Moving Ahead With Language

By Owen Fitzpatrick, NLP Master Trainer

I was recently attempting to explain the principle of tag questions and time predicates to my cousin who has no background of NLP and I realised how simplistic it sounded when the explanation of how language affects the brain is not provided.

To move ahead with language it’s important to realise that every word carries with it different meanings. To be aware of how language works provides you with powerful new devices for creating behavioural change and attitude change in a matter of moments. How many times have those of us working in the NLP field been told by one of our clients: thanks so much, it’s changed now, but I don’t know how… you seemed just to be talking to me and then everything was different. Did you hypnotise me without me knowing?? Well sort of… if language creates hypnosis and communication is hypnosis.

You see what I’ve always wondered about was how far could language go, how much change was possible with learning to use the right words in the right ways for the right responses? I soon began to realise that the more elegant you get in noticing distinctions in language and utilising words more thoughtfully, the more change is possible. As far as limits go there don’t seem to be any. The question is where do you want to go to and when.

With language it’s useful to understand how it affects the brain. Very briefly, you speak words and you create representations in the other person’s mind, which act as their thoughts. Of course they filter and alter what you say to fit their own map or model of the world at the time. The result is not what you have attempted to convey, rather their interpretation of your words, which in turn are only your interpretation of your thoughts.

The use of loaded words is one example of how this works. Loaded words are words used by cults. They involve creating words that categorise a particular group of people in some way. So the members of the cult learn words, which refer to the outside world. These words become insults through negative conditioning used by cult leaders. Soon we have words, which help tunnel the person’s perception towards living inside of the cults rules. If he or she does not, they will become an outsider and their identities will be shaped by the loaded words the cult teaches them.

This has been happening for centuries. Western Civilisation has referred to the rest of the world as ‘savages’. The connotations from words such as this do not help in the escalation of violence through the ages. The words are used to not only insult but also create negative impressions and representations inside peoples’ heads of certain ideas. The wars that have plagued mankind since time began and continue to do so are over four main issues: POWER MONEY RELIGION & LAND

And each of these four issues carries with it, a large set of linguistic distinctions, which provide parties on both sides the opportunity to persuade and use language to ignite violence. From Ian Paisley to George Bush, So Damn Insane to Osama Bin Laden, they all have one thing in common: they all use language to create hatred and bitterness. They use words that are rich in effect. These words enter our heads and scream loudly with meaning and emotion.

We are led by propaganda and “education”. Indeed, Noam Chomsky describes propaganda and education as being the same thing, depending on what perspective you are looking at them from. We are controlled by what they want us to see, hear and feel. It is learning to appreciate every word in and of itself, and notice how every word creates differences in our thoughts, by listening literally to language… that we begin to truly appreciate how we can create more useful worlds through communicating thoughts and we can begin to truly achieve freedom.

The author of this article is NLP Master Trainer, Owen Fitzpatrick of The irish institute of NLP