By Daniel F. Cleary, Certified Hypnosis Instructor
P.O. Box 14784, North Palm Beach, FL 33408
www.danclearyhypnosis.com
Daniel F. Cleary
Years ago, I learned from a client the power of using their own stories to create an outcome that freed them to excel. The client was addressing weight issues and at the second or third session she said “I can’t do this. I have no patience.” During our intake she had stated that she liked gardening, so I spoke with her about my incredible knowledge of the subject. I told her that I do all my gardening at the grocery store. The vegetables are always fresh, the flowers are trimmed and there is no dirt. I told her that I was certain gardening was pretty simple (you don’t need a college education to do that!) and suggested that it was probably important to put the seeds in the ground and then cover them and water them. Then I would be able to go back into the house and in the morning, like Jack and the Beanstalk, there would be whatever I had planted and it would be in fully grown. Right?
Well, let me tell you, I discovered quite a bit about gardening that day. Apparently there is something to do with loosening the ground all around the plant and fertilizing, pruning, weeding, and MUCH more! There is sunlight and shade, temperature, dampness, more trimming, fertilizing, and it takes weeks, months even years to grow some stuff!
When she was finished (and I’ll tell you that I was particularly tough to teach that day) I repeated the highlights as I remembered them and she was kind enough to correct me when I misspoke. I had to admit to her that gardening wasn’t as easy as I had previously said. I even conceded that it must take a lot of care and attention to grow what you wanted to have and get the sizes of healthy plants that would best suit the yard and your desires. In conclusion, I wondered if gardening required a lot of patience and whether she would ever feel that she could grow her body slim and healthy just as she could take an overgrown garden and get it into shape. Her eyes filled with tears of joy and the session was over.
This is an example of allowing the client to access resources they already possess but haven’t recognized and use them toward success. I challenged her belief system and got her to tell me HOW she knew to be successful. Drawing from her the most effective story that included all the resources she needed to use to create what she wanted. By telling me how mistaken I was, she became involved, passionate and very clear about all the things that would be required to grow her garden. Please notice that the story was hers.
Daniel F. Cleary: Dan Cleary is an internationally recognized, certified Hypnosis Instructor and a certified Master Practitioner of NeuroLinguistic Psychology. Teaching Hypnosis and Hypnotic Techniques throughout the United States and Europe to Doctors, Psychologists, Therapists and other Hypnotists, his specialties include Pain Relief and Personal Transformation.
