Invest in Laughter

As you start to become more influential an NLP Performance Coach will work with you to increase your flexibility by using humour and making people laugh and create new choices.

So what does this mean in practice?

Have you ever noticed how "stand-up" comedians always seem to have the "right" comeback at the right time and are able to be "funny" spontaneously?

Compare this to saying to yourself a few hours after a discussion with a colleague or client "If only I'd said..." as "the right thing to say" suddenly springs to mind way too late. One way to learn how to become more flexible in the moment is by practising ambiguity.

Start by writing out 20 good examples of the four patterns of ambiguity that are used frequently in creating laughter.

Start by writing out 20 good examples of the four patterns of ambiguity that are used frequently in creating laughter:

The first pattern uses words which sound similar even though they have different meanings. There are some great examples in Monkey Business with the Marx Brothers where Groucho says : "You're  a woman who's been getting nothing but dirty breaks" "Well, we can clean and tighten your brakes, but you'll have to stay in the garage all night.".

The second pattern uses a word ending in -ing followed by a word ending in -s, like one of my favourites from George Carlin "Beware of Aggravating Speakers".

The third pattern uses a word ending in -ing followed by a word ending in -s then "and" and a second word ending in -s, like "We are reigning cats and dogs".

The fourth pattern uses a word to end one sentence and start another without pausing which creates long sentences that sound just like "normal" conversations, only funnier :0)

Putting all these together you get a great way to have fun in negotiating  : "I ask myself at the rising sun in the morning how clearly do you see the raise that some what reflects my developing  ideas and achievements and show you my true worth to your achieving success."

Have fun :0)

Listen out for these patterns and play with them some more and we'll put  them to good use next time.