Program Your Mind Like a Computer 👨🏽💻
Learning the language of your mind
While researching for the Improving Brain Fitness issue, I stumbled upon a psychological approach for personal development called Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP).
NLP focuses on the communication within your mind and body. It’s about your mindset, feelings, and attitude - and how to use it for your advantage. NLP.com describes it as learning the language of your mind.
Fascinated by its history and uses, this week I’m sharing resources to understand NLP and how to re-program your mind for success.
Today’s Skill: Neuro-Linguistic Programming
Estimated reading time: 4 minutes 29 secondsNLP stems from the belief that you may not control much in your life, but that you can always take control of what goes on in your head.
Photo by Noah Buscher on Unsplash
🔍 Let’s Dive In
Neuro-Linguistic Programming is a fairly new concept. Finding life in the early 1970s at University of California, where John Grinder and Richard Bandler, both fascinated with human excellence, charted a path for them to model behavioral patterns of selected geniuses.
It is kind of like an instruction manual for the brain which unfortunately we weren’t given when we were born. It helps us understand our thoughts, feelings, beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors.
There are many methods and techniques - anchoring, reframing, eye accessing cues, etc. but the process I resonated with is called Modeling, which means we can "model" the skills of exceptional people, allowing anyone to acquire those skills.
Imagine a high performing sportsperson or entrepreneur you aspire to be like. By studying their beliefs, mindset, and thought processes that underlie their skill/behavior, we can apply it to our own lives for replicating success.
It’s not merely copying their behaviors, but using their thinking strategies. It’s about reprogramming your mind.
I think this is what Tim Ferris does in his podcast The Tim Ferris Show, drilling down into the habits, routines, and behaviors of world-class performers.
And this is exactly why we love reading biographies and memoirs. To understand the belief system of that person and why they did what they did.
“I pored over human development, psychology, and physiology. I gravitated also toward biographies; I realized that some of the greatest human beings that ever lived have also endured some of the greatest challenges.” - Tony Robbins
There is a lot to discover in NLP and the resources below are just to get you started. NLP has also been very useful in psychotherapy and curing phobias, depression, and psychosomatic illnesses.
Note: As you research more about NLP, you might find some negative press around it. Many people call it a cultish pseudoscience and total bullshit. As with everything, consume everything on the internet with a pinch of salt.
Many people from the outside of the NLP community might be fine with what they know and don't want to change because the change would mean they are not perfect the way they are. Just be mindful of your exploration and don’t fall for phony and scammy NLP trainers/courses.
🤖 Why learn? (Learning Objectives)
If you could become anyone you wanted, who would you be?
Some useful benefits I found through my research:
Be skilled at reading non-verbal cues
Increase your subconscious and sensory awareness
Overcome limiting beliefs
Master your thinking and emotions - be in control of your mind
Alleviate fears and phobias
Rectify unwanted behaviors in yourself and others
If you’re already high performing, you can become an NLP practitioner/coach and help others
📋 Resources
What is NLP
This article serves as a ‘wiki’ to give an explanation about NLP and its meaning. NLP is a joyful, positive, and loving way to improve your own life and the lives of the people around you.
If you like video:
Books: BEST NLP BOOKS
Courses:
Your Ultimate Guide To NLP - Free
*There’s a ton of NLP certification course. I recommend doing your own research on them.
My thoughts after initial readings:
While all of the above is very cool and certainly useful, reprogramming of the mind can start simply by practicing mindfulness and becoming self-aware. Everything starts in the mind, learn to understand and control it. Build a daily meditation practice and your life won't be the same.
Also, here’s a small playful exercise:
Cartoon by Randall Munroe
🔖 Something to Read:
What would happen if you suddenly woke up in a totally different society? How would life be as a Fuckup Nation citizen?
This short fictional story depicts an average day in a place where failure and perfection have different meanings.
What do you want to be doing in 30 years?
30-year thinking can provide the clarity you didn't realize you had about how you should spend your time.
The Regular Kind Podcast by Seth Godin
This short podcast by Seth is worth checking out. He talks about how the status quo and the mass market continue to conspire to keep us from having nice things.
Till next time! 👋
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