The Renewal Times
August 2003.ISSN 1705-3773 The Renewal Times
The Renewal Times is a publication of Renewal Technologies Inc. and is edited by Roger Ellerton.
This newsletter may be republished without permission, provided it is reproduced in its entirety and provided copyright is acknowledged. To reproduce sections of the newsletter, please contact Renewal Technologies Inc. at info@renewal.ca.
Please forward this newsletter to friends and colleagues. To become a subscriber or to view previous editions of this newsletter, please visit www.renewal.ca/newsletter.htm.
Please note: The material in this newsletter is presented for information only. It is not a substitute for medical, psychological or professional advice. Please consult a qualified professional.
Included in this newsletter:
- Thought for the day
- Health Notes
- Upcoming Seminars
- Feature Article
- Humour
- More Information
******************
Thought for the Day
******************
Often the difference between a successful man and a failure is not one’s better abilities or ideas,
But the courage that one has to bet on his ideas, to take a calculated risk - and to act.
Maxwell Maltz
************
Health Notes
************
Self-Esteem
One of the keys to a long and lasting relationship with your partner may be learning to like yourself.
In a study of couples, research revealed that partners with high self-esteem were likely to deal with transient difficulties in the relationship in a way that strengthened the bond of the couple. However, people with low self-esteem were more likely to view tensions as evidence of a weakening attachment.When rejection stings: how self-esteem constrains relationship-enhancement processes. Murray, S. L., Rose, P., Bellavia, G. M., Holmes, J. G., Kusche, A. G., Journal of Personal and Social Psychology 2002 Sep;83(3):556-73.
--
Olive Oil
A little bit of oil may be all you need to keep your memory working smoothly.
An Italian study recently revealed a link between olive oil intake and cognitive function. In the study, elderly people whose diets included ample amounts of monounsaturated fatty acids, such as olive oil, had a lower incidence of age-related cognitive decline compared to elderly people who consumed very little monounsaturated fat.
High monounsaturated fatty acids intake protects against age-related cognitive decline. Solfrizzi, V., Panza, F., Torres, F., Mastroianni, F., Del Parigi, A., Venezia, A., Capurso, A., Neurology 1999 May 12;52(8):1563-1569.
*****************************
Upcoming Seminars / Workshops
*****************************
NLP Practitioner Training
Nov. 14 - 16, 21 - 23, Dec. 5 - 7
NLP Practitioner Training
Feb. 6 - 8, 20 - 22, 27 - 29
NLP Master Practitioner Training -- Take your NLP knowledge and abilities to the next level!
March 19 - 21, April 2 - 4, 23 - 25, May 14 - 16, 28 - 30
*************
Feature Article
*************
This article may be reproduced, provided it is reproduced in full, including author bio and a reference to Renewal Technologies' website (www.renewal.ca).
NLP Logical Levels
By Roger Ellerton Phd, ISP, CMC, Renewal Technologies Inc. www.renewal.ca
The NLP logical levels (also known as the logical levels of change, the logical levels of thinking and the neurological levels) are very useful for assisting with or understanding change from an individual, social or organization point of view. They were developed by Robert Dilts and are based on the "neurological levels" proposed by anthropologist Gregory Batson.
Six Logical Levels
Level |
Questions corresponding to logical levels |
Spirituality/Purpose |
Who else? This can be viewed as your connection to a larger system. If you are an individual or company providing NLP related services, what impact are you having within your community, where you live and work, the NLP community, your culture and the culture of others, … ? |
Identity/Mission |
Who? Who are you as an individual or company? What role do you play to achieve your purpose? How do you think of yourself as a person/organization – i.e. I am a successful person. |
Beliefs and Values |
Why? Why do you do something? What do you believe in or value? As an individual, you may believe you can do anything you choose. Or you may value honesty. From a company perspective, the company may value good customer service and/or the well-being of staff. |
Capabilities/Strategies |
How? How do you go about doing things? As an individual or company, what are your capabilities, skills, strategies or action plans? |
Behaviours |
What? What are your behaviours? |
Environment |
Where? When? With Whom? Where, when and with whom do you display your behaviours? What are the external influences on you? |
An Example:
To gain an appreciation of how these logical levels work, assume it is 9:00 am and I am at my place of work (environment).
If I don't want to be there, then I must change my behaviour. Some possible choices are: I could walk out. I could do cartwheels over to and out the door. I could start yelling and screaming – with the hope someone would take me out of the building. Etc.
The behaviour I select depends on my capabilities/strategies. If I am capable of performing cartwheels, then this is certainly a possibility. On the other hand, my strategy may be to have someone help me to leave (i.e. by yelling and screaming). Or, if I really don't want to work there and need some source of income, my strategy might be to become ill so that I have a medical excuse and can go on long-term disability – know anyone who has done this – consciously or unconsciously?
The capability/strategy I choose will depend on my beliefs and values. If I believe that I can easily get another job to support my family, then becoming ill is not a choice for me.
My beliefs and values are determined by my identity. If I see myself as a successful person, then it is very possible that I would hold the belief that I can easily get another job or even create a business of my own.
My identity is dependent on my purpose in life – the impact that I wish to have on my community, etc.
Sustainable Change
Making a change at a lower level (i.e. environment -- moving to a new city) may, but not necessarily, affect an upper level. However, a change at an upper level (i.e. belief) will have a distinct impact on the levels below it, as illustrated in the above example.
Using Logical Levels to Explain/Understand Change
The above leads to a number of interesting explanations/discoveries:
1. Short-term vs. long-term change: Sometimes people find that NLP techniques worked great at changing an unwanted behaviour for a short period of time, and eventually the unwanted behaviour returned. How can this be? If the new behaviour was not in alignment with the person's beliefs and values or identity, the higher level would override the lower level.
For change at the behaviour level to be long-term, the desired behaviour change must either be in alignment with the higher levels or the change must take place at a high level i.e. identity.
2. Organizational change: Have you ever been involved in change within an organization? What are some of the more common change activities?
How about a new organization chart? Or maybe change the physical layout of the offices. This is change at the level of environment. Do you think it will be long-lasting? Only if the change is in alignment with the higher levels.
Or maybe staff are told to perform in a different way (behaviour) without receiving the necessary training (capability/strategy). Unfortunately, this happens far too often. When money becomes tight, the first thing cut is the training budget! Again the change will most likely not be long-lasting.
3. Health/Career: Suppose you have a goal for yourself (health, career, …) and it is not in alignment with one of the higher levels. How successful do you think you will be in achieving your goal?
4. "The problems of today can only be solved at a higher level of thinking than that which created them" – Albert Einstein: I have heard many people refer to this quote and few can explain how you can actually do it (i.e. move to a higher level of thinking). Using logical levels, you can easily explain it. For example, if there is a problem at the behavioural level, to solve it we must move to at least the capability/strategy level.
NLP can assist you in making change at the higher levels (beliefs and values, identity and spirituality/purpose) or can help you to ensure that your goals are aligned at all levels. Once this happens, your goals in life often become clear and obtained effortlessly.
Other uses of the logical levels and an exercise to assist you with achieving personal congruence – all of the levels are in alignment– are presented in the article, NLP Logical Levels, Part II.
And NLP is Much more than that!
Author: Roger Ellerton is a certified NLP trainer, certified management consultant and the founder and managing partner of Renewal Technologies. The above article is based on his book Live Your Dreams Let Reality Catch Up: NLP and Common Sense for Coaches, Managers and You.
*******
Humour
*******
Engineers
During the heat of the space race in the 1960's, NASA decided it needed a ball point pen to write in the zero gravity confines of its space capsules.
After considerable research and development, the Astronaut Pen was developed at a cost of $1 million. The pen worked and also enjoyed some modest success as a novelty item back here on earth.
The Soviet Union, faced with the same problem, used a pencil.
--
Three freshman engineering students were sitting around talking between classes, when one brought up the question of who designed the human body.
One of the students insisted that the human body must have been designed by an electrical engineer because of the perfection of the nerves and synapses.
Another disagreed, and exclaimed that it had to have been a mechanical engineer who designed the human body. The system of levers and pullies is ingenious.
"No," the third student said "your both wrong. The human body was designed by an architect. Who else but an architect would have put a toxic waste line through a recreation area?"
****************
More Information
****************
For more information, please visit our website or contact us at 613 692-1424 or info@renewal.ca
Copyright © 2003, Renewal Technologies Inc. All rights reserved.
Renewal Technologies Inc.
5423 North Drive
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada K4M 1G5
www.renewal.ca
info@renewal.ca
613) 692-1424
(613) 692-1790 Fax
