Social Engineering - Christopher Hadnagy [76]
Instead the following sections break NLP down into a few parts. Up next is a very brief history of NLP, which can help you to understand that its roots are not with street magicians; instead, it has deep psychological roots.
The History of Neurolinguistic Programming
Neurolinguistic programming (NLP) was developed in the 1970s by Richard Bandler and John Grinder with the guidance of Gregory Bateson. Its roots came from Bandler and Grinder’s research into some of the most successful therapists of their time.
From this initial research they developed the “code” concepts of NLP. This early research led to the development of a meta-model, which recognizes the use of language patterns to influence change.
Both Bandler and Grinder were students at the University of California and used the principles of their research to develop a therapy model called the meta-model. After writing a few books based on this model they began to refine the core principles that would become what we call NLP today. This included things like anchoring, swish pattern, reframing, belief change, nesting loops, chaining states, and submodalities applications.
After graduating with degrees in psychology, Bandler and Grinder began hosting seminars and practice groups, which served as places for them to practice and test their newly discovered patterns while allowing them to transfer the skills to the participants. During this period, a creative group of students and psychotherapists who formed around Grinder and Bandler made valuable contributions to NLP, helping refine NLP even more.
In the recent years, NLP became the new buzzword again for managers, driving rapid growth of trainers, classes, and experts. Without any regulating body, the field grew as everybody wanted to learn to control others, lie without getting caught, or solve all their psychological problems. Practitioners were not licensed, so each group taught its own form and concept of NLP and issued its own certification as experts. All of this is what led to NLP being viewed somewhat unfavorably.
Despite its rocky history, the core foundation of NLP can enhance your abilities as a social engineer. The next section discusses some of the core codes of NLP so you can analyze them more deeply.
Codes of Neurolinguistic Programming
In the early 1970s NLP had a code comprised of the collective body of learning and investigation that generated the first books and the term neurolinguistic programming. As time went on John Grinder and others have continued to contribute to the field of NLP. The “new code of NLP” is an ethical and aesthetic framework for NLP development.
New Code of NLP
NLP’s original ideas were born in the 1970s. As time passed, John Grinder began to realize that much of the old code must change to be brought into modern times. He began working with Gregory Bateson and Judith DeLozier and produced the “new code” that focused more on what the person thinks or believes will happen and changing that belief. Learning techniques for expanding your perceptions, overcoming old thought patterns, and changing habits all help in self-change.
The new code focuses on the key concepts of states, conscious/unconscious relationships, and perceptual filters, all of these pointing to states of your mind and your perception of those mental states. These new concepts are meant to move NLP forward and help practitioners think about it in new ways. Many of the basic tenets from the new code are being taught now as part of the standard NLP courseware. This new code is best understood by reading Turtles All the Way Down by Grinder and DeLozier. It’s compiled from their seminar “Prerequisites to Personal Genius.”
In essence, the new code states that to make a change the client must involve their unconscious mind, the new behavior must satisfy their original