Author: nlpnowcom

We have in a previous article (click to read) learned what is an anchor, and that they are stimulus that triggers or fires via our representational systems, a response.

An anchor can be set by a intense emotional experience, or by a repetitive experience.

An anchor can be set with or without intention by ones self or on others.

An anchor can give a good response, eg confidence, self esteem, or a negative response, eg fears or phobias.

To overcome a certain behaviour, it will be found that perhaps the client could achieve that with a strong state like confidence, relaxation, a “I don’t care attitude”, or any other state, but they cannot get that state when needed.

This is where anchors can be employed.

The first requirement is for the practitioner, or ones self, to find the state or states that would be needed to overcome the problem. It is good if three (3) states, eg happiness, relaxation, confidence, are found, but not necessary.

Establish if these states have ever been experienced before. If the state has not been experienced, then establish what it would be like to have that state.

Establish a Kinesthetic anchor. It is suggested that the touching of the tip of the thumb and one of the remaining four fingers off the same hand be used, therefore there can be four anchors on one hand, and four on the other.

This will be the anchor that will capture the state, and when fired with intention, the brain will trigger the response wanted.

If the anchor being set is by an NLP Practitioner on a client, then the NLP Practitioner should establish an anchor that they can use, be it a Visual (seeing), Auditory (voice or sound), Kinesthetic (touch), Olfactory (smell), and Gustatory (taste) anchor. It is suggested that precise point on the clients shoulder be used.

The NLP Practitioner’s anchor will be used the enhance the client’s experience, to reinforce and build-up the state to be anchored so that the NLP Practitioner has an anchor they can fire only during the process.

Ask the client to close their eyes and recall a time when they had such an experience, or to imagine what it would be like.

Ask them to :-

        “See what they saw, hear what they heard, and feel what they felt.”

At this time, do not ask the client to fire or to touch their two fingers, wait until they experience a good strong state.

The NLP Practitioner should watch for any signal which would indicate that the client is experiencing any shift towards the state wanted, and as this is seen, a light touch to the anchor on the shoulder be made.

Continue building the client’s experience by doubling the V,A,K,o,g, spreading them around the whole body.

When it is seen that the client is reaching (just before the peak) a strong state, ask them to “anchor the state” by touching their two fingers together, and at any time in the future they need this state, all they have to do is to touch these two fingers together.

This process for each of the states or anchors should be repeated three (3) times, to establish a good memory or strong neural pathway.

An anchor in NLP, is a term we use to set a state, an action or memory, that can be triggered or fired as required, so that state, action or memory will be recalled and used. It is a mood or state that can be recalled in response to a stimulus.

The earliest form of anchors can be attributed the work of the Russian scientist Ivan Pavlov who in the late 1800’s, experimented in what he called, “conditional reflex” (“условный рефлекс”). 

Pavlov was experimenting with dogs, and their digestive systems, and whilst undergoing this research, found that the dogs had involuntary automatic reflexes due to certain conditioning, that is to say, that when conditioned with various stimulus, including the ringing of a bell, and that food would be given, then every time that stimulus was fired there would be an involuntary reflex, that is to say the dogs would saliva, even if no food was given.

After Pavlov’s work, Carl Jung, Bertrand Russell, William Sargant and John B. Watson among others, continued furthering more research into conditioning.     

In NLP the “P” stands for Programming. It is how the mind is programmed to do certain actions in response to triggers or some stimulus, often involuntary and unconsciously. The stimulus that fires the response is called an anchor.

Anchors are learned, and often takes a number of conditioning actions to make them strong, and when working with clients I will normally run the anchors, three (3) times.

A stimulus can be in any of the five (5)  modalities, VAKOG, or rep systems, being Visual (seeing), Auditory (hearing and speech), Kinesthetic (touch, feelings, both internal and external), Olfactory (smell), and Gustatory (taste).   

Examples of Anchors.

Visual

You are walking down the main street in any major town, and you see a big red plastic shop sign, with one letter in yellow on it, what would it mean?

MacDonald’s?          This is a visual anchor, which will even, depending on your likes or dislikes or preferences towards their food, make your mouth saliva or make you feel sick.

Your national flag or other’s national flags. You instantly recognise your own flag, and know the countries of some of the others.

Auditory

As you are listening to the radio and you hear a certain sound being played,  (click to play), what does it remind you of? Perhaps a trip to London, or that it is time to listen to the news?
 
If you hear your name calling, like your mother’s, you will respond to it. When my mother called my name, depending on the tonality, would depend on my response, run to her if it was a happy high voice, or run away if it was a low, stern voice.
Kinesthetic

Have you ever been touched by someone, a friend, a loved one, a baby, an enemy, and had a certain feeling, may-be butterflies in the tummy? Or perhaps you have cuddled up to your duvet and felt so comfortable?

Olfactory

Walking down the main shopping street, in the shopping mall or supermarket, and you smell fresh baked bread? What do you feel? Hunger? Perhaps the urge to buy a loaf of bread?

Perhaps it is the smell of a hospital or dentist which can spread fear in some people

Gustatory

You eat a certain food or meal that you have not eaten for a long time, a meal that perhaps you eat on holiday, where does your mind, your memories go too?

The taste of a chocolate cake brings happiness to many people, like me.

These are all examples of how our representation systems use anchors to do certain actions or bring back memories, in response to triggers or some stimulus.

Not everyone will have the same anchors. A certain restaurant, a favourite restaurant, will bring happy romantic memories to some, because they have been their with a loved one. Yet, the same restaurant will be disliked by others, as they have had a bad experience, may be the waiters did not give good service, or the food was bad on that one occasion, or they argued with their loved one.

Phobias and fears are set by anchors, perhaps by one intense emotional experience, or a conditioned or by repeating, reoccuring exposure (3 times) can set-up a lifetime problem.

Note:- Phobias and fears can be removed easily, call for an appointment or read blog here or visit www.c4phobias.com

Anchors are around us all day, every day, through music, advertising, objects, people, sight, sounds, tastes, and we do not pay attention to them, but respond to each and everyone.

We can set-up anchors with intention in ourselves and others, to change fears and phobias, to give confidence or relaxation.

See how to set anchors with NLP.

We all have internal thoughts about what we have done, what we are doing and will be doing, and these thoughts will use the five (5) modalities, five (5) senses or representational systems, of V,A,K,O,G, being :-

                Visual (seeing), 
                Auditory (hearing and speech), 
                Kinesthetic (touch, feelings, both internal and external), 
                Olfactory (smell), 
                Gustatory (taste).

We experience our world by internalising or thinking about about that experience.
 
Those thoughts could be associated, by running that experience as if we were/are/will be actually doing that experience.

Alternatively, we may be thinking about the experience, and it is as if they are watching ourselves doing that activity, this is called disassociated.

If we describe how we eat in a restaurant, and talk about the type of food, the layout of the table, the taste of the wine, as if we are experiencing it now, as if we are physically doing eating, looking through our own eyes, feeling and tasting the food, we are associated into the experience.

If we describe how we eat in a restaurant, and describe the experience as if we are looking at ourselves from a distance, from another’s point of view, then we are disassociated from the experience.

The person can have only one experience, associated or disassociated.