NLP Memory Manipulation - Change the Content of your Memories
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Exercise 2:
Go through the people who bother you, until you find one, who you remember as having a really uncomfortable voice; A voice that makes you cringe, an overpowering voice, or one that sounds like a dental drill.
So what happens if you change their voice?
If you remember someone who has a deep and authoritative voice, what happens when you imagine them giving you a hard time while sounding like Donald Duck?
Just speeding someone up until they sound like one of the munchkins is also quite fun.
If there is someone who tires you out because there voice just seems to bash you over and over, then try slowing them right down.
Think of other ways you can change someone's voice and try them out to work out which changes effect you the most.
Exercise 3:
So, now lets put it all together.
Remember five people who you have trouble dealing with.
Think about the next time you are likely to have to deal with them.
Using Visual and Auditory hallucinations, make them easier to deal with.
Just to give you a start, here are some ideas of changes that may make people easier to deal with.
Visual Changes
- Clown Nose, Clown Clothes, Clown Shoes
- Dress them like Shirley Temple - if you don’t remember you're lucky
- Make them wobbly
- Change their hair - badly
- Bloke in a dress - if you're British - think 'Little Britain'
- Big flat feet
- how about a big perm
- Handlebar moustache – great, especially on women
And now for the auditory changes:
Auditory Changes
- Make them sound like Donald Duck
- One word – Helium
- Add a soundtrack to the memory –
Benny Hill is always good especially if you speed up their movements too
Or Monty Python's 'Always look on the bright side of life' - Give them a stutter or make them hesitant
So far we have dealt with changing the content via changing the visual, and auditory elements.
So can we perform a similar exercise in the kinesthetic modality?
Exercise 4:
Remember someone who has bothered you, and imagine them stood before you.
Now, rather than changing details about your ‘opponent’ you’re going to change your own kinesthetics.
As you see your 'opponent' through your own eyes, imagine yourself getting taller and taller. Imagine your shoulders broadening.
What would it feel like if you were the incredible hulk and were beginning to stretch your clothes and expand your muscles out in all directions?
Then when you’re towering over them, notice them shrink down, and then flare your nostrils and snarl at them.
Make them shrink down until they are so small you can step forward and crush them with a thunderous stamp.
Open you mouth and feel the force of your voice flatten them.
Does that feel good?
Conclusion
The more you work with these techniques, the easier they will become.
You will also become more aware of what your brain is doing that makes these people so difficult to deal with.
And don’t be surprised if you find one specific change that really does it for you.
Some people find that changes in one specific modality work best for them.
And does this only apply to people?
Of course not!
Try applying the same techniques to other things that make you uncomfortable.
I'm thinking spiders in striped leggings and giving presentations in front of an audience who all look like mice!
Just use your imagination!
Previous comments
Powerful around women?
Making yourself feel more powerful around people you find intimidating is good and useful, but doesn't feel right in the situation where I am trying to talk to a woman who makes me feel uncomfortable. What would you use for that?
Posted May 14, 2010 at 10:40
Custom States
Maybe you should check the article on NLP state management elsewhere on the site and create yourself a custom state. Put something like playfulness in to prevent you being too serious about the whole thing. Playing around with different states is really cool and a good way to build some flexibility into your behaviors.
Posted May 28, 2010 at 05:33
No Title
Great
Posted October 15, 2010 at 20:22
Amazing article
Amazing article. Thanks for writing it.
Posted November 15, 2010 at 08:17
Cheers
Thanks for your feedback Jolly.
Glad you enjoyed it!
Posted November 15, 2010 at 13:32
Simple
This lesson was simple, yet filled with so much information. And reader friendly information at that. Excellent lesson, thank you so much.
Posted November 23, 2010 at 18:42
Thanks rrobigold
Good to see the information was of interest.
Posted November 23, 2010 at 21:19
Nice Article
thanks for this article. It would be nice to have a forum on this site.
Posted December 27, 2010 at 13:38
Thanks Sasha
Glad you enjoyed the article.
I have been wondering about adding a forum for a while, so this may be something I do when I get around to it.
Posted December 31, 2010 at 10:30
Great Article
Thanks for a simple, readable,article that engages all the senses. Freeing the mind from the manipulation of memory, what's beyond this?
Posted November 9, 2011 at 20:48
Thanks
This was a great article and I especially like the explanation of the V.A.K. model done with such ease.
Thanks again.
Posted December 19, 2011 at 11:12
'In a sense you are remembering what happened in a manner that allows you to not have to question what you think about yourself.' - Could you explain the last part of this statement: '... that allows you to not have to question what you think about yourself.'
Posted April 20, 2012 at 23:12
Could you help me with a situation when someone makes me feel like they don't believe/ value/ respect/ love me? what do I change in such situation? thanks,
Posted April 20, 2012 at 23:30
Sue
Clarification
What I meant by that phrase isn't really important to the NLP process, but when you remember something from your past you tend to remember it in a way that best fits with your beliefs about yourself.
If you believed you had no confidence but had a memory where you were really outgoing and enjoyed yourself then this would be at odds with your belief.
It's likely that when you remembered the event you would do so with some kind of mental filtering - either you'd remember the event as if you were less confident than you actually were or there would be something else given prominence in your recollection of the memory that gives you an 'excuse' for the confident behavior. An example would be that you remembered being quite drunk when you weren't.
Hope that Helps.
Posted April 25, 2012 at 19:56
I'm finding it very hard to apply these changes in my mind right now, probably because I've always seen the human side of the people who are difficult for me to deal at the moment. What do you think I should do to make it easier? I really want to feel confident in front of these people and be able to deal with them naturally and honestly, without feeling that they want and can do me any harm (psychological or emotional).
Posted May 29, 2012 at 09:50
Fernanda
Surely seeing the human side should show you how vulnerable these people are - that they are not 'superior' to you.
As to people causing you harm - how often does that actually happen? Or are you making images of people doing things to you? If so then try the whiteout technique to destroy the image.
Posted May 29, 2012 at 21:44
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