Meta Model

TheMetaModelisbasedonlinguisticrulesandstructureswhicharenotspecificto
NLP, youll find them in everything from books on transformational grammar to
schoolbooks.However,whatisspecifictoNLPisthewaythatthoserulesreveallost
informationbeneaththem.
Iflanguagedidnthaveastructure,wewouldhavenowaytoknowifsomethingwas
missingornot.Yetbecauselanguagehasastructure,thatstructuregivesusthe
information that we need to understand and even change underlying thought
processes.
TheMetaModelrecoversinformationlostthroughoursensoryfilteringprocess.

Wedontjustfiltersensoryinformationcomingin,wealsofilterinformationgoing
outaslanguage.Withaclient,Imnotsointerestedinwhattheysay,whatImmore
interested in is how they have converted their experiences and perceptions into
language, as that gives me an understanding of how they perceive the world
differentlythanIdo.Byunderstandingtheirmentalmap,Icanworkwiththemto
changeitmoreeffectively.
Letmejustdemonstratehowimportantthispointaboutstructureis.
AccordingtolinguistssuchasStephenPinker,wearebornwiththehardwarefor
languagealreadyinstalled.Hedemonstratesthisbysayingthatalllanguagesinthe
world, even those found in remote valleys that have had no contact with other
cultures, follow the same basic structures; either Subject Verb Object (SVO) or
SubjectObjectVerb(SOV).
Itsalsoquitepossiblethatlanguageisnothardwired,buteventsintheoutside
worldtendtofollowthesamepattern.Somethingisinonestate,thenitsinanother
state,andwenoticethedifference,relativetoourownposition.
Hence,ifafrienddrovepastyourhouse,theywouldprobablyrecognisethatthey

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weremoving,butyourhousewasnt.However,haveyoueverbeeninatrafficjam
andexperiencedamomentofpanicwhenthecarstothesideofyoustarttomove
andyougrabthehandbrake?Ofhaveyoubeingsittingonatrainandthetrainon
thenextplatformmoves,andyouthinkthatyouremoving?
AlbertEinsteinrealisedthatwecanonlymeasurethequalitiesofobjectswhenwe
compare them to other objects. We cant say that your friends car is moving at
30mph,itisonlymovingat30mphrelativetoyourhouse.Ifwecomparethecars
motiontotheaxisoftheEarth,itsspeedisabout1070mph,andifwecomparethe
cars speed to the Sun, or a nearby galaxy, the speed could be anything up to
666,000mph.
Therefore,everythingthatweareawareofimplicitlycontainsthethingthatweare
awareof(theObject),ourselves(theSubject)andsomethingthatchangesovertime
(theVerb).
Whatisimportanttonoteisthatourexperienceoftheworldisrelativetoaframeof
reference.Comparativewordssuchashigherandlower,warmerandcooler,
better and worse clearly imply a frame of reference, others are much less
obvious.
SoheresourfirstsimpleMetaModelexercise.SinceEnglishisaSVOlanguage,a
grammaticallycorrectsentencewillbesomethinglike:

Thecatclimbedthetree

Ifwetakeoutoneofthosecomponents:

Thecatclimbedthe

Theclimbedthetree

Thecatthetree

Thenitsquiteobviousthatsomethingismissing,right?
Whatabouttheseexamples:

Thecatclimbed

Itclimbedthetree

Whatsthecatdoinginthetree?

Same deletions, but now its harder to spot them. And since the clues arent so
obvious,weremorelikelytofillinthegapsfromourownexperiences.Ifthecat
climbed,Icancalltomindanimageofacatgoingupatree.

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Yetthecatcouldhaveclimbedatelegraphpoleorthecurtainsormytrouserleg.If
thecatclimbingisthepoint,doesitmatterwhatitclimbed?
Well,ifmydaughterrunsinandshouts,thecatsstuckIneedtoknowwhetherto
callthefirebrigade,coastguardormountainrescue,dependingonwherethecatis
stuck.Ifitsstuckupatree,Ineedthefirebrigade.Ifitsstuckinsidethepostmans
trousersthenIdontthinkadozenburlyfiremenaregoingtohelpthesituation.
Ontheotherhand,ifthecatishelpingherwithherhomeworkanditdoesntknow
theanswer,thatsadifferentproblemaltogether.Thenthesolutionwouldbetogeta
videoofthecatonYouTubeasquicklyaspossible.
Heresanotherwaytodemonstratethisidea.Canyoutellwhatismissingfromthis
diagram?

No?

OKthen,howaboutthisone?

Orthisone?

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Sotheproblemisthatwecommunicatehalfformedhalftruths,andthelistenerfills
inthegapsfromtheirownexperiencesandmakestheirownmeaningfromthat.
Andindoingso,thespeakeralsoreinforcesthehalftruthsoftheirownexperiences.
Sowhatweneedtodoisrecoverthelostinformationtogiveboththespeakerand
listeneranopportunitytodiscovermorefullywhatisbeingcommunicated.Inthe
caseofthecat,asimplequestionsuchasWhereisthecatstuck?willdonicely.In
thecaseofthemorecomplextransformationsoflanguagethatwechurnout,we
needafewmorequestions.Ourabilitytofitinformationintopatternsinorderto
makesenseofitiswhatunderpinsourabilitytodistinguishMetaModelpatterns.
Each of the following categories is a specific form of deletion, distortion or
generalisation.Ofcourse,naturallanguagecontainsallofthose,sotheMetaModel
ascoveredinPractitionertrainingisagoodwaytotrainyourselftorecognisethe
potential for missing information. You can then choose where to focus your
questionstorecoverthemostusefulinformation.
ImsorrytosaythatmanyNLPtrainersdontreallyunderstandthe Meta Model
themselves,andtheydontunderstandwhyitisimportant.
TheMetaModelliesattheheartofmodelling,andmodellingisthefoundationof
NLP.WithouttheMetaModel,youwillbeunabletoeffectivelyandconsistentlymap
outaclientsproblem,whichmeansthatyouwillbeineffectiveindealingwithit.At
best,aPractitionerwhodoesntunderstandtheMetaModelwillrandomlythrough
techniquesattheproblemuntileithersomethingworksbychance,ortheclientjust
givesintomakelifeeasier.
Youcanrecogniseapoortrainerbyphrasessuchas,TheMetaModeldoesntreally
matter,justaslongasyougetthegeneralidea,or,Youdonthavetoknowwhat
anyofitiscalled,thelabelsjustgetintheway.
Doyouremembertheotherday,whathappenedwiththatthing?Inthatplace?You
know...wherewasit?Thosepeoplewerethere.Comeon,youmustremember.
Youcouldteachapprenticemechanicstofixengineswithoutlabels.Youknowwhat
ascrewlookslikewithouthavingtousetheword.Youknowwhatkindofwrench
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youneed.Youknowwhenaboltistightbecauseyoucanfeelit.Youcouldteach
mechanicstotightenthethingwiththe whatsit,andkeeponturningtheother
thinguntilthethingistightenough.
Whoneedstorquewrenches?Weallknowwhenaboltistightornot.Wouldyoube
happytodriveyourcaroutofthegarageifthemechanicdideverythingbyhand
andcouldntactuallyexplainwhatheddoneorhowheddoneit?
The labels are rather important if you want to communicate effectively, and the
MetaModellabelsareimportantifyouwanttousethis,themostfundamental,
powerfulandflexibleNLPtool,purposefully,effectivelyandconsistently.
BeforelookingatthedifferentelementsorpatternsoftheMetaModel,listento
someonegivinganinterview,onTVorontheradio.Whenyoulistencritically,
whatdeletions,distortionsandgeneralisationscanyouhear?Whatdothey
mean?

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Deletions, Distortions and Generalisations

TheMetaModeldealswithDeletions,DistortionsandGeneralisations,asfollows:
Deletions

Somethinghasbeenremovedandmustberecovered.
Distortions

Somethinghasbeenchangedandmustbechangedbacktoitsoriginalform.
Generalisations

Somethinghasbeensimplifiedandmustbespecified.
Wherepossible,wewillshowyouwherethefollowingMetaModelpatternsfitinto
these three groups, bearing in mind that all three filters are operating on all
informationflowinginandout.Therefore,aMetaModelpatternmaybeaDeletion,
butitwillalsoDistortandGeneralise.TheMetaModelcategoriesarethereforea
matteroffocus.

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Unspecified Nouns
Example:Ineedalift
Response:Whatkindoflift?
Asimpledeletionomitsandthereforeimpliespartofthestatementsmeaning,either
thesubjectorobject,relyingonthelistenertoinserttheirownassumption.

The missing information can be deleted entirely, or it can be replaced with an

unspecifiedpronounsuchasit.
Wederivemeaningwithinaframeofreference.Forexample,whatistheoppositeof
black?Whatistheoppositeofred?Withnoframeofreferenceitshardertoanswer
thequestion.
When a conversation is taking place within a context of rapport, vague
communication isprocessedasif itisspecific.When someone asksyoufor the
thing,theyexpectyoutoknowwhattheymean.
Practice examples
I need it now

I wish I hadnt started

Its good, isnt it?

Thats the way things are

Its all on top of me

Its for the best

Im going

Who wrote that?

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Unspecified Verbs
Example:Sheignoredme
Response:Howexactlydidsheignoreyou?
Anunspecifiedverbisasimpledeletioninwhichtheverbismissingorreplaced
withsomethingelse.

Aswiththeunspecifiednoun,weacceptthevalidityoftheactionbyinterpretingthe
language within our own frame of reference. We need to check the action or
behaviourinordertounderstandthespeakersframeofreferenceandrecoverthe
meaningthattheyintended.
The deletion may imply that the clients interpretation of some event is very
differenttosomeoneelses.
Practice examples
Now youve done it

I calmed him

Its all over

Were going places

I gave him the message

He flew in

Lets get going

Its all getting too much

Lets go

I built this up from nothing

Shes gone

Ive lost it

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Nominalisation
Example:Iwantrecognition
Response:Howdoyouwanttoberecognised?
Anominalisationisaverbthathasbeenturnedintoanoun,indicatingastopped
mental process.Imagine yourself ata meeting,making a decision. Nowimagine
yourself meeting with people, deciding about something. Different? In the first
example, did you imagine a still image whereas in the second example, you
imaginedamovingimage?

Whenpeoplearestuckyouwillhearnominalisations.Youcanthenaskquestions
whichturnthenominalisationbackintoanactiveverb.
InMiltonModel,youcanreversetheprocess,nominalisingaverbandstoppinga
thoughtprocess.
Practice examples
We made a decision

Theyve got no patience

Its love

He makes a bad impression

I want more direction

This needs more attention

Theres no relationship

We need better management

We had a great meeting

Its a tricky situation

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Lost Referential Index

Example:Theydontcare
Response:Whodoesntcare?
Thisdeletionmissesoutthepersonorthingthatthestatementisattributedto,so
wecannottestthevalidityofthestatement.Thestatementbecomesabelief,merely
asaresultofithavingbeenattributedtosomeone.

Practice examples
The writings on the wall

Thats too expensive

They should know better

This happens every day

People make mistakes

We shouldnt do that

No-one does that any more

Its vital to be on time

People drink too much

Cars are dangerous

Everybody knows that

Sales is difficult

Its such a pity

Global warming is bad

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10

Distorted Referential Index

Example:Youdontcare
Response:Whodoesntcare?
Oftenyouwillhearpeopledistortingareferentialindex,sayingyouwhenthey
reallymeanI.Thisisasignofdissociation;thepersonsaysyoubecause,intheir
minds,theyareaddressingthemselvesasaseparateperson.

Practice examples
We dont like this

My team doesnt agree

You cant have what you want

They dont listen

Youre on your own

Youll live to regret this

No-one does that any more

You must be on time

You shouldnt eat fatty foods

What you want to do is...

It makes you want to scream!

You feel trapped

You know how it is

When you feel bad, you cry

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11

Simple Deletion
Example:Imunhappy
Response:Unhappyaboutwhat?
Anevensimplerdeletionthantheunspecifiednounorverb,thesimpledeletionis
alsoknownasasentencefragmentandisunusualintheMetaModelinthatits
notgrammaticallycorrect.Withtheotherexamples,thefactthatthegrammaris
completeandcorrecttendstomakethelisteneracceptwhatissaidautomatically.At
leastthesimpledeletionalertsmostpeopletoitspresencebyprovidinginsufficient
informationtothelistener.
Wetendtoprocesssimpledeletionsbyfillinginwhateverisnecessarytocomplete
thegrammaticalstructure.Whenyouarestronglyinrapportwithsomeone,youcan
almostfinisheachothers'sentences.Wefinisheachothers'sentencesanyway,and
with simple deletions that means we sometimes insert meaning which was not
intendedbythespeaker.
Practice examples
You cant

Im falling

If only

I know

Youre wrong

Ill go

Im lost

Im stuck

Never again

Thats it

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Comparative Deletions
Example:Ournewproductismoreeffective
Response:Moreeffectivethanwhat[when,whoetc.]?
Thespeakeriscreatingastatementbasedonanimplicitcomparisoncriteria.The
criteria itself is hidden, and so the listener learns the rule by absorbing the
language.Often,theobjectofthecomparisonismissingtoo,
sothelistenerlearnstoequatebetterwithbest.
Acomparisonrevealsahigherlevelcategory.Forexample,a
carisbetterthanacow.Why?Becauseacowshornsdont
work. The joke reveals the higher category of
transportation.
Challengingcomparativedeletionsisuseful,notbecauseitsimportantwhatisbest
butbecausewecanlearnagreatdealaboutthespeakersperceptionsandcriteria.
Practice examples
This is far more efficient

This is more like it

Everything is better now

Theyre too slow

Shes much brighter

Blue is better

Hes more tolerant

Its easier when you know how

Its for the best

Its better this way

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13

Complex Equivalence
Example:WhenshesquietIknowshesangry
Response:Howdoyouknowthatquietmeansangry?
Thespeakertakestwounrelatedconceptsandholdsthemasequivalent.Ifoneis
truethentheothermustalsobetrue.IfIequatemypersonalworthwithpromotion,
andImissoutonapromotionthenIfeelworthless.IfIequatelovewithbeing
listenedtoandsomeonedoesntappeartobelisteningtomethentheydontlove
me.
The complex equivalence and the cause and effect
reflectourabilitytogeneraliserulesaboutthephysical
worldandarevitalforoursurvival.Rulessuchasred
sky at night, shepherds delight would have ensured
our survival as a species, but the same ability now
createsrulessuchasBosssdoorclosed,heisinabad
moodwhichmaynotbeuseful.WhenyouchallengeaComplexEquivalence,look
forthesensoryexperiencethatthegeneralisationisbasedon.
Practice examples
Tall people are scary

When she smiles shes happy

Loud music is bad for you

Food is a comfort

Hes late... hell be fired

Im in trouble, I messed up

Its raining... another bad day

Carrots are good for you

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Lost Performative
Example:Theyveapologisedforwhattheydidtome
Response:Whoapologised?
Aperformativeverbisastatementthatsoundslikeanaction.Whatweneedto
recoveristhepersondoingthethinginquestion,thepersonperformingtheaction.
Weoftentaketheresponseorbehaviourofonepersonandgeneraliseittoapplyto
allpeople.Youllhearsalespeoplesay,Customersdontlikethisproductwhen
whattheyreallymeanis,Icouldntsellthisproducttothreecustomers.
Onceagain,someuniversalrulesareuseful.Ifonepersoncanbesuccessful,anyone
can,soabeliefsuchaspeoplecanbesuccessfulcouldbeuseful,whereasabelief
suchaspeoplealwaysfailmighthavelessdesirableresults.
Practice examples
People make mistakes

Mistakes have been made

They should have done

Nobody is pulling their weight

Theyre always doing that

Customers wont buy this

This report needs finishing

Sales people are pushy

A meeting was held

Failure is not an option

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15

Mind Reading
Example:Youdontrateme
Response:HowdoknowthatIdontrateyou?
Response:Whatleadsyoutobelievethat?
Response:Whatmakesyouthinkthat?
Withamindread,weactasifweknowwhatsomeoneelseisthinking.Ofcourse,
youmayberightsothepointisthatyoudonotknowforcertainanditmaynotbe
usefultorespondasifyoudo.
Youmightdosomething,ornotdosomething,becauseyouknowhowsomeone
wouldreact.Youmayknowthatpersonverywell,buttheonlywaytoknowwhat
theyarethinkingistoaskthem,asuncomfortableasthatmaybe.
Practice examples
I know you dont believe me

Hell hate you if you do that

He doesnt want to help me

Hes in a foul mood today

You just dont care

Shes much happier now

He wouldnt want me to

They wont buy that

Shell never believe me

People dont want that now

My boss thinks Im lazy

I know what youre thinking

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Cause and Effect

Example:Iwaslate,thewholedayisgoingtogowrong
Response:Howdoyouknowthedaywillgowrong?
Response:Howareyougoingtomakethedaygowrong?
Thecauseandeffectimpliesarelationshipintime,so
thatwhenoneeventtakesplace,asecondeventwill
automatically follow. This is useful in the physical
world,sothatifIstepoffacliff,Iwillatsomepoint
inthefuturehitthegroundwithasplat.
Whenweapplythe cause andeffectruletopeople,weoftengetintoproblems
becausepeopledonotfollowthesamephysicalrulesasinanimateobjects,andthey
donotalwaysbehaveinpredictableways.
Practice examples
My boss makes me angry

If you do that Ill leave

Ive started so Ill finish

Ill do it after I finish this

Once you pop you just cant stop

If I go to the meeting, Ill just get angry
I wont apply because theyll never give me the job
Things always go wrong when she walks in here

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Presuppositions
Example:IlldothatafterIwinthiscontract
Response:Howdoyouknowyoullwinthatcontract?
Presuppositions are the implied facts which must be held true in order for the
sentencetobegrammaticallycorrect.Apresuppositionworksattheunconscious
levelbeforeyouevenhaveachancetounderstandwhathasbeensaid,soitisvery
differenttoanassumption,whichismadeafterwards.
Whenwemakesenseoflanguage,wetakeallpossiblemeaningsandholdthem
temporarily until one stands out by fitting the overall context. Therefore,
presuppositionsareaverypowerfulinfluencetool.
IfIask,Wherearemycarkeys?thenIpresupposethatyouknowwheretheyare.
Practice examples
When this plan fails Ill say told you so
I dont know how to manage such a difficult project
Dont worry, this wont hurt
It will be easier when he leaves
What will the next reorganisation bring?
When are you leaving?
Youd find Meta Model easier to learn if youd slow down

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18

Universal Quantifiers
Example:Heneverlistenstome
Response:Never?
Response:Wasthereeveratimewhenhedid?
Atypeofgeneralisation,theuniversalquantifiertakesasingleexampleandmakesit
applytoallcasesoratalltimes.
Thinkofsomeonewhosays,Ialwaysfail.Therearetwoproblemshere;firstly,the
personisonlynoticingtimesinthepastwhentheyfailedandisfilteringouttimes
whentheysucceeded,becausesuccesswoulddisprovetherule.Thesecondproblem
isthatalwaysmeanseverytimeinthepastandeverytimeinthefuture,soby
saying,Ialwaysfail,thepersonissettingtheirperceptualfilterstonoticefailurein
thefuture,andtheyarethengeneratingbehaviourthatislikelytoleadtofailure.
Inshort,bycreatingauniversalrule,thepersonwillcreateaselffulfillingprophecy.
ThisisaveryusefulabilityifyouapplyittoabelieflikeIamalwayssuccessful.
Practice examples
Nobody likes me

Nothing works here

Its always the good people who

lose

Everyone knows that

Nothings the same any more

We all need to do this

All our competitors are doing this

You never do what I

want

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Modal Operator of Necessity

Example:Ihavetolearnthis
Response:Whathappensifyoudont?
Modaloperatorsmodifytheverbandareoftenanindicationthatthespeakeris
basingtheirbehaviourorthoughtsonrules,beliefsabouttheirbehaviour.
Theimportantquestiontoexplorehereishowdidtheylearnthoserules?
Peopleareverygoodatlearningrulesandwillcontinuetofollowthem,orbreak
them,longaftertheneedfortherulehasgoneaway.
Practice examples
We shouldnt do that

You must arrive on time

You have to get a good appraisal

Youve got to laugh

You cant leave yet

I have to get this done before I go home

You should always be dressed smartly
You must get that work done to day
I mustnt let this get me down
I have to get this right today

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Model Operator of Possibility

Example:Icantgetthehangofthis
Response:Whatstopsyou?
Response:Whatwouldhappenifyoudid?
Where the modal operator of necessity indicated the presence of a rule, this
languagepatternindicatesthepresenceofachoice,andthatanexclusionhasbeen
appliedtothatchoice.
I cant tell her everything indicates that the speaker has imagined telling
everything,imaginedsomethingundesirablehappeningandhaschosennotto.
Practice examples
I cant call that customer

You cant do that

I could kill him!

I cant finish that report

I can just imagine!

You could if you wanted to

I cant imagine that

I cant tell him that

I cant stop

You couldnt if you tried

Ill never to able to learn this

I cant apply for that job

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Why?
YoumayormaynothavenoticedthattheoneapparentomissionfromtheMeta
Modelisthequestion,Why?
ThatsbecauseaNLPPractitionerwouldneveraskwhy.
Areyouthinking,What,never?
Ifso,thenyouarelearningtheMetaModel.Welldone.
Ifnot,thenyouaverygoodstudent.Welldone.
Eitherway,Ibetyoureitchingtoask,Why?
Considerthisexample:
Icantgetthatdonetoday
Whathappensifyouask,Why?
Well,becauseIhavetogetthisdone,andthatdone,andeveryonesdemandingthis
andthat,andImgoingtobeworkinglateanyway,and...
SorryIasked...
Essentially,whatthepersongivesyouinresponsetowhyisnotcausesbutreasons.
However,thegrammaroftheanswerimpliesthattheseareallcausaleventswhich
predatedyourrequestandmeanthattheyreallycannotgetthatdonetoday.
Another way of looking at their answer is that it can be roughly translated as,
BecauseIdontwantto,nowletmethinkupsomeotheractivitiesthatexcludemy
abilitytodowhatyoureasking.
Andhere,inanutshellistheproblemwiththequestion,Why.
Whenyourclientorcolleagueanswersthequestion,theyaregivingyouaseriesof
events that are all happening now, but their answer implies that these events
happenedinthepast.Thequestionpresupposesacausalconnectionbetweenthe
questionandtheanswer,eventhoughthereusuallyisnone.
Heresanillustration.
WhyarentweinBirmingham?
1. Becauseyouwantedtostopforabreakandthenwehittrafficanditsbeen
rainingandthenwegottalkingaboutwork.

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22

2. BecausewereontheroadtoLondon.
Bothoftheseanswersaregrammaticallycorrect,botharephrasedasaseriesof
eventswhichpredatethequestion,yetonlyonecanreallystanduptoanyscrutiny
asavalidresponsetothequestion.
Humanbeingshaveaneedtostructuretime,asexplainedverynicelybyEricBerne
inhisworkonTransactionalAnalysis.FromTAspointofview,humansstructure
timesin a number of ways, such as engaging in rituals or playing interpersonal
games.
FromNLPspointofview,wearemoreinterested,notinwhatwedoinstructuring
time,butinhowwecodeandrepresentthesestructuresoftime.
Inpractice,thismeansthathumanbeingshaveaninterestingabilitytoimaginethe
future,placegoalsinitandthentakeactiontowardsthosegoals.
Onthedownside,thisalsomeansthatwecanimaginebarrierstoachievingthose
goalsandthenactasifthosebarriersarerealnow,therebyblockingordivertingany
effortsmadetowardsachievingthegoal.
Anotherviewofgoalsettingisthatweeachhavemanygoals,andsomeofthemare
inconflict.
Letssaythatsomeoneatworkisafraidofpublicspeaking,buttheyalsofeeldriven
topleasetheirboss.Pleasingyourbossbybeingconscientiousandhardworkingisa
typicalTAscript.FearofpublicspeakingisatypicalNLPfear.
Whathappenswhenthispersonthinksaboutpresenting?Dotheythinkofitasif
theyresaying,Ineedtogetsomemilkonthewayhome?

No.Theydont.Theirfearsitsinthebackground,asifsomeoneisholdingamagnet
underatablewhileyoutrytorollasteelballacrossit.Theyknowthattheyneedto
present,andtheyknowthattheyneedtopleasetheirboss.

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23

However,thefearisanopposingforce,createdbyanimaginarygoal.Thepersons
desiretodeliverthepresentationisonegoal,theirexpectationtofailisanother.
Yourbraindoesnotdifferentiatebetweenwhatyouwantasbeinggoodorbad,it
justdeliverswhatyouthinkaboutthroughacycleofselectiveattention,actionand
reinforcement.
Letsaskthispoorpersonwhytheydontwanttodeliverthepresentation.
BecauseitsgoingtogohorriblywrongandIllleteveryonedown
Thegrammaticalstructureisidenticaltothatofthepreviousexamples,butthistime
thereisacuriousdifference;thereasonisexpressedasapasteventwheninfactitis
afutureevent,andifthereisonlyonethingthatwecansayforcertainaboutthe
future,itisthatithasnthappenedyet.
The person has constructed a sequence of imaginary events, where one, the
problem,precludestheother,thegoal.Butsincebothareimaginary,thereisno
causalconnectionbetweenthem.
The only thing that makes these events plausible is that, when the person talks
aboutthem,theirlanguageisgrammaticallycorrect.
Insteadofasking,Why,letstrysomealternatives.

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Why?directsthelistenersattentionbacktopastcauses.
Whatstopsyou?directsthelistenersattentiontothebarrier.
Whatwouldhappenifyoudid?directsthelistenersattentiontothegoalitself.
Trythemoutforyourselfandnoticethedifferentanswersthatyouget.

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Meta Model Worked Examples

Letsputallofthattogetherwithsomeworkedexamples.
Its easier when you dont think about it

Thenormalresponsewouldbe,Mmm,yes,howeverthestatementisactuallyquite
acomplexhypnoticinstruction.Letspullitapart.
Its

Simpledeletion;whatisit?
Simpledeletion;contractionhidestheis
Complexequivalence;is

easier

Comparativedeletion;easierthanwhatorwhen?
Kinaesthetic,thereforefirstposition

when

Subordinateclauseoftime

you

Shiftedreferentialindex

dont

Simpledeletion;contractionhidesthecommanddo
Negation;contractionhidesthenot

think

Directcommand
Auditorydigital

about

Dissociationtosecondposition,possiblyvisual

it

Simpledeletion;isthisthesameitasbefore?

Goodness. All of that in one, throwaway phrase. What seems like an innocent
expression,ahintforhowtomakeatechniqueeasier,becomesacovertcommand.
Thesubordinateclauseoftimeinthemiddleisthefocalpointforthetwohalvesof
thestatement.Itisaninstructionforthelistenertoholdthefirstpartinmemory,
therebymakingitseasierapresuppositionforthesecondpart.

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26

Its
easier

Presupposition

when
Forcesthepresuppositionandcommandtocoexistintime
you
dont
think
Directcommandtothinkaboutit
about
it
Considerthisrequest,Whenyougototheshop,couldyoufetchmeadrink?
Tomakesenseofthequestion,thelistenermustholdbothhalvesofthestatementin
theirmindandoverlaythemsothattheycoexistatthesametime.Therewouldbe
nopointingettingyouadrinkbeforeoraftergoingtotheshop.
Thefirstpartpresupposesthatyouareindeedgoingtotheshop;letssaythatthisis
atruereflectionofyourintention.
Youcanpictureyourselfgoingtotheshop,andatthesametime,addapictureof
yougettingmeadrink.
Thesubordinateclauseoftimeisaveryimportantlinguistictool,becauseinforcing
twostatementstocoexistintime,itforcestwomentalrepresentationstocoexistin
time,andifoneisalreadytrue,itmakesthesecondtruetoo.
Wehaventevencometothesimpledeletionyet.Whatisit?Well,whateveryou
wanttobeeasy,obviously.
IwaswalkingintheparkandImetaflasher.Niceout,isntit?hesaid.Theitis
ambiguous.Doesitmeantheweather,ordoesitmeanit?YouknowwhatImean.
Sothewholephrasepresupposesthatyouwantsomethingtobeeasier,andthat
whateveritiswillbeeasierwhenyouthinkaboutit.Thedontthinkaboutitpart
islikesaying,dontthinkaboutadogordontworry.
Superficially, the instruction is to not think about it, when unconsciously, the
instructionistothinkaboutit.
Theresultisaveryeffectivetranceinduction.
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27

I have a difficult situation at work

Isthereanominalisationinthisstatement?
Yes,thereis.Thenominalisationisthewordsituation.
Tocounteractanominalisation,youmustturnitintoanactiveverb.Itseemsan
awkwardthingtoask,however,thegrammaticallyappropriateresponseis:
Wheredoyousituateyourselfwithrespecttothepeopleyouworkwith?
Remember,tofindanominalisation,justlookforthenounthatyoucantputina
wheelbarrow.

Anominalisationisasignofastuckmentalprocess,althoughinreality,our
thoughtsdontstop.Thinkaboutotherthingsintheworldaroundyouthatusea
stillimagetorepresentanactionorevent.Whatdoyounoticeaboutthem?

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28

Books from Peter Freeth

This text originally appeared as a chapter within
TheNLPPractitionerManualbyPeterFreethand
StepheniSmith.
This book contains all of the SNLP Practitioner
syllabus,plusmuchmore,includingtherightway
to anchor, the famous flipchart swish and many
other insights from over 20 years' experience
innovatingandapplyingNLPinbusiness.

ISBN9781908293039
Also Available

TheNLPMasterPractitionerManual

GeniusatWork

ISBN9781908293213

ISBN9781908293022

Bothofthesebookscontaintheauthor'suniquemethodologyformodellingand
replicatingtalentwithinyourbusinessororganisation.Thetwobookssharethe
majorityoftheircontent,withonebeingtailoredforreadersinterestedinstudying
NLP and the other aimed atHRand L&Dmanagerswho wantto develop best
practiceanddeliverhighperformancewithinanorganisation.

MetaModel

PeterFreeth20002012

29