Louise Goddard, coaching and hypnosis by Skype or phone at www.schoolyourmind.com

Who can be hypnotised?

Most people CAN be hypnotised. And, in my opinion, the most important element is willingness. People love to say that they can’t be hypnotised but really, it’s a case of ‘won’t’ rather than ‘can’t’. The client needs to be willing to use hypnosis.

During the initial free phone or Skype consultation I do with prospective clients, I check for the following things:

~ whether they expect it will work.
~ whether they want it work. I’ve italicised ‘they’ because it’s important that the person calling me wants it to work, instead of, for example, their partner, spouse, work colleagues want them to do it.

Can you be hypnotised?

My answer is usually ‘yes’ if you can answer ‘yes’ to the following two questions:
Can you follow simple instructions?
Do you want to be hypnotised?

Who cannot be hypnotised?

~ A person unwilling to be hypnotised. If someone doesn’t want to use hypnosis, then of course they won’t be hypnotised. Hypnosis is a powerful tool but it does rely on your willingness to use it.
~ A person who is drunk.
~ A person with extremely low intelligence, typically scoring an IQ level lower than 70
~ someone who has no rapport with the hypnotist or hypnotherapist. While this isn`t always included in the list, I`m going to add rapport as a factor. It is helpful to have a good or reasonable rapport with the person who is about to hypnotise you. You need to be comfortable with that person as they’re going to guide you into relaxation.

Who should not be hypnotised?

~ People who are better served by going to a psychiatrist, psychologist or physician. Hypnosis isn’t intended as a replacement for psychiatric or medical care.
~ people who suffer from epilepsy are often advised not to use hypnosis. As always, if you have any concerns regarding such conditions, you should consult with a doctor.

What can’t hypnosis do?

~ Hypnosis will not `make` someone accept new ideas or behaviours that are in conflict with their personal values.
~ There is a common misconception that those with ‘a strong will’ cannot be hypnotised. Go back to the `willingness` point above. Can`t strong willed people want to make changes?
Many people call me and say `how are you going to make me quit smoking ? I`m very stubborn.` Again, go back to the willingness factor. I always ask them if they want to quit and if they`re willing to work with me and use hypnosis to do it.
~ Hypnosis cannot be used to control someone else’s mind, or their actions. We can only control ourselves, our responses to situations, events or things heard/read.

People who say that they tried hypnosis and couldn’t be hypnotised

When people say that they went to a hypnotist and `nothing happened`, I ask them what they expected to happen and I invariably find that they either hadn`t been adequately informed or hadn`t understood what to expect, ahead of the session – they`d erroneously adhered to their belief that they needed be unconscious, and / or like a zombie in a movie. It is helpful for prospective clients to be carefully and repeatedly informed of what hypnosis is and is NOT and to realize the potential for positive and empowering effects. Personally, I find it beneficial to reiterate briefly what to expect before every session, even with clients who `know the drill`.

An additional note:

Everybody is in a hypnotic state at some point of each day. By this I mean, a state where we’re doing things but not needing to concentrate consciously on doing it as it’s a familiar activity. I don’t just mean vegging out in front of a movie – a person can even be in a state of hypnosis while running. For example, during the spring and summer, i.e. when the track is visible in the parks here in Canada, I run 4 or 5 miles every other day in one of the beautiful St Lawrence parks. I do roughly the same route each time, and at the end, presuming I don’t need to move out of the way for slow moving SUVs filled with people who prefer to experience the park by looking out of their truck windows, I actually have no recollection of having done my run. I look at the stop watch on my cell phone and know I must have done it by looking at the time passed, but I only remember starting it! That’s because I don’t need to be consciously aware of where I’m running. I’ve done it so many times, I can run it ‘unconsciously’ i.e. just allowing my unconscious to guide me. (If a truck has to go by me, then my conscious mind needs to become alert again so I can move out of its way.)

For all you runners out there, I would like to add that running is a great way to use self-hypnosis to come up with solutions or ideas. Just start your mind on that route as you start your body on the running route by asking some questions in your internal voice (check my blog entry on my website on internal questions and how to word them for the maximum efficacy).

If you’re interested in finding out in what areas of your life hypnosis could be used, have a look at my list on this page: http://www.schoolyourmind.com/caniusehypnosisfor.html If you see something that applies to you (or perhaps I should ‘when’ and want to learn more, you are welcome to set up a complimentary phone or Skype consultation with me.

All the best,
Louise Goddard
Certified Hypnotherapist
Licensed Master Practitioner of Neuro-Linguistic Programming
Website: www.schoolyourmind.com

Louise Goddard M.NLP, CHt http://www.schoolyourmind.com

Adjust the questions you ask yourself so they HELP YOU rather than HINDER YOU

We have an internal voice. And in that internal voice, we ask ourselves questions as well as make statements. Let’s take a simple example of a question we might ask ourselves in our internal voice:

Why can’t I…?

What can you assume from this question?

There’s something for you to do and you cannot do it.
What do you think your ever-obliging subconscious will do with this? As we’ll explore in the early chapters of my book, the subconscious has no judgment – it accepts everything you tell it as truth, so rather than seek the answer that’s best for you and your circumstances, it will sort through for reasons to support the assumptions in order to answer your question.

You can’t do it because of x, y, z.

By choosing to ask this type of negative question aloud or internally, you are creating these two assumptions in your mind. Whatever you tell your subconscious, it accepts it as truth and directs its focus accordingly. Whatever we focus on, coupled with strong feelings, tends to manifest. Question how you ask questions!

Since this is the case with negative questions, it is also true of positive questions.
We’ve looked at one simple example of what I term ‘a negatively-based question’. Let’s take a look at what I would call ‘a positively-based question’:

How can I do this quickly?

What are the assumptions here?
There’s something to do. It can be done quickly.

Your mind obediently searches for answers. As with the previous question, it will sort through its resources for reasons to support the assumptions in order to answer your question.

You can do it quickly by ……

Some more specific examples of unhelpful questions I hear people utter:
Why can’t I lose weight?
Why can’t I meet a man/woman who is right for me?
Why can’t I make him/her/them understand where I’m coming from?

That’s enough negative examples. I think I’ve made my point.

It takes the same amount of time and effort to ask a positive question as a negative one, so the next time you ask yourself a question aloud or internally, stop and consider this: is it helpful or unhelpful; is it empowering or disempowering? How can I adjust my internal questions so that they direct my thinking and creativity down a positive path?

Here are some examples of positive questions:

What’s the best way I can solve this problem?
How can I quickly resolve this issue?
How can I meet Mr Right/Ms Right?
Where can I meet Mr Right/Ms Right?
How can I connect with likeminded people?
How can I communicate my idea easily?

Your mind will search for answers to whatever questions you ask. You have the capability of lateral thinking, of creating ideas – unlock that potential by asking your mind the right questions. Keep asking questions till you’re happy with the answer.

Best wishes,
Louise Goddard

Louise Goddard, BA Hons, M.NLP, CHt
Confidence Coach, Master of NLP, Certified Hypnotist
Coaching and Hypnosis by ‘phone and Skype!
Website:

Louise Goddard Confidence Coaching www.schoolyourmind.com

We gravitate in the direction of our dominant thoughts. I can go into this in depth during my phone coaching sessions, so for now, simply put, think about something and you’ll move towards it. Even if you’re thinking about something you don’t want, you will move towards it. Your mind moves towards things not away.

How many times have you said, ‘I mustn’t forget that’, then you do? By saying that to yourself and thinking it, your mind moves towards forgetting. You get a picture in your mind of forgetting. It’s easy to change though – tell yourself to remember it and you’ll have a picture in your mind of remembering it. As a result, you’ll be much more likely to remember it.

Only say things to yourself or about yourself that you want to come true.

Warm wishes,
Louise Goddard
NLP Master and Hypnotist

NLP Coaching and Hypnosis by phone or Skype

Remind yourself of this quotation whenever you are tempted to expend valuable energy refuting a person’s false accusations or insinuations.

If you find yourself on the receiving end of unsubstantiated false accusations from someone who barely knows you, be aware it says nothing of your character, but speaks volumes about theirs.

Notice I said ‘unsubstantiated’… If you always operate with integrity, honesty, and compassion towards others, false accusations or insinuations will bounce off that force field of positivity surrounding you that I had you visualise and fully associate with during ULTIMATE CONFIDENCE -> http://www.schoolyourmind.com/getconfident.html

Also featured on that audio: while acting with ethics and compassion in all areas of your life, learn then to interpret people’s negativity, hostility and un-constructive criticism as a cry for help, rather than a reflection of your character or ability. Not everything is about you. People view things through the filter of their own inner happiness and self-esteem.

By the way, my inspiration to share this with you comes from observation of a variety of comments on people’s newsfeeds on Facebook. Very often we have large numbers of ‘friends’ in our network whom we have never met, nor even spoken to on the phone. I occasionally see people jumping to conclusions on some seemingly well-intentioned posts, yet they may know little or nothing of the person they’re denigrating.

It’s valid for any area of life though – not just Facebook. If you spend time and energy defending every unjust comment made by family or co-workers, you’ll have less left for what really matters. And to be frank, if someone makes inaccurate comments about you without any facts to back them up, they will keep saying it or thinking it, no matter what you say, until they choose otherwise. Just ‘be’, rather than say, tell or try to convince. Remember, we can only control ourselves, not others.

~ Louise Goddard NLP Master & Hypnotist, http://www.schoolyourmind.com

The Old Violin original painting by William Michael Harnett in 1886, hangs in the National Gallery of Art, Washington, a gift of Mr. and Mrs. Richard Mellon Scaife in honor of Paul Mellon 1993.15.1

‘Twas battered and scarred and the auctioneer
Thought it scarcely worth his while
To waste much time on the old violin,
But he held it up with a smile.

“What am I bid, good folk?” he cried.
“Who’ll start the bidding for me?
A dollar, a dollar … now two … only two …
Two dollars, and who’ll make it three?

“Three dollars once, three dollars twice,
Going for three” … but no!
From the room far back a gray-haired man
Came forward and picked up the bow.

Then wiping the dust from the old violin
And tightening up the strings,
He played a melody pure and sweet,
As sweet as an angel sings.

The music ceased, and the auctioneer,
With a voice that was quiet and low,
Said, “What am I bid for the old violin?”
As he held it up with the bow.

“A thousand dollars … and who’ll make it two?
Two…two thousand, and who’ll make it three?
Three thousand once and three thousand twice …
Three thousand and gone!” said he.

The people cheered, but some exclaimed
“We do not quite understand …
What changed it’s worth?” and the answer came:
” ‘Twas the touch of the master’s hand.”

And many a man with soul out of tune
And battered and scarred by sin
Is auctioned cheap by the thoughtless crowd
Just like the old violin.

But the Master comes, and the foolish crowd
Never can quite understand
The worth of a soul, and the change that is wrought
By the touch of the master’s hand.

O Master! I am the tuneless one
Lay, lay Thy hand on me,
Transform me now, put a song in my heart
Of melody, Lord, to Thee!

According to many sources, in 1921, Myra Brooks Welch heard a speaker address a group of students. She said she became filled with light, and ‘Touch of the Master’s Hand’ wrote itself in 30 minutes!” She sent it anonymously to her church news bulletin. She felt it was a gift from God and didn’t need her name on it. Its popularity spread and several years later, the poem was read at an international religious convention – “author unknown.” A young man stood up and said, “I know the author, and it’s time the world did too. It was written by my mother, Myra Welch.”

‘Hope you enjoyed this as much as I did. I have helped many people from all over the world transform their lives, their happiness, when they thought it impossible. I was looking for an analogy for my coaching and happened upon this poem.

How is this an analogy? The violin in the poem was first deemed to be of little worth. You may currently have a low sense of self-worth, or perhaps you only lack confidence in certain situations, whichever is the case, this is reflected in how you think/feel/behave. The good news is that this can change – and change quickly – with the right coach. And, Hypnosis reinforces all the good stuff covered in your coaching sessions.

Interested? Great! Send me an email and we can arrange to have an informal chat. You can tell me what it is you want to change about yourself and I can tell you how NLP coaching and hypnosis can help you.

By the way, my work is done over Skype or over the phone so it doesn’t matter where you are in the world.

‘Looking forward to hearing from you,
Louise Goddard
NLP Master and Hypnotist

Louise Goddard Confidence Coaching and Hypnosis,
By Skype and ‘phone
Website: http://www.schoolyourmind.com

If you constantly bemoan your inability to afford the things you want; if you frequently focus on poverty and lack, it’s likely you will attract more of it.

If you need to/wish to improve your financial circumstances, it makes sense – to me at least – to focus frequently, with feeling, on abundance.

Many if not most of you reading this have watched or read ‘The Secret’. One of its contributors advises cultivating an “attitude of gratitude”.

By alerting yourself to the events/things/people/pets etc that bring you joy and feeling grateful for them, you are training your subconscious to seek ‘rich times’ – not necessarily pertaining to money. I’m not an expert on the Law of Attraction, however as a Master Practitioner in the behavioural technology of Neuro-linguistic programming and a hypnotist, I am a proven expert in reprogramming the subconscious mind.

Understand some basics about your conscious and subconscious minds: your conscious mind is the mind that you actively and purposely think with all day long. You likely experience it as an internal voice throughout your day.

The conscious mind has its uses, but it is surprisingly limited in what it can achieve on its own. Research over the years has indicated that the conscious mind can only hold a few ideas at any one time. Most of your life is run automatically by your other mind – your subconscious.

Your subconscious is your ‘larger mind’ – it constantly records new information you obtain from the environment around you and stores it. It processes millions of messages containing sensory information every second. Everything you have ever seen, heard or experienced in any way has been filed away somewhere in the depths of your subconscious mind. It’s the storehouse for all of your memories and more importantly, the automatic programs that influence your thoughts (feelings, perceptions of events) and actions.
The information that has been recorded in your subconscious forms your belief systems, which impact how you think and act.
Getting back to the subject line: unless your subconscious is programmed for wealth, it is unlikely that anything you know, do or learn will make any difference in the long run. We’ve all heard of stories of celebrities who had millions and then are reported bankrupt.
Perhaps you’ve heard the term ‘poverty mentality’ bandied about? This refers to thinking constantly about what we can’t have, can’t afford.

If financial abundance is one of your goals, you need to prepare your subconscious for wealth. The quality of our thoughts determines the quality of our lives.

Let’s make a start. Take a pad and pen (or open Word and write down three things that make you happy. They can be things on which you didn’t necessarily expend extra money.

One of my three would be that last week I took my spoiled German Shepherd girl, Lucy, to a park we don’t normally visit. I didn’t realise previously that it had a wide sandy beach. As we stood on the sand looking out across the St Lawrence towards the States, I savoured a beautiful ten minutes of gazing at a lovely November sunset. I wish I’d taken my camera so I could share with you the sight I enjoyed so much – the river was as calm as a mill pond…And pink! The water was shallow and clear and a delicate shade of strawberry pink all the way to the horizon! This only lasted for ten minutes so I’m glad I stopped and enjoyed all of them

What three ‘abundant’ moments did you write or type?

Seeing someone or a pet you love? Enjoying a sunrise or sunset? Doing an activity you enjoy? Listening to some music that triggers happy memories?
The truth is, we all have moments that make us happy, that bring us joy… Sadly we often ignore them and focus on what we don’t have/don’t like and how our situations aren’t how we want them to be. To quote Eric Hoffer: “The hardest arithmetic to master is that which enables us to count our blessings.”

Start looking for anything (healthy) that makes you feel happy, abundant and aware of the ‘wealth’ you already have in your life. You get more of what you focus on, so the more you practise looking for moments of abundance – precious moments of joy – the more you will experience.

Next week, I’ll teach you how to create and use an NLP anchor so that you can conjure those feelings of abundance whenever you wish.
Talking of wishing, I wish all of my American clients and friends a very Happy Thanksgiving!
Louise

Louise Goddard, BA Hons, M.NLP, CHt
Confidence Coach
Website: http://www.schoolyourmind.com

A tale of two frogs

I don’t know who the author is but I thought it was a funny poem which relates nicely to persistence and attitude to adversity, so I typed it up for you.

I hope it brings a smile to your face as it did mine

Warm wishes to you all,
Louise

Louise Goddard,
Confidence Coach, Licensed Master Practitioner of NLP, Certified Hypnotist

http://www.schoolyourmind.com

A fable about self-image

The dhobi wallah happened to find this cub. He took the lion cub with him and raised it with the donkeys. As the years went by, the cub grew into a adult lion. Since he had been raised with donkeys, the lion believed he was a normal donkey doing its duty, carrying clothes down to the river with his donkey-friends and his master, the dhobi wallah. The ‘lion-donkey’ was quite happy with this life.

Life carried on as usual until one fine day a wild lion came down to the river to quench his thirst. As he was drinking at the river’s edge, the wild lion caught sight of something that made him take a second look in utter disbelief. He saw a big lion walking with donkeys, sheep and a human, carrying a huge load of clothes on his back. When the strange party had unloaded the clothes at river bank, the wild lion leapt and landed just in between them. They all fled in terror, including the lion-donkey.

Quick as a flash, the wild lion caught hold of the neck of the lion-donkey and kept it from fleeing. It bleated in fear, “oh, big animal, please don’t kill me!!! The wild lion laughingly replied, “But we’re from the same family! You’re a lion like me!

The donkey-lion replied, “Oh, no Sir, you are mistaken. I am just a poor and weak donkey doing my duty!”

The wild lion laughed loudly. He had never heard such a joke before. He said, “Come dear lion brother! I will show you something.”

The wild lion dragged the lion-donkey down to the river and showed it its face reflected in the river water.
”Look! Can you see your face? It’s just like mine. Do you believe me now?
”Oh, yes! Now I see! What a fool I was! How could I be such an idiot!!” replied the rediscovered lion.
”Oh yes, my dear friend. We are equal!” said the wild lion.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I love this tale because it entertainingly emphasises the impact of one’s self-image on one’s life. Our behaviour is closely linked to our self-image. The lion because of his own belief that he was a donkey, acted like a donkey and therefore was treated like a donkey by those around him. Though tough to accept sometimes, we train others how to treat us.
What thoughts does this tale prompt in you? Do you hold any false notions of donkey-ness?
Is there any belief you have about yourself which, upon closer examination, might prove to be solely based on what you’ve been told over the years and has been supported by your environment, and isn’t in fact who you are?

‘Wishing you the best in life! ♥
Louise

Louise Goddard BA Hons, M.NLP, CHt
Coaching and Hypnosis by phone and Skype

Licensed Master Practitioner of NLP
Certified Weight Loss Coach
Certified Communication Skills Expert
Certified Life Coach
Certified Hypnotherapist
Certified Hypnotist

Website:

http://www.schoolyourmind.com

Follow me on Twitter: http://www.Twitter.com/hypnosisbyphone
Facebook fan page: http://www.facebook.com/SchoolYourMind

School Your Mind, http://www.schoolyourmind.com

I see people go to whatever trouble it takes, wait in line for ages, then pay hundreds of dollars for a bunch of plastic-y crap at Walmart. I see people pay a fortune for nicotine patches; for all manner of diet aids where the pills are guaranteed to speed up metabolism or dull the appetite (the small print on the bottle will say something like “in conjunction with diet and exercise” Of course it’s the diet and exercise that gets the weight off, not the pretty pill).

Yesterday, a woman almost cannoned me into the shelves in her haste to get to the make-up counter. I remarked that whatever it is she needed to buy must be very important to her. She explained about some offer on some good quality make-up the details of which I didn’t even attempt to retain consciously. I asked her if she’d indulge me and tell me why it was urgent. She said it made her feel better to be fully made up (‘to have her face on’, I think was the expression she used. Like someone doesn’t have a face without make-up!) I glanced at the literally hundreds of dollars worth of make up she was selecting and remarked again, “So all this is for a feeling?”

It blows my mind how much people will spend year after year, on outer layers, on liquids, pills and foodstuffs to ‘self-medicate’, rather than to book a few sessions with an NLP coach to learn to control their own thoughts, their own feelings and impulses – a tool which can last them a lifetime. 

No matter how much it costs in time and money, no matter how far the drive is, it seems anything is better than having to think! I’m reminded of a Thomas Edison quote: “There is no expedient to which a mean will not go to avoid the labor of thinking.”

I don’t like this assertion at all, but since starting my business School Your Mind, I have to accept as true for a large percentage of people.
 
Does thinking physically hurt you? No.

Does thinking cost you money? No.

There are three questions I ask new clients before we even have the initial complimentary phone consultation:

• Are you able to focus your mind?
• Will you follow instructions?
• Are you willing to commit to making this change?

(A change could be concerning an anxiety or fear, a health-related concern like weight loss or smoking cessation, a need to be more confident and/or motivated, etc, etc.)

If you answered yes to these three questions, get in touch to schedule an initial complimentary phone consultation today. Contact details are on the School Your Mind website.

Warmly,

Louise Goddard

NLP Success Coach & Certified Hypnotist

My Facebook fan page http://www.facebook.com/SchoolYourMind 

Follow me on Twitter: http://www.Twitter.comGet_Confident

Business website: http://www.schoolyourmind.com