Overcoming Challenges with Joy, Gratitude, and the Magic of NLP

Life has a knack for hurling challenges at us when we least expect it. Sometimes, it feels like life is just a series of curveballs. A recent family health challenge felt like I was hitting a brick wall. However, a profound yet simple strategy emerged from this trying time, which I’d love to share with you all.

The Transformative Power of Nightly Reflections

A conversation with my sister sparked an inspiring idea. Why not end each day by reflecting on moments of joy and gratitude? Further, we can then ask our subconscious mind to present solutions to overcome our challenges and bring them to our conscious awareness by morning.

Think of it as giving your brain a mini-positive reboot!

The Magic of Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP)

This strategy closely mirrors the principles of NLP.  NLP emphasizes the profound connection between our language, emotions, neurological processes, and behavioral patterns that evolve from our experiences. When we consciously steer our thoughts towards positivity, joy, and gratitude, we’re essentially rewiring our neural pathways, promoting constructive behavioral shifts.

And the outcome? Simply magical. From seemingly insignificant moments bloomed immense joy. And more surprisingly, solutions began appearing, helping my family navigate the challenges we were facing.

Embrace Gratitude and Joy as Tools

Life can be challenging; I get it.

It’s when we get stuck in the challenge that it becomes a problem. I am not suggesting that you gloss over life’s challenges. I am merely suggesting that you give your unconscious mind direction to solve it by priming it with an emotional state of gratitude and joy. The same level of mind that created the problem is not going to solve it. Using this strategy is like looking at the challenge through another set of eyes, which can offer you another perspective. When life throws you a curveball, an attitude of gratitude and embracing joy will add to your strategic toolbox to overcome challenges.

Play With This Approach

  1. Remembering experiences you feel grateful for.
  2. Reflecting on your day and coming up with times big and small that you felt joy.
  3. Review your challenging situation and command your unconscious mind to bring to your awareness a solution for this challenge by the time you wake up.

Are you ready to put this strategy to use? The results may surprise you!

Be Well! 💜Sandra

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Continue reading “Overcoming Challenges with Joy, Gratitude, and the Magic of NLP”

Embrace the Game of Life with Confidence and Curiosity: Lessons from a Pickleball Clinic

Embrace the Game of Life with Confidence and Curiosity: Lessons from a Pickleball Clinic

This past weekend, I ventured into the vibrant world of Pickleball. Though it might seem like a mere weekend game, the profound insights I gained were anything but ordinary.

Observing my fellow beginners, I noticed two distinct attitudes. Some players, trapped in their fear of judgment, apologized for every miss and let their self-doubt overshadow the joy of the game. Meanwhile, others approached the experience with beginner’s joy and played with total delight, embracing every hiccup.

Several players confided their performance anxieties to me. Channeling my inner mentor, I shared the same advice I give to my students who attend my retreat to learn Neuro-Lingusitic Programming, “If you were a pro, you wouldn’t be here. immerse yourself  in the joy of learning.” ✨

Remarkably, those who embraced their perceived imperfections and played with an open heart had the most enjoyable time. This led me to ponder: Isn’t this a metaphor for life?

Many of us, in our daily lives, are constrained by the fear of looking unskilled or making mistakes. But what if we approached new experiences fueled by Confidence and Curiosity? 🌱

To truly immerse in the game of life, consider these strategies:

  • Embrace Imperfection: Recognize challenges as stepping stones, not stumbling blocks.
  • Be Present: Dive deep into the joy of the now, sidelining any fear of missteps.
    Celebrate Progress: Every tiny stride forward is a celebration.
  • Have Fun: Let your curiosity lead the way, ensuring every experience is enriched with joy.

As you play the game of life, approach it with a beginner’s mindset. This approach will make each experience richer and ensure your journey is packed with joy.

Here’s to embracing the beginner within you and finding joy in the journey!

Warm wishes, 💕 Sandra

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Boosting Mood and Confidence: The Power of Body Language

I am thrilled to share one of my favorite anxiety and worry hacks with you – the power of body language.

Physiological Impact on Feelings

Have you ever stopped to think about how your physiology – that is, your body language, breathing, and posture – impacts your mood? You may notice that when you’re feeling low, your shoulders slump, your breathing becomes shallow, and your overall body language embodies that state of mind. This is not a coincidence.

Scientific research suggests a strong link between our physical posture and our emotional state. Studies have shown that if we sit hunched over and closed off, we’re more likely to feel down, tired, or anxious. Conversely, standing tall, breathing deeply, and adopting an open posture can boost our energy levels and confidence.

Harnessing the Mind-Body Connection

The key takeaway here is the mind-body connection. By being mindful of our physiology and making deliberate changes to our body language, we can significantly influence our emotional state. Here are a few Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) inspired techniques that you can start using today:

1. Adopt a Power Stance: Stand tall and open like Superman or Wonder Woman. This posture signals to your brain that you’re confident and ready to conquer anything that comes your way.

2. Practice Deep Breathing: Breathe in slowly, filling your lungs completely and then exhaling longer than you inhale. It’s akin to a mini-meditation session and can help you feel calm and focused, especially during moments of anxiety.

3. Smile More: The adage ‘fake it till you make it’ holds some truth. Smiling, even when you’re not feeling particularly joyous, can trick your brain into a happier state.

4. Get Moving: Stretch, take a walk, or even have a quick dance break. Any form of movement can help shake off sluggish feelings and elevate your mood.

By incorporating these small changes into your daily routine, you might be pleasantly surprised to see how they can significantly impact your emotional state. Please feel free to share your experiences or any other tricks you have found helpful in the comments section.

Stay well and stay positive,

💕 Sandra

⭐ **Upcoming Courses** ⭐

Conquering Clarity Series** (7:00 – 8:30 pm EST on Zoom)
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Conquering Doubt: Oct 3, 10, 17, 24, 2023
Conquering Roadblocks: Nov 7, 14, 21, 28, 2023

NLP Practitioner Training
January 17 – 20, 2024, Location to be announced

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To learn more about these offerings, reach out to me directly for details at sandra@thrivelearningcollective.com. I can’t wait to journey with you on these transformative experiences.

“From Shackles to Freedom: How NLP Transformed My Life”

Today, I’d love to share my transformative journey with Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) and how it completely turned my life around.

My story starts at an NLP training session back in 2008. For more than four decades, I was cloaked in a cloud of generalized anxiety and a crippling belief that I was neither good enough nor smart enough.

This narrative shackled me, prevented me from sharing my unique talents with the world, and obstructed my path to success.

Anxiety was a hurdle in my social life, holding me back from relishing moments most people find enjoyable. It also interfered with my professional growth, keeping me away from what I’m doing today. This crippling fear was a wall between me and those I cared for, hindering deep and fulfilling relationships.

The training session was a turning point for me. During the training, the organization called out those interested in becoming NLP trainers to join their team of trainers. Every fiber of my being wanted to say ‘yes,’ but my anxiety held me captive. However, on my 44th birthday, five days into the training, I finally gathered the courage to voice my aspiration to become a trainer. That decision was the best birthday gift I ever gave myself—it marked the moment I reclaimed my life and kindled a spark of hope for my future.

When I mustered the courage to voice my interest, the lead trainer asked, “I’m just curious, what held you back from pursuing your dreams?” To which I responded, “I fear that I’m not good enough.”

The trainer then asked me if I was ready to take full responsibility for my life and let go of my fear of not being enough. That’s when I chose to free myself. As I was guided through an NLP process, I learned to release anxiety’s grip on me and step into my empowered, creative self. This technique allowed me to consciously co-write my life’s narrative instead of being a puppet to a story haunted by fear and anxiety—a narrative that was etched in my past and dominated my “default program” for living.

Are you truly living your life’s purpose? If not, what’s holding you back?

Being a responsible co-author of your story demands taking full responsibility for your life. It requires you to delve into how your past influences your reactions to your experiences. NLP helps uncover what is fueling your life’s story. Once you understand what’s holding you back, you can begin co-authoring a new, more empowering narrative.

Are you ready to embark on this transformative journey? You may aspire to become an NLP Practitioner to guide others in rewriting their narratives. If so, reach out to me, and I would be thrilled to set up a 30-minute discovery call to explore the possibilities together.

💜Sandra

✨Upcoming Courses✨

Conquering Clarity Series (7:00 – 8:30 pm EST on Zoom)
Conquering Anxiety: Sept 5, 12, 19, 26, 2023
Conquering Doubt: Oct 3, 10, 17, 24, 2023
Conquering Roadblocks: Nov 7, 14, 21, 28, 2023

NLP Practitioner Training
Location to be announced
January 17 – 20, 2024
Click here to register

NLP Master Practitioner Training
Location to be announced
April 6 – 14, 2024
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Thrive Integrative Coaching & Hypnotherapy Masterclass
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Turn Challenges into Opportunities

There is no time like now, to come from a place of choice and become the fierce leader of your life.

Now more than ever, it is essential to maintain a growth mindset. Seeing opportunities in challenging times is imperative to achieving success. And that is why becoming trained in NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Programming) is vital to navigating change, challenge and success.

Most of how we behave and respond in life is done through habit. In fact, 95% of what we do is an unconscious process. It is our automatic response system at work. We automatically respond to situations based on how we have responded to them in the past. Our decision to respond is made up to 5 seconds before we are consciously aware. These responses are literally habits supported by our beliefs, which means we don’t think about doing something; it just happens.

This is where we can get in trouble because we may, in fact, be operating automatically from an old, outdated automatic response system that doesn’t reflect our current beliefs and values.

I am sure there have been times in your life that you have done something and then said to yourself, gosh, I don’t know where that came from, or I don’t even know why I acted that way. I don’t know about you, but I would like to forget some of my past responses because they were not aligned with the person I had become. My response was a reflection of an outdated version of me.

In all seriousness, NLP brings back into our life our ability to choose how we want to respond. It allows us to slow down to get clear on what we want and then check to see if what we want is supported by your existing automatic responses. The more our automatic responses are aligned with our goals and dreams, the more we experience happiness, peace, fulfillment, love, etc., in our life. When they are not aligned, we experience regret, frustration, depression, anxiety, and loss of hope…just to name a few. NLP offers a vast suite of skills, tools, and strategies that allow you to condition your mind to where you want to go and to gain the ability to see opportunities for growth and expansion in all areas of your life during challenging times as well as times of ease.

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON NLP PRACTITIONER LIFE COACH CERTIFICATION

NLP offers a vast suite of skills, tools, and strategies that allow you to condition your mind to where you want to go and to gain the ability to see opportunities for growth and expansion in all areas of your life during challenging times as well as times of ease.

Do you want to get more from life?

Whether you want to expand your communications skills, learn new strategies, become more influential, NLP is literally the owner’s manual for your mind..the how-to guide to make lasting change in your life. Imagine having the skills and resources within you to:

  • Automatically make shifts in your emotions and moods so that you behave in ways that make you feel confident, secure, and proud.
  • Learn to quickly pivot the way you think and behave when you need to make a shift in your life.
  • Become a master of communication and influence.
  • Learn the art of connection and build meaningful and lasting healthy relationships.
  • Reduce stress and overcome challenges.
  • Lovingly and compassionately resolve conflict.
  • Eliminate co-dependency patterns.
  • Upgrade your automatic response system (unconscious mind) to reflect your updated beliefs and values.

Does any or all of this sound appealing to you?

Treat yourself to a week of learning to think on purpose: experience self-development and gain strategies to mindfully navigate your life to achieve your dreams and goals and experience more life fulfillment.


Join me in Hilton Island, SC January 7-15, 2021!

Together we will update and upgrade your automatic response system to be aligned with what you want to achieve in life. You will experience a transformational week of personal and professional development. You will walk away from the training with a new mindset of success and certification as an NLP Practitioner Life Coach.

Do you want to register and update your automatic response system?

Email me, by 12/25/21 and I will extend a $200 discount for you to attend.

I am Looking forward to seeing you there! Sandra

Changing Inner Dialogue

As small children, our minds are like sponges and during the time between birth and 7 or 8 years old, we spend most of our time exploring, learning, and absorbing the information of the world around us.  

Science tells us during this 7 to 8 year period, that we are in the brain wave state of Theta and in that state, our subconscious becomes a repository for memories, emotions, sensations. 

For example, a child raised with a Mother or Father who uses words and phrases such as “you don’t deserve” “who do you think you are” “don’t be stupid”, “life sucks”, that child will likely grow up with inner dialogues such as, “I’m not worthy”, “I don’t deserve to be successful”, “I’ll  never be happy”, or worse.

If your client has repeatedly attempted and failed at, for example, starting a business, completing college, or developing meaningful relationships, there is more than likely an inner dialogue playing over and over in their mind.  Sometimes they still hear their parents voices and other times it becomes their own.

If that’s all it did, it wouldn’t be such a problem, but what that inner dialogue ultimately does is it creates an “internal saboteur” that causes them to make decisions and act in ways that aren’t congruent with or supporting their goals.  

You have an awesome opportunity to assist them in changing that inner dialogue to something more useful, opening the way for them to create a new way of being.

Another great advantage of your Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP) training is that any technique or process you can use with a client, you can use to heal yourself.  In fact, if you have an internal saboteur blocking any area of your life, I recommend you first eliminate yours.  

Here is a very simple and effective way to do that.

Changing Inner Dialogue

  1. Get in touch with the inner dialogue
  2. Name the emotion it creates that you want to replace
  3. Rate the intensity of that feeling on a scale of 0 being “no problem” and 10 “I’m ready to scream”
  4. Identify the dialogue, e.g., “I screw up everything”, “I’m not worthy of a good marriage”
  5. Change the speed and the pitch of the voice
  6. Make the inner dialogue high (like Mickey Mouse) and super-fast
  7. Slow the inner dialogue down and low (like James Earl Jones) out loud or mentally and then,
  8. Slow it down even more and make the spaces between the words even longer 
  9. You will begin to notice that your inner dialogue doesn’t elicit the same emotion when repeated slowly
  10. Check in with the feeling that you wanted to replace

If it is at zero, replace it with a new positive statement in a voice that you just can’t help but listen to, and as you listen to your voice, put a big smile on your face and enjoy this new way of being. 

Living Healthy with NLP

In my earlier post, I talked about managing our thoughts through Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP) and how that can allow you to live your best life ever.   

And even as an NLP Coach you’re probably curious.   “How does NLP affect my health?” and “How can I use it to improve my health?”

If you read my previous post, you know that going from where you are to where you want to be is only a thought away.  And the same holds true for thoughts about our health.

During one of my 16 day NLP / Hypnotherapy training classes in Florida, I had a student who came in EVERY day complaining of a new ailment.  Her leg hurt, the next day her shoulder hurt, she twisted her back.  Every day was something new and as I was leaving one day, I noticed that, even though she wasn’t legally “handicapped”, she parked every day in a handicapped parking spot.

So I thought, if she’s NOT handicapped and at least twice a day she’s seeing the handicapped sign on the parking spot, then she’s subconsciously living out HER life as a handicapped person!

You see, as she feels the ailment, she then thinks the thought that “something is wrong” and continues to subconsciously recreate “something wrong” every day.

Once I pointed it out to her, she found a new parking spot, and through the New Behavior Generator and Anchoring NLP processes, she was able to change her “wrong” thinking into more positive thoughts which supported her desire to for excellent health. 

A basic premise is that if you control your thoughts, you can control your words, and you have control over changes you wish to make in your life. 

You will always have a variety of thoughts floating through your mind, so when I speak of controlling your thoughts, I’m referring to focusing your thoughts.  You can CHOOSE what thoughts you want to put your focus on.  The others will just float on through with barely a notice.

So, using words accurately is what NLP teaches. By teaching your brain to think, and it can be taught, in sound ways and behaviors that are in alignment with your values (see Manage Your Mind, Manage Your Life), then this produces positive effects on your body and heals your emotions.

As an NLP Coach, you’re aware that roughly 90% of illnesses originate in the mind. However, knowing this and applying it in your life can be two different things.  

In the NLP MasterClass, I consciously and continuously monitor my students’ words while talking about your life, family, business, relationships, and health.  By also observing your facial expressions, and body changes, I can see hidden “language” to discover the unwanted thoughts and the way you view your health, and get to the root of the problem, the negative belief stored in your unconscious. 

Once the unconscious beliefs are brought into your consciousness, you will change your thinking pattern and eliminate any unwanted ideas about your health.

NLP has proven successful in sports, the educational field, sales, business, and health.  Thrive Learning Collective’s NLP MasterClass students gain a much deeper level of understanding of how and why the techniques work and how not only to assist their clients in making positive life changes, but to incorporate them in their own lives.  

All of us have role models such as film stars, sports stars, famous speakers, and so on.  They have achieved success and prominence in their fields. They also have reasonably good health and radiant personalities. They have got to where they are by a strong “belief” system shored up with high quality thoughts.  

You and I can also model or create patterns in our own lives by following their beliefs and patterns of behavior and so rise up to their levels of success.  It is entirely possible.  I’ve done it and I’ve seen so many of my students do it, as well.  NLP is the shortest, most direct path to discover the inner resources we all possess.  They are waiting to be tapped and brought out into the light, so that every aspect of our lives can be improved. 

Success isn’t just for a chosen few, it’s for all of us.  

 

Take a mini-break from worry!

 

When you are facing troubled times, take a mini-break from worry and notice what happens. Allow yourself to walk away from the problem for just 15 minutes.

“Worrying is like praying for what you don’t want”

Take 6 deep breaths – Breathe in for the count of five and exhale for the count of seven. Go for a quick walk. When you return, ask yourself, “what do I want and what will I do right now to get it.”

Notice how you see things differently when you allow yourself to take a mini-break from worry.

Focusing on what you want is more effective than focusing on what you don’t want. Either way, you will get more of what you are focusing on in life. We never find our solution when we focus on the problem.

Resolving Conflicts With NLP

Conflict is a part of life. How we resolve conflict is what can make or break a relationship.

Conflict can happen in various facets of our lives and at different degrees. Internal and external conflict occurs when:

  1. Ideas oppose each other. 
  2. There is an struggle within ourselves or with the outside world or external forces. 
  3. You have a conflict with what you should do. For instance, should I stay inside and sleep or go outdoors and get fresh air?
  4. You think about what you can and can’t do in a situation.
  5. We have conflicting beliefs. For example, a person may be convinced it is correct for them to study astronomy, and they may also believe that they can not learn it, and this will cause them difficulty in learning astronomy.
  6. We are holding onto a particular role. For example, you may have a conflict of being a wife and being the head of the house.
  7. We think or believe that the person we are communicating with has to share our point of view or perspective.
  8. Perceived realities collide.  

How we handle conflict is based on our perspective of the situation. Our perspective is subjective and is formed by how we experienced similar situations in the past. When we have an experience, we formulate a judgment (assign meaning) about it and then attach beliefs about the situation, which lays the foundation of how we will respond in the future.  

Learning to resolve conflict is a beneficial skill to acquire in life. Using NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Programming) and perceptual positioning can allow you to change your perspective or respectfully agree to disagree. 

Conflict Resolution through understanding someone else’s perspective

Utilizing perceptual positioning is useful in resolving conflict. These are incredible learning positions because each position allows us to see and experience the conflict in a different way. 

  1. First Position: You are experiencing the situation through your own eyes and are fully associated into the experience.
  2. Second Position: Stepping into another person’s experience and seeing through their eyes, hearing through their ears, and feeling what they are feeling…the “compassion position.”
  3. Meta Position: Viewing the interaction from a dissociated state watching you and the other person disagreeing. 

The next time you are disagreeing take some reflective time away from the situation and put yourself in the other two positions and capture what you can learn from these positions and then apply the learning to the conflict. More often than not, conflict is resolved, or at the very least, you can respectfully agree to disagree. 

Would you like to learn more about how NLP can help you become an extraordinary communicator that can navigate through communication challenges? “Click Here” If you have questions feel free to contact sandra@thrivelearningcollective.com

Check Out Our Upcoming Trainings Here

 

NLP Presuppositions You Ought To Know About

NLP Presuppositions You Ought To Know About

NLP PRESUPPOSITIONS

NLP has certain underlying presuppositions. These presuppositions are related to effectiveness in communication. NLP finds its basis largely in practical experience than being rooted in academic theories.

Though some NLP presuppositions may be borrowed from cybernetics or General Semantics, some are unique to NLP. Given below is a detailed study of some examples of NLP presuppositions.

What communication means equals the response it elicits: In communication, information is transferred from one to another. The information conveyed has some meaning for the receiver and is intended to be understood by the receiver in the way that it is communicated. However, effective communicators understand that communication is, in fact, what the receiver thinks rather than what is intended to be communicated, which may be two different things altogether. NLP trains people to focus on the actions of the receiver to determine if there is misunderstanding and vary their own communication until the desired response is received.

Map and territory: The way a person organizes his experience of the world is a ‘map,’ and the world as it exists is ‘territory’ and is different from the map. The experience of every person determines their perception of the world and the choices they will observe as being available to them. NLP techniques help to change this perception to a more useful model, better matching the world as it really is.

Language and experience: Language is understood as representing a person’s experience. People speaking different languages use separate words that describe the same thing. Everyone has a different experience, so the same words have different meanings for each person. Communication between people is effective as long as meanings are mutually similar. When there is dissimilarity in meaning, communication problems arise.

Mind and body affect each other: Body and mind in a human being are inseparable. A person’s thinking is influenced by the feelings in their physical body. In effect, this means that a person can change the way they feel by changing how they think and change the way they think by changing their physiology or his feelings.

Communicating cannot be avoided:  People usually suppose that if they keep silent, they are not communicating and can avoid personal responsibility. However, there is a presupposition in NLP that one is constantly communicating through words, silence, and several other non-verbal signals. It is, therefore, better to accept personal responsibility than to remain aloof.

Anyone with the maximum options in a given situation can get the best outcome: This presupposition is related to BATNA i.e. Best Alternative to Non-agreement. If you enter upon negotiations with a single outcome in mind, it means the end of the road if that outcome is not achieved. Alternatively, if you have a prioritized list of options, the likelihood of achieving any one of them is very high.

Each type of behavior is appropriate in some specific context: Simply stated, you adopt a certain behavior because you have experienced it to work at some time. Problems arise because you may continue to believe that it is still going to work even though it is no longer appropriate. Accepting this presupposition follows that a new and appropriate behavior is warranted instead of dissecting the old behavior, which more often than not, reinforces it rather than rejecting it.