NLP IN ACTION – CASE STUDY 2
These case studies are examples of how NLP works in practice. In case study one, Adrian, we concentrate on the results of an NLP coaching session. In case study two, Notini, we give an example of how a specific technique (Logical Levels of Alignment) can be used. In the third case study about Paul, we give examples of how NLP can be used in a purely conversational way to effect transformation and growth.
Case study two
The client is a woman in her early thirties, very successfully climbing the corporate ladder. She is the main bread-winner for her family which includes her husband and two young children. She feels incongruent and unaligned with her values because she has two major “missions” in life: one is her ambition to reach the top of the corporate ladder, the other is to be a nurturing and caring home builder. She was complaining of stress and exhibiting many of the symptoms. We refer to this client as “Notini”.
We took Notini through an NLP process called Logical Levels of Alignment. You lay cards on the floor in a straight line and work your way up through the various levels. The cards display the following information: Environment (Where and When), Behaviour (What), Capabilities (How), Beliefs and Values (Why), Identity (Who), Mission (Purpose, Direction), Vision (the bigger picture), Spirit (beyond words). The words focus the client on addressing specific factors of the problem, one step at a time..
Environment - the client describes the specific environment “where” they experience the presenting problem or issue, as well as “when” the problem or issue is experienced.
When Notini described the environment in which she experienced her incongruence, it became clear that the issue of concern was in the office, not the home. She was faced with a “mountain” of work that had to be completed within a certain timeframe.
Behaviour - the client looks at the behaviours that occur in the problem arena, both their own and that of others in the environment.
As Notini considered the behaviour she displayed at work, she noticed that she was calm and in control. She moves not too fast, not too slow, but in an orderly, relaxed fashion that enables her to move from her computer, to her white-boards, to her filing cabinets and cupboards and to the phone on her desk. When people come into her office, their pace and manner will be appropriate to their desired outcome and she adapts her pace to match theirs. As Notini noticed all this, her demeanour became much more relaxed and some of the symptoms of stress she had been exhibiting disappeared.
Capabilities – does the client have the capabilitites to deal with the presenting problem?
Notini noticed that she does have the capability to deal with the “mountain” of work she is facing. She has the capacity to work in a calm, methodical fashion, putting in the time required. She realised she is able to “plan her work and work her plan”.
Beliefs and Values – where the client looks at their reasons for doing the thing that they are doing, being the way that they are being, or having whatever it is that they have.
By now Notini had accessed some key resources within herself and the “problem” already stated to disappear. No longer considering the question of incongruence, she has become specific about what the real problem is – she realised that it is a finite problem that she can resolve calmly, easily and relatively effortlessly. As we started to address some of the “why?” questions, the links between work and home started to emerge.
Notini accepts that she is ambitious. She wants to climb the corporate ladder; by so doing she will be able to provide the best for her children, including a good education to enable them to develop as individuals, a home that is sustaining, nurturing and a powerful place of rest for herself and her husband - as well as a place of warmth and fun for the whole family.
Identity – who is the person called Notini?
First of all Notini noticed some of the roles she plays, ie. that she is a mother and an ambitious career woman. Beyond that, she started to notice: that she is intelligent, caring, concerned, capable, dedicated, hard-working, ambitious, energetic and talented.
As Notini re-accessed her internal resources, she also realised that she is a role model and source of inspiration and delight for her children - as well as all those she comes into contact with in her work. As she realised this, her whole physiology changed: she stood taller and prouder, her shoulders straightened, her eyes lit up and her words came faster and more easily.
Mission – what is Notini’s purpose for doing what she does and what is the direction that she is following?
It became clear to Notini that her purpose or mission was to look after herself so that she could always be in a state of excellence to act out the many roles she plays and so that she is always expressing her full potential.
Vision – what is the biggest picture, the completed jig-saw puzzle once all the pieces are in place?
Notini’s vision is to allow herself and all those she comes into contact with – at home, at work and also in her social and community life - to express their full potential, whether those contacts be in the home or in the work place.
Spirit - as the client steps into Spirit you invite them to access whatever is for them “beyond words”. This may be a meditative state, a prayerful state or a “meta” state; it is simply “beyond words”.
Once Notini had accessed this state, she turned around to notice the journey she had experienced. She walked back down the cards, step by step, carrying all her learnings and resources into each context. By the time she returned to the beginning, she was beaming and bursting with energy to go out and deal with her “mountain” of work. We could say, she was fully congruent within herself and all her beliefs, values and behaviours were aligned with her mission in life.
Glossary:
“Congruence - state of being unified, and completely sincere, with all aspects of a person working together towards an outcome.” NLP Glossary in Introducing NLP, by Joseph O’Connor and John Seymour, Mandala Press, 1990.
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