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alt.self-improve FAQ
revision 1.9 (PART 2)
July 17, 1995
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15. Memory Systems
Q. What's the deal with all these memory systems?
A. Quite often the question comes up regarding memory systems. One
has either read a book, or has seen an infomercial concerning
it. Do they work and are they worth the money?
A quick bit of history. Recorded history concerning memory
systems is documented to about 500B.C.. There are indications that
these were in existence as early as 1500B.C., but only fragments
exist supporting this claim. The ancient orators used these
systems to help deliver their famous speeches.
In modern times we have books, audio cassettes, and video
recordings all teaching memory systems. One cannot really
compare one system to another. All have some good features to
them. All are taught by people who have been in the business or
have studied it. Most of the systems utilize a principle called
mnemonics. Simply stated, this means assisting the human memory
by artificially adding mental pictures or images attached to the
item to be retained in our mind.
These systems DO work, but you have to put in some time and
effort to learn the basics. Once you do this, you will find the
systems learned will be invaluable to you for the rest of your
life.
Virtually anything you wish to remember can be memorized by
utilizing these systems. They are not a waste of your time.
Often the question of cost is raised. The books cost a few
dollars while the book + audio/video combinations are much more
expensive. Usually this is in the area today of $200 - $300 or
more. Obviously the utilization of the audio/video is more
effective due to the learning principles involved. Our retention
is greater and our learning time is shortened. Books, on the
other hand, are less expensive, but take a bit longer to learn
from. An on-site seminar is the best possible way to learn these
systems.
Books on the retail market by Harry Lorayne and Tony Buzan are
among the best available, although others are published that are
equally effective.
One of the best background texts I have ever run across is by
Kenneth L Higbee of Brigham Young Univ. He is the only one that
has done the homework in this business although others are now
coming on line with more current study findings. His book is
titled "Your Memory - How it Works and How to Improve it".
(Contributed by: r.follmer@genie.geis.com)
16. Mindmapping
Q. What is mindmapping?
A. Mindmapping is a technique developed by Tony Buzan for
"associatively" recording ideas on paper. Most notetaking methods
on paper are linear; that is you start at the top of the page and
record information in the order presented from top to bottom.
Buzan recognized that this isn't consistent with the way the human
mind works, which is "associately" by creating associations
between items that are not necessarily related to some predefined
order. A mindmap works by beginning at the center of the page
with a main idea and work outward producing a growing and organized
structure composed of keywords and images. Complete sentences or
even phrases are not allowed because they're redundant and
inefficient. Mindmaps are useful in organizing information, taking
notes, outlining talks or written material, brainstorming for
creating new ideas and seeing new connections between things.
Mindmaps take advantage of color, symbols. They can cluster
related ideas. They require a more active involvement in taking
notes because the location of the next item must be decided upon
based on what is already there. Traditional "verbatim" approaches
simply state that "what will come will follow what has come."
Mind maps are easier to remember and easier to review because each
one is visually different and because no two will have the exact
same structures, colors, clusters, symbols, etc.
Mindmapping is described by Tony Buzan in "The Mind Map Book" as
well as several of his other books. Another good book is called
"Mindmapping" by Joyce Wycoff.
Q. What mindmapping software is available?
A. One software program is available from the Buzan Centre (see
Appendix A) called "Mind Maps Plus". There is a shareware program
called "Info Map Lite"" available from CoCo Systems Ltd. (see
Appendix A). In general these software
programs allow the user to draw and manage mindmaps on computer
using a graphical user interface. Some tools allow sophisticated
re-arranging of the topology, annotating maps entries with notes,
etc.
Visio 3.0 (can accept full sentences).
17. Mind Machines
Q. What is a mind machine?
A. Mind machines are devices used for relaxation or to attempt to
alter brain states. These devices are usually worn on the head
and use light or sound effects. The scientific validity of their
effectiveness has been debated in the group with no conclusive
answers.
----
One positive comment is from lydiapolk@aol.com (Lydia Polk):
I bought a Theta Technologies Voyager XL since they dropped the
price from $350 to $200. It works as claimed. It comes with 50
built-in sessions and an additional 25.
We use it primarily to get into delta sleep. But you can buy audio
tapes that are designed to work with it and download session
paramaters into the machine. You can get tapes for all kinds of
self improvement. Highly recommended.
-----
The two main manufacturers of mind machines in the United States
seem to by Zygon and Theta Technologies. Phone numbers can be
found in Appendix A.
18. Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP)
Q. What is NLP?
A. The following answer was contributed by (stever@mit.edu):
This is a merging of several sci.psychology messages defining NLP.
Please feel free to ask questions, etc.
If you would like a list of NLP resources (books, training centers),
I have one of those, too...
Enjoy,
- Stever
--------------------
NLP was developed in the mid-70s by John Grinder, a Professor at UC
Santa Cruz and Richard Bandler, a graduate student.
Neuro-Linguistic Programming, as most people use the term, is a set
of models of how communication impacts and is impacted by subjective
experience. It's more a collection of tools than any overarching
theory. NLP is heavily pragmatic: if a tool works, it's included in
the model, even if there's no theory to back it up. None of the
current NLP developers have done research to "prove" their models
correct. The party line is "pretend it works, try it, and notice the
results you get. If you don't get the result you want, try something
else."
Much of early NLP was based on the work of Virginia Satir, a family
therapist; Fritz Perls, founder of Gestalt therapy; Gregory Bateson,
anthropologist; and Milton Erickson, hypnotist. It was Erickson's
work that formed the foundation for a lot of NLP, thus the tight
connection with hypnosis. Bandler and Grinder's book "Patterns of
the Hypnotic Techniques of Milton H. Erickson, Volume I" is one of
the best books I've ever read on how language influences mental
states.
NLP consists of a number of models, and then techniques based on
those models. The major models usually associated with NLP are:
(a) Sensory acuity and physiology: thinking is tied closely to
physiology. People's thought processes change their physiological
state. Sufficiently sensitive sensory acuity will help
communicators fine-tune their communication to a person in ways over
and above mere linguistics.
(b) The "meta-model." A set of linguistic challenges for uncovering
the "deep structure" underneath someone's "surface structure"
sentences. [Sorry for the transformational grammar lingo.]
(c) Representational systems. These actually appeared in Erickson's
work and the work of others, though Bandler and Grinder took them
much further. Different people seem to represent knowledge in
different sensory modalities. Their language reveals their
representation. Often, communication difficulties are little more
than two people speaking in incompatible representation systems.
For example, the "same" sentence might be expressed differently by
different people:
Auditory: "I really hear what you're saying."
Visual: "I see what you mean."
Kinesthetic: "I've got a handle on that."
(d) The "Milton-model." This is a set of linguistic patterns Milton
Erickson used to induce trance and other states in people. It is the
inverse of the meta-model; it teaches you how to be artfully vague,
which is what you use to do therapeutic hypnosis with someone.
(e) Eye accessing cues. When people access different
representational systems, their eyes move in certain ways. Lots of
research has been done on accessing cues. Most of it has "proven"
they don't exist. My thesis was on accessing cues and concluded the
same thing. My real conclusion was that a person is too complex a
black box to test this effectively. Also, eyes move in ways that are
NOT related to information accessing. While I can visually tell the
difference between an "accessing cue" and a non-accessing movement, I
can't quantify the difference enough to base research on it.
(f) Submodalities. The STRUCTURE of internal representations
determines your response to the content. For example, picture
someone you really like. Make the colors more intense, as if you
were turning up the color knob on a TV. Now turn the color down,
until it's black and white. For most people, high color intensifies
the feeling, and B&W neutralizes it. The degree of color, part of
the STRUCTURE of the representation, affects the intensity of your
feelings about the content.
(g) Metaprograms. These are aspects about how people process
information and make decisions. For example, some people
are motivated TOWARDS GOALS, while others are motivated AWAY FROM
non-goals. TOWARDS or AWAY-FROM tells how they respond to their
world; which one a person prefers in a given context will
dramatically change how the person behaves.
--------------------------------
NLP has several techniques for diagnosing and intervening in certain
situations. They have a phobia cure, a way to de-traumatize past
traumas, ways to identify and integrate conflicting belief systems
that keep you from doing the things you want, etc.
I first read about NLP in 1978, and thought it sounded great, but
couldn't possibly work. The founders made lots of claims about
one-session cures, which seemed implausible. [Fourteen years later, I
still think they overexaggerate at times, but I *have* seen two or
three session results that rival traditional therapists' results
over months.]
In 1984 I took an introductory workshop and discovered, much to my
surprise, that it worked well. After messing someone up to the point
where he almost needed hospitalization, I decided to be trained in it
fully, so as not to repeat the mistake.
I find it works scarily well. So well that even someone with poor
training in it can do a lot of damage. There was no quality control
in the field, and a lot of people go around teaching NLP who know
very little about it. Performing NLP techniques is a skill.
Probably only one in ten NLP Practitioners are in the top 10% of NLP
skill level, and maybe even fewer than that(*).
ONE WAY an NLP therapist might approach a client session is by
understanding the cognitive structure of how a client creates a
problem. They then help figure out the cognitive structure of an
area of life where the client deals satisfactorily. Then they would
teach the client to use the good strategy in the problem situation.
For example: a friend of mine was obsessed with her ex-boyfriend.
She was in such fear of him that she would fly into hysterics at the
thought of him. Cognitively, she made a big, bright movie of him
physically harassing her, with a soundtrack of him whining and
lecturing her. The soundtrack seemed to come from around her left
ear, and was in the boyfriend's voice.
She had another ex-boyfriend who she was fine about. Cognitively,
his picture was small, framed, and in the distance. The soundtrack
was her voice talking about how nice he had been, and how the
relationship was firmly in the past.
The work I did with her involved representing the problem boyfriend
with a small, framed picture. We removed the soundtrack of his
voice, and added her narration, instead. The result: she stopped
obsessing about her ex, and went on with her life, able to deal with
him.
Some people have run into NLP-trained people who annoyingly mimic
body posture to distraction, in an attempt to gain "rapport." They
were poorly trained. Go out in public; watch couples; watch good
friends. They walk in synchronization. They move in
synchronization. They NATURALLY mirror each other's movements. NLP
just noticed this, and says "if you don't have rapport, here's one
thing to pay attention to."
A common question is "Does knowing what's being done make it less
effective?" I've found that knowing what someone is doing lets me
barricade against certain things, but there are definite cases where
knowledge is not sufficient to keep it from working. I was once in a
group dynamics experiment where an outsider watched our group and
pointed out to us how we kept getting stuck, because of certain
behavioral loops we were in. EVEN WITH THIS KNOWLEDGE, we were
unable to break the loops without incredible effort. And then our
efforts to break the loops fell into the same loops. Certain aspects
of NLP are like this: if someone is matching your representational
systems and doing it well, even if you are aware of it, they'll
still communicate better to you, as long as they're not incongruent
about it.
Alas, there are few good NLP books out there. In part, that's
because NLP is about communication on all levels, and is much easier
to demonstrate than to write about. In part, that's because the
people who have done the most creation of the models are out there
creating new models and pushing the technology further. Writing
books isn't high on their list of priorities. If you'd like to read
about NLP, I recommend:
Using Your Brain--for a CHANGE, by Richard Bandler
Frogs into Princes, by Richard Bandler and John Grinder
Patterns of the Hypnotic Techniques of Milton H. Erickson,
Vol I, by Bandler and Grinder
TRANCE-formations, by Grinder and Bandler
An Introduction to Neuro-Linguistic Programming,
by Joseph O'Connor
I hope this was useful. It was written off-the-cuff after a day in
the sun :-) Please feel free to send followup questions.
- Stever
Footnote:
(*) This is humor. \By definition/, only 1 in 10 are in the top 10%.
Q. Where can I get more information on NLP?
A. There are a number of ways to learn about NLP. There are many
books written about NLP. Here is a short list of some of the
best known books:
Heart of the Mind - Connirae and Steve Andreas
Frogs into Princes - Richard Bandler
Trance-formations - John Grinder
Use Your Brain for a Change - Richard Bandler
Neurolinguistic Programming vol. 1 - Dilts
Hypnotic Techniques of Milton H. Erickson - Grinder and Bandler
Structure of Magic vol.1 - Grinder and Bandler
Structure of Magic vol.2 - Grinder, Bandler, DeLozier
Turtles All the Way Down - John Grinder
Time Line Therapy and the Basis of Personality - Tad James
Read the alt.psychology.nlp newsgroup.
Appendix A has a number of phone numbers you can call for more
information. The major provider of NLP seminars and books in
the U.S. seems to be NLP Comprehensive run by Steve and Connirae
Andreas. Another excellent source is Advanced Neuro Dynamics (AND)
run by Tad James. They offer trainings in NLP, Hypnosis, Time Line
Therapy, and Huna; their World Wide Web site has some very good
introductory material on NLP. IDHEA Seminars is run by Rex and
Carolyn Sikes. They perform NLP trainings. Rex is also one of
the first people certified as a DHE trainer and Rex and Carolyn
are the creators of the "Attitude Activator" tape. The NLP and DHE
page run by Stever Robbins also has some excellent information.
19. The People's Network (TPN)
The following is an advertisment posted by a TPN distributor that
describes the purpose and vision of TPN.
The vision of The People's Network is to form a global partnership,
creating an information passageway that offers knowledge from the
greatest minds in the world, in an ongoing supportive environment,
bringing awareness, purpose, principals and value to all, while
stimulating one's imagination and recognizing one's achievements. TPN
is more than just a conduit; it is also a movement that gets people
involved in the process of personal development. It is this unique
and empowering element that has enlisted the enthusiastic support of
the top motivators, educators, and personal development specialists in
the world. TPN gives to these great minds in a participatory
environment that enriches your life beyond your dreams! This venture
is heavily financed, supported, and endorsed by these top individuals,
corporations, and others.
Back in 1967 in his book "Grow Rich With Peace of Mind", Napoleon Hill
wrote, "Someday America will have its very own TV and radio station
devoted to just one thing: to teach people in their home, all the
essentials of personal achievement." TPN is committed to the
never-ending search for the best within you by providing the greatest
minds in the world such as Jim Rohn, Brian Tracy, Les Brown, Susan
Powter, and Dr. Denise Waitley just to name a few, to fulfill Napolean
Hill's prophecy. There are many more with this type of credibility
and recognizable achievements. (See currently faculty list below)
In the best selling book "Unlimited Wealth", Paul Z. Pilzer, a faculty
member of TPN states that the power in America is being redefined by
those involved in new technology, communication and distribution. The
Peoples Network is at the cutting edge of all three! The program is
professional, packed with credibility, well financed, and is based on
a totally unique and consumable concept. Tod Barnhart, a renown
financial expert, shows his suppport for TPN on the inside back cover
of his new book "The Five Rituals of Wealth".
TPN and our partners' vision is to build a broadcast network of
affiliates (individuals and businesses) who can use TPN's products and
services to enrich their minds, save money, and/or create wealth for
families. TPN has an experienced and successful management team and a
dedicated support team (including the partners) that is integrative
and prepared to fulfill TPN's vision. TPN is also one of the most
significant new opportunities to come along in quite some time. By
leveraging our collective resources and influence, you can organize
and position yourself to take full advantage of the potential profit
and influence TPN will generate in the marketplace. If you don't
believe it now, you will soon!
=================================================
TPN's Current Faculty/Partners (As of April 1995)
=================================================
Jeff Olson, Co-Founder, President and CEO
Eric Worre, Co-Founder and Executive Vice-President
Dr. Tony Alessander Richard & Linda Eyre Keith Klein
Jim Amos Major Garretta Lois Lafond
Denise Austin Michael Gerber Pino Luongo
Tod Barnhart Jeffrey Gitomer Francis X. Maguire
Les Brown Dr. Lillian Glass Larry North
Mark Bunting Dr. Lloyd Glauberman Tim Penny
Gary Cogill Ken Hamblin Paul Zane Pilzer
Cathy Lee Crosby Mark Victor Hanson Susan Powter
David D'Arcangelo Cathy Harris Jim Rohn
Roger Dawson Bruce & Kris Jenner Brian Tracy
Bonnie St. John Deane Eric Jensen Jerry Vass
Dr. Denis Waitley
Appendix A has information for contacting TPN.
20. Physical Health
Q. What are some ways to increase my physical health and energy?
A. Many approaches to increasing physical health are available. One
perspective on this subject that is popular in alt.self-improve is
a philosophy called Natural Hygiene. The most well-known book on
this topic is by Harvey and Marilyn Diamond called "Fit For Life".
This approach to health advocates a vegetarian diet, very few
dairy products, an emphasis on natural, unrefined, uncooked foods.
Another source of information on this approach is through Tony
Robbins' Living Health seminar. This is available on cassette
and is usually presented live as part of his Unlimited Power
Weekend seminar.
A number of newsgroups have discussions on this topic, such as:
sci.med, sci.med.nutrition, misc.fitness, rec.fitness,
alt.health.ayurveda, misc.health.alternative, misc.health.diabetes,
rec.food.veg, rec.food.veg.cooking.
Q. What are some methods for naturally improving eyesight?
A. There is a book written by Aldous Huxley called "The Art of Seeing".
This book describes the Bates Method for improving your eyesight.
Huxley wrote the book because it helped him to dramatically
increase his eyesight naturally. It is based around specific
exercises that can be performed to return the eye to what is
called "state of dynamic relaxation". The the eye returns to this
state it returns it's natural and perfect shape allowing perfect
vision to return.
21. Anthony Robbins
(Editor's Note: The following comments on Tony Robbins are based on
personal recollections of past discussion in the group and personal
experiences, additional contributions are as always more than
welcome).
Q. Who is Anthony Robbins?
A. Anthony Robbins is one of the most prolific self-improvement
personalities currently around. He is probably best known for
his infomercials pitching his 24 cassette self improvement program
called "Personal Power" (see the next question). He is the
author of two bestselling books, "Unlimited Power" and "Awaken
the Giant Within". He started his public speaking career giving
seminars with Harvey and Marilyn Diamond (see the section on
Physical Health). Soon they parted company and Tony began
offering seminars on a fairly new subject called Neuro-linguistic
Programming. After a very short training, he began to aggressively
promote himself at the "foremost NLP practitioner in the world".
For a short time he was a business partner with John Grinder who
helped invent NLP. He began going on television shows like Sally
Jesse Raphael and cure people of serious phobias right there on
the spot. Soon he was asked to write a book and put together a
series of tapes based on the live seminars he was giving all around
the United States. His infomercial soon followed, which made him
very famous. Tony is now involved in running at least 8 companies
from financial planning to a Fijiian resort to his self-improvement
seminar company. In recent years his schedule has reduced the
number of live seminars he does around the country, but he still
does an average of 5-6 seminars a month (see later question).
Q. What exactly does one learn from a Tony Robbins program?
A. Tony's programs vary tremendously and have a large scope. Tony's
material varies from changing your values and beliefs to managing
your emotional states. One simple technique he teaches is called
"Morning/Eveing Questions". The idea is that when you wake up in
the morning, you ask yourself questions that will put you into
a peak state and focus you on the positive, exciting, truly
motivating aspects of your life. For example you might ask,
"What am I really excited about in my life?" or "What am I really
grateful for in my life?" or "What could I accomplish today that
would really make life better for myself and those around me?"
Tony's philosophies focus on contribution and creating value
for others as an integral part of creating success for yourself.
If you create more value for those around you than anyone else and
do it with a sense of fun and enjoyment, how can you fail to be
happy and successful?
Q. Does the Personal Power tape program (as seen on TV) really work?
A. As anyone who reads alt.self-improve for very long, you will
find that there are many many Tony Robbins enthusiasts in the
group. This question is one of the most frequently asked. In
general when this question is raised, a wide variety of answers
are naturally given ranging from "Personal Power totally turned my
life around" to "It's a good program and I got a lot out of it."
to "it didn't help me very much." I've heard very few really
negative responses. In future versions of this FAQ, we will be
include specific comments from people. The program is fairly
costly ~$179. Success in this like anything depends very much
on one's commitment to follow through and apply what you learn.
Q. Is attending a live seminar worth the money?
A. Attending one of Tony Robbins live seminars, as almost any who
has been will tell you, is a fairly amazing experience. Tony is a
vibrant, energetic, and very entertaining speaker. His shortest
seminar lasts on the order of 10-12 hours (Strategic Influence,
cost ~$179) to the 9-Day Mastery Program (cost, ~$5000). His
seminars are very high energy and there can be anywhere from
250 - 3000 people attending a single seminar. In spite of the
large attendance Tony seems to make the seminars very personal and
interactive. Not everyone who goes feel that it changed their life
or that it was an amazing experience (especially those who shell out
$5000). General comments are usually very very positive and I
seriously doubt that Tony has lectured to any non-capacity crowds
in the past few years. I have heard several people say that the
Mastery program was not worth $5000. Most people seem to feel that
seminars such as "Unlimited Power Weekend" and "Strategic
Influence" are fun experiences if not wonderful investments.
For information on how to contact Tony Robbins' company see
Appendix A.
22. Sales and Negotiation
Q. I wonder if any of you know anything about using NLP and
learning negotiation skills, or just plain negotiation?
A. You have touched on a subject that is very important to me.
Negotiation and NLP are, IMHO, so closely linked that they almost
become one subject. The "ethical outcomes" and "win-win"
approaches that both require naturally complement each other. I
have done much training in negotiation, but am self trained in
NLP techniques, concentrating more on the results I can achieve,
than the technical reasons as to how it works.
The best, most effective negotiation techniques are those
explained in _Getting to Yes_ by Fry and Ury, and the follow-up
books by the same authors, who work with the Harvard Negotiation
Project. Simple guidelines, no "aren't I smart" techniques, and
an easy set of principles to remember. Because they are based on
relationships and long term outcomes, using NLP to build rapport
can only aid the process.
(From: imarks@cix.compulink.co.uk ("Ivor Marks"))
23. Scientology/Dianetics
Q. What is the Church of Scientology (Dianetics)?
A. The Church of Scientology (originally called Dianetics) was founded
by L. Ron Hubbard. The probable goal of someone in CoS is to
become a "clear". A "clear" is someone who is free of all
"engrams". An engram is a trace left by a traumatic experience
that limits your happiness. The major book on CoS is called
"Dianetics" by L. Ron Hubbard. For more information about
Dianetics and CoS, check out a separate newsgroup called,
alt.religion.scientology. It should also be mentioned as a word
of caution that many consider Scientology to be a cult and that
a number of ex-members report the Church using intimidation and
control tactics while they were members and after they left the
Church.
There is a Scientology Orientation Seminar which you can sign up
for at your local Church of Scientology (cost $15.00).
You can also call 1-800-334-LIFE for more information.
For information on the darker side of Scientology see the following
Web page.
http://www.mit.edu:8001/people/rnewman/scientology/home.html
24. Software Packages
Q. What are some software programs that aid in self-improvement?
A. One of the best selling software packages of all time was Mind
Prober, by Human Edge Software. I was quite surprised not to see
it mentioned in your list of self-improvement aids. Human Edge
is now out of business, but there are a few amazing software
packages currently out there that cover each of the areas you
have mentioned: learning and intelligence, motivation, and sales
and negotiation.
The best of these are grounded heavily in strongly validated
research in social and behavioral science. I know that Neuralytic
Systems of Redwood City has put out a brain-builder called IQ
smarts that assesses one's strengths in areas of Analytical
(Abstract/Symbolic), Creative (Lateral/Associative), and
Practical (Problem Solving/Memory) Intelligence. It then selects
a series of exercises that bring stronger areas to bear on weaker
ones.
I believe that Human Edge had also put out products called
Negotiation Advisor, Sales Advisor, and Motivation Advisor.
Whoever bought them out may still own the rights to these
packages. Those products generate a frightfully accurate
assessment of the personalities of both indivduals involved in
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