to the fact that you can jump anywhere between detail and overview in a topic.

Example:

For example, if a question is focused on a specific detail, many politicians waste time by first referring to a global overview in order to explain the "problem itself". The argument for doing this is often given that it does not make sense to to discuss "little things and details" as long as the problem itself is not yet clearly defined and delimited.

9. Core transformation

A method on a spiritual basis, with the aim of experiencing the feeling of absolute fulfillment and thereby changing an undesirable emotion or behavior. The point is to free yourself from a behavior, belief or anchored feeling.

With this method, a distinction is made according to five classic core states.

  1. Being - directly experiencing the here and now of the present.
  2. Inner peace - listening to yourself and being in relaxed harmony with yourself.
  3. Love - to allow, experience and give unconditional love.
  4. Be okay - a healthy level of self-acceptance. I am exactly what I am and that is a good thing!
  5. Connectedness - to build and live the connection and the unity with other people, with nature, with God.

10. Diamond technique

An accompanying creativity and problem processing technique of NLP, which does not pursue the actual problem solving, but rather aims to understand this differently through newly gained insights and points of view.

Example:

The diamond technique is suitable for getting to the bottom of the cause of unwanted feelings. A certain situation is examined together with the client, with the aim of enlarging the perspective and presenting a larger number of alternative behaviors for future, similar situations. Behaviors that were previously unknown can be specifically built up using the diamond technique.

11. Disney strategy

A model to increase creativity, which can be traced back to Walt Disney. A certain situation is always viewed from three different perspectives. From the point of view of the dreamer, from the point of view of the realist and from the point of view of the critic. This method is perfect for use by one person, but also for group use. The aim is to examine the situation from different perspectives through these different perspectives and to gain more knowledge through this changing role model.

12. Family constellation

A measure to clarify structures, relationships and interaction patterns in families. Other people are used on behalf of family members.

Example:

The systematic family constellation is usually carried out in groups, but can also be done with the help of a family board over a spatial representation. A specific situation of a person and the interpersonal relationships are always examined. The aim of a family constellation is to deal with the stressful situation and to find a solution to the problem through the feedback of strangers.

13. Almost phobia

An NLP technique that makes it possible to permanently get rid of phobias in just a few minutes. The term phobia hides a reflex that is triggered by a certain stimulus. With the fast phobia it is possible to create a specific demarcation between fear and phobia. It is made clear to the client that fear is not a bad thing, but not all fear is to be equated with a phobia.

Example:

If a person suffers from claustrophobia, an oppressive feeling of fear automatically occurs in certain rooms, such as in an elevator. Fast phobia tries to exchange this negative feeling with a consciously set positive anchor. The client should succeed in bringing out this positive anchor in certain critical situations and in replacing the fear reflex with emotions seen as positive.

14. Future pace

A look into the future, which is played through in the head over and over again to ensure that the desired behavior can be used without any problems in an emergency. Four aspects are considered: building up your own resources, setting an anchor in the present, which will be used as a memory point in the future, personal training and test run.

Example:

The Future-Pace methodology is often used at the end of a sales pitch or a negotiation to check motivation, to consolidate a decision or to strengthen resources. A central question is addressed with a view to the future, e.g. "What could be different if ...?"

15. Energy field

A model of NLP, which is all about the conscious influencing and perception of personal charisma via the five sensory channels. The aim of the energy field method is to free the client from blockages such as depression, fears or feelings of guilt and to help the body regain a free flow of energy. The energy field method increases your own energy level and you learn certain breathing, relaxation and physical exercises that help to specifically charge your personal energies.

16. Leading

If there is a good rapport, the conversation partner can be carefully shifted into a different state by leading. The term leading means to lead. The actual process of leading is pretty simple. When you perceive that there is rapport, we start by bringing about the first small changes in expressive behavior (physiology, language, ...) and at the same time check the behavior of our counterpart to see whether they are going along with the changes. Before the actual influencing starts, you should test whether there is sufficient rapport. If there is a good non-verbal basis, the likelihood of successful influencing increases rapidly. On the one hand, this is based on the fact that the other person trusts you. On the other hand, it is important that he also subconsciously (in this figurative sense also non-verbally) shows that he is following your instructions. According to the status law, every good communicator is always a leader and inevitably also a manipulator.

Example:

Since people tend to instinctively want to maintain good contact with sympathetic people, they will usually go along with the individual steps of the leader. In this way, the influencer or, for example, the manager can use skilful leading to put a nervous employee in a neutral mood in order to make the discussion process more successful. It goes without saying that for every salesperson or manager, leading and pacing are absolute basic communication tools.

17. Pacen

Pacing comes from the English term "to pace". Literally translated, it means walking in lockstep. In NLP, pacing is used as a process of mirroring the other person. This is the verbal and non-verbal imitation of a person's gestures and behavior. Goal of pacing is to create a rapport with the interlocutor. In many communication situations, the interlocutors are only concerned with conveying the content and thus waste a large part of their potential. It is much more effective to put the content aside in the first step and pacing a positive one Through this conscious reflection you automatically create a rapport. Try to go through life a little more openly in the near future and observe other people in contact situations. It will quickly become clear to you that people with a lot in common have more understanding for show each other . It is not about affected copying of other people, but about consciously engaging with another person. Pacing is a central basic tool for communication and helps you to quickly establish good contact with the person you are talking to, and the hypnotist in particular should be able to master pacing.

18. Mentor technique

The mentor technique is a methodology of NLP and aims to build up new perspectives and resources and to maintain them in the long term. To achieve the goal, the client is accompanied by three mentors. These mentors can be people from the present, the past or even fantasy figures. Each of these mentors takes a different stance on a particular topic. Mentor number one stands for a desired behavior, mentor number two shows understanding of existing ways of thinking and mentor number three offers support in defining beliefs and values. In the mentor technique, the client tries to put himself in the shoes of his mentor in certain situations and at the same time to broaden his personal horizon.

19. meta-model

A meta-model is the description for another model. In NLP and linguistics, our language is understood as a subjective representation (and therefore also as a model) of reality. The linguistic metamodel is therefore a model from the "model of language". The original aim was to expand the model of a person's reality in such a way that the range of choices increases and improves.

The linguistic and content-related image of the environment is created through three creation processes: the process of generalization, the process of eradication and the process of distortion. There are many forms of communication. People communicate with themselves, i.e. their consciousness, and with one another by using a uniform language. What is spoken is a simplified version of the actually perceived inner experience. The complete linguistic and, above all, accurate reproduction of what is communicated externally is called a deep structure. The design processes just described (process of generalization, process of deletion and process of distortion) result in suitable processing (transformation) that is expressed in verbal language.

Since the recipient of a message usually has a different wealth of experience than the sender, it is not uncommon for interpretational errors and mix-ups to occur when translating back. As a rule, the communicating people are not aware that such a problem exists because they rely on the other person to "speak the same language". Only when complications arise do they notice that they have "talked past each other".

If you would like to check the linguistic utterances of your counterpart with the metamodel in order to obtain more information about the deep structure, it is advisable to question the content in the following order:

  1. Generalization
  2. Distortion
  3. Repayment

20. metaphor

A metaphor is a play on words that is used to transfer or transfer beliefs, values, requirements or relationships. It's a form of side chunking. In NLP, a distinction is made between shallow and deep metaphors.

A flat metaphor is a simile that plays with obvious similarities. Examples are: "as strong as a bear", "as big as a journey" or "as infinite as space".

A deep metaphor deals with relationships, shapes, and processes. Examples of this are: "No longer seeing the forest in front of the large number of trees" or "The elephant in the china shop".

Example:

In NLP, a metaphor is always used consciously and has nothing to do with everyday humor. Depending on the situation, a metaphor can pursue different goals. On the one hand, it can make you think or drive you crazy.

21. Milton model

The Milton model of NLP is actually the reverse of the meta model: Instead of collecting specific information through appropriate questions, one now uses the vague language possible. These deliberate meta-model injuries are committed in front of larger groups in order to address and pick up as many people as possible. You already know this from advertising and politics, especially when high decision-makers do not want to commit themselves in interviews and they do not make any specific statements, even though they deal in detail with the topic. It is a collection of conversational hypnosis techniques to put people into the deepest states of relaxation.

Example:

The election promise - "I promise security, wealth and prosperity" - is a good example of the Milton model. Every single person interprets these words according to their personal situation and creates their own ideas of the future and change Thoughts are addressed to the subconscious and the speaker has already managed to anchor himself in the minds of the audience through this vague formulation.

22. Neurological levels

In the classic processes of learning, communication and change, there are natural hierarchies of classification. The function of each individual level is to organize information on the level below and to change it at the same time. A change on one of the lower levels can, but does not necessarily have to, affect the levels above. However, changing something on the upper levels necessarily means changing things on the levels below to support the change on the higher levels.

23. New Behavior Generator

The New Behavior Generator is a strategy for modeling a new behavior. The aim is to adopt, generate or change behavior. The model is particularly suitable for people who want to achieve a new behavior and want to orientate themselves on a model or model. This can be a living person, a fantasy person or a behavior of oneself that was already available in the past.

Example:

In a first step with the New Behavior Generator, you deal with your own values, your own convictions or your own behavior and analyze the current behavior patterns. Then you try to orientate yourself on a model and play through new behavior patterns in your head and then in real situations. As a final conclusion, it is helpful to carry out a situation analysis. It is useful to consider whether you did everything right and were satisfied with yourself or whether further changes are necessary.

24. Eco-Check

The eco-check is one of the classic NLP basic techniques. The behavior of a person is considered in a closed system such as a thought or world model, taking into account the influences of the environment. The aim is to make changes in a person's life and to subject them to an ecological test in advance. If concerns arise in the course of the eco-check and the goals set, the goals should be adjusted until there is a clear congruence.

Example:

The eco-check deals with the review and confirmation of individual behavior and individual goals and their effects on larger systems. Examples of this are work colleagues or the family. In the internal context, the eco-check deals with beliefs and values.

25. Praline pattern

The praline pattern is a short but promising motivation strategy of NLP. It serves to strengthen the motivation for tasks for which you have decided yourself, but which you do not really find attractive. The aim of this technique is to provide the task with a positive image and thus increase the desire to achieve the goal.

26. Rapid Relaxation Technique

The rapid relaxation technique deals with the influence of posture on the state of mind. There are a number of special tips in the form of breathing and relaxation techniques that can help you to bring your body and state of mind back into harmony.

Example:

Imagine that you are in a situation with a negative emotion. To regain a positive state of mind, you can try to breathe calmly and consciously from your stomach. To intensify the feeling, it can help to place your hand on your stomach and feel the breathing movements more intensely. Close your eyes and try to remember a beautiful situation from your past. Sometimes it can help to add calming words to yourself, such as: "I feel very good and I am fine". Slowly you will succeed in immersing yourself in a feeling of relaxation. Try a color in this now positive situation or to give a word and to anchor it in yourself.With a little practice you will be able to only have to think about the word or the color in the future and to automatically associate this with a positive state of mind.

27. report

Rapport is understood as a common basis of trust and sympathy. This arises particularly quickly when two people meet who have a similar way of communicating. This results in a clear hierarchy (depending on the direction of the conversation) with which both are satisfied. Of course, both can have equal rights, but usually the one with the higher status takes the lead. The better two people understand each other, the more similar their body language becomes. Either one of them (mostly those with low status) adapts to his counterpart (those with high status) and lets himself be guided or both of them approach each other. The process of this alignment is known as mirroring or pacing and leading.

Example:

Rapport can be recognized by the fact that there is an equality of posture and behavior. Couples or friends, for example, go in lockstep and when one of them picks up a glass, the other takes a sip even though he is not thirsty. That means one approaches one's counterpart subconsciously.

28. Reframing

Reframing is a popular tool for negotiating content and is primarily concerned with reinterpreting the context of meanings and content. The technique is particularly suitable for generating not only a non-verbal, but also a content-related report. This ability to view a situation or behavior from different angles can help you keep your mind agile and free. Training can help you cope better with difficult situations and significantly increase your pool of available choices. Depending on the situation, context reframing or meaning reframing is used in NLP.

29. Representation systems

Representation systems describe the perception of the world through the influence of the five sensory channels. Everyone puts a different focus on their senses. A typical representation system is the VAKOG model.

30. Separate

Separation is understood as a consciously employed state of interruption in order to make a person pause or stop something. The goal of separation is to put the client in a different state and to get them out of the here and now.

Example:

Ask a person a spontaneous question that has nothing to do with the current moment, such as "What did you have for lunch yesterday?". Perhaps the other person is a little surprised at the sudden question at first, but you will get an answer to it to immerse yourself in a neutral state.

31. Six-Step Reframing

In six-step reframing, an attempt is made to permanently change undesirable behavior in a program of 6 steps.

  • Step 1: What is the problem and what is causing it?
  • Step 2: Communicate with yourself! Am I responsible for my behavior?
  • Step 3: Develop a positive intention.
  • Step 4: Be creative and find new ways.
  • Step 5: Perform an eco-check.
  • Step 6: Make an agreement with yourself for the future - Future Pace.

By becoming familiar with better alternatives, the client is offered a greater choice of possibilities and thus more freedom for personal development.

32. Swish technique

The Swish Technique aims to change unwanted habits by building strong, positive motivation. The attempt is made to bring the desired target image closer to the client and at the same time to move the undesired target image into the far distance. Why wander far away when the good is so close is the motto of this widespread NLP technique.

Example:

A good example of the Swish technique is smoking cessation. In a certain situation, such as when drinking a coffee, the desire for a cigarette arises. This image usually appears automatically and is anchored in the subconscious. The aim of the Swish technology should now be to replace the model of the cigarette with another, a positive one. One could try to associate the drinking of a coffee with a glass of water and internalize this glass of water as a new model. Repeating this idea and doing a little training will automate these new images and help you get rid of an addiction like smoking.

33. SMART method

The aim of the SMART method is to define goals correctly and precisely. The abbreviation SMART stands for: S for the term specific, M for the term measurable, A for the term attractive, R for the term realistic and T for the term terminated. Formulating goals using the SMART method can help you to achieve your goals faster and easier.

Example:

The SMART method is easy to use in many professional and private areas. So she can e.g. help you find a suitable apartment.

  1. Specific: Create a catalog of criteria for your new apartment. What must the apartment have?
  2. Measurable: How big is your budget?
  3. Attractive: How attractive is a new apartment for you? Is it a nice-to-have or is there a personal level of suffering hidden behind it?
  4. Realistic: What about supply and demand? Are there realistic conditions to find your perfect apartment?
  5. Scheduled: By when do you want to find your new apartment?

This structured approach can help you focus on the essentials. You gain clarity about your goals and can achieve them more effectively.

34. Strategies

Strategies in NLP are specific awareness plans. They can help you to organize your behavior and your thoughts and are a support to cope with certain tasks better and easier. Examples of classic strategies in NLP are the TOTE model or the Walt Disney strategy. Strategies are closely related to beliefs and behaviors. A strategy in NLP can be compared to a cooking recipe. It gives you information about which ingredients, in which order and in which intensity are necessary to achieve your favorite dish, i.e. your inner satisfaction.

35. Parts negotiation

In the technique of parts negotiation, it is assumed that there are several partial personalities in every person who pursue different goals. That is to say, in a certain way everyone is in a conflict with himself that he has to overcome. Part-negotiating helps you to discover your different part-personalities and to listen to them. You learn to deal with your inner conflicts yourself and to find compromise solutions with yourself. This technique supports you in freeing yourself from annoying behavior and helps you to break new ground.

Example:

You're sitting in a coffee house and suddenly feel like a large piece of cake with cream. The connoisseur in you says: "Take it!" In the same breath, the rational man in you responds and says: "Actually you want to lose weight and the cake is a real calorie bomb." So you are in an inner conflict with yourself. In situations like this, the parts-negotiating technique can help you find the path that is right for you.

36. time line

The time line helps you to coordinate your past, your present and your future through a visual representation. This enables you to establish a connection between future goals and resources you have experienced. The time line tries to call up all the experiences and emotions stored in the subconscious and to supplement them with the visions of the future. In NLP, a distinction is made between the outer time line and the inner time line. The time line is a good method to get to the root of problems and to find out where existing problems originate from the representation of the past.

37. Trance

Trance is a special form of a state of relaxation that is supposed to help to reach the subconscious resources of a person. A trance can be classified as light, medium and low. The deeper the trance, the more the consciousness is restricted (but never completely switched off). Even in a deep trance, the consciousness is still able to perceive everything, but it is no longer interested in the things that are happening in the environment. As a result, real perception and the ability to criticize are extremely limited.

Example:

If the test subject is fixated on the hypnotist, follows his instructions and is no longer easily disturbed by other things, the hypnotist has already induced a slight state of relaxation. In a medium trance, influences of all kinds are already possible. You can use it to directly influence the blood circulation, the hormonal balance and other body functions. Long-term suggestions also develop their full effect at this stage. Furthermore, pain can be switched off even in a medium trance (analgesia). In deep trance it is possible to create a different reality and also hallucinations. In the deepest trance state, intervention of the consciousness is only very rarely or not at all possible. The hypnotist makes all decisions of the conscious mind. The deep trance is mainly necessary for the execution of commands and for hallucinations. In addition, total anesthesia (numbing / narcotization) is also possible.

38. VAKOG model

This NLP technique is based on the five human sensory channels:

  • visual - affecting the sense of sight and the eyes
  • auditory - affecting the sense of hearing and ears
  • kinesthetic - affecting the sense of touch
  • olfactory - affecting the sense of smell
  • gustatory - concerning the sense of taste

Everyone has these five senses, but a few people have preferences, special emphases on which they focus in their perception. The aim of this technique is to recognize the preferences of the individual people and to build the communication precisely on these specific preferences of the people. If you recognize which senses a person is shaped and speak to them in their language, it will be easier for you to win the person over to your message.

Example:

There are more visual people, that is, film producers, photographers, copywriters and, of course, sometimes also authors, because they think in words and pictures. Some people speak very quickly, while others speak at a slow rate. Then there are the kinaesthetes, the emotional people. They tend to take longer to think about it because they have to feel their way first so that a feeling arises before they can put it into words. And the auditive listen to themselves first. Other people react very strongly to smells and tastes and can extract a lot of information for themselves from them.

39. Visual Squash

The visual squash is a systematic part work and should help you to find solutions to an inner conflict. In the course of the visual squash, the client becomes aware of the inner conflict and tries to recognize the positive intentions of the respective parts. Visual squash is particularly suitable for situations in which several actions block or influence each other negatively. For many people, this inner struggle with oneself is a brake in many everyday situations. For fear of having to decide for one and at the same time against another alternative, no decisions are made at all. Visual squash can help you declare war on this "ostrich - head-in-the-sand technique".

Example:

Classic examples from everyday life for conflict situations with oneself are e.g. Answers to the questions:

  • Where do I want to live? In a large metropolis or in a tranquil village?
  • Where do I want to spend my next vacation? Hiking in the mountains or relaxing by the sea?
  • What would I like to have for dinner tonight? A juicy steak or a healthy salad?
  • How does my evening look like? Do I stay at home or do I go to the cinema?

40. Perceptual positions 1-2-3

The technique of the perceptual positions 1-2-3 can help you to look at a situation from different angles. This view from the different perspectives, the ICH position, the YOU position and the META position, expands your perception. You get a better picture of yourself and the reactions from your environment. This expanded self-image helps you, especially in conflict situations, to score points with new communication skills and to improve your behavior and appearance.