Hi Paul,

Answering the second question first the best way of getting your client into a particular state is by going into into yourself. Maybe after pacing your client a bit first (acknowledging the state thats he's in to start with to get rapport.) A bit of pace him (or her) and then leadhin into the stare you want.

Most ways of working (playing) with your own state involve:

(and remember while alive we will continually change states - which is useful as we have access to different resources when we're in different strates.)

Physiology and breathing

How you move and hold your body, how you breath and speak - including things like voice tone all impact state.

Memories and imagination

When you remember a good (or bad) memory you're likely to bring back the state you were in when you had that memory into the present. Hence if you get someone to genuinly remember a time they felt good, they will tend to feel good now.

And if you can't remember a time you felt good (or whatever) you can always imagine what would have to be there for you to feel good. And when you do it right you'll get the feeling.

Good states to be in

What are useful states to be in? Depends on the context. I like the idea that being able to access any mix of 'playfullness' fierceness and tenderness' at anytime is usefull.

Questions

Questions are useful because they can set people in a direction to access useful states. Asking (in the right voice tone) what helps you feel motivated - in answering the question genuinly you're likely to access the state.

More to come..

__________________
Michael
01908 506563
NLP Training: PPI Business NLP Ltd