NEURO-SEMANTICS AND NEURO-SEMANTICISTS

Another brand new year has arrived and with that another set of Meta-Reflections for this egroup that we call “Neurons.” For four years now I have written an article each week to reflect on some aspect of Neuro-Semantics, NLP, Meta-Coaching, and/or Self-Actualization. You can find the previous years of these Meta-Reflections at www.neurosemantics.com.

And why? Why am I doing this? What are these posts on this egroup all about? Simple, they are to describe what Neuro-Semantics is, how it is similar-and-different from NLP, how it takes NLP to a higher level ethically, theoretically, and practically, why this is important, and to provide an idea of how Neuro-Semantics can be applied.

In terms of application, for those who are licensed under the ISNS, there are more specific egroups— I write a Meta-Coach Reflection each Wednesday and along with Colin Cox and Omar Salom, I write a Trainers’ Reflection each Tuesday. The design is to provide ongoing support, new ideas, and community. And as far as I know, The International Society Neuro- Semantics (ISNS) is the only NLP-based community that provides this level of ongoing support.

What is Neuro-Semantics? It is a positive, strength-based psychology designed to model the highest and best in human nature in order to transfer it to our everyday lives. That explains why our tag-line under the logo is Actualizing Excellence.

What else is Neuro-Semantics? It is the exploration of meaning (semantics) and how we humans as meaning-makers make meaning. Exploring the structure of meaning and how we construct, construe, and interpret the events of life endowing them with meaning, Neuro-Semantics focuses on expanding a person’s ability detect meaning frames, the processes of meaning-making, quality controlling meanings, enriching limiting meaning, suspending dis-empowering meanings, and taking charge of one’s meaning-making instinct.

What are the sources of Neuro-Semantics? Several. Neuro-Linguistic Programming, General Semantics, Bateson’s Anthropology, Self-Actualization or Humanistic Psychology, Cognitive Linguistics, Cognitive Psychology, Developmental Psychology, Constructionism Philosophy.

What are the applications of Neuro-Semantics? Lots. In fact, Neuro-Semantics applies to every aspect of human experience. That’s because the meanings you create are the meanings you live. Your experiences are functions of your meanings, so every experience that you find limiting, dysfunctional, ineffective, painful, or undesirable exists as it does due to the meanings you give

it. And every experience makes sense, it makes psycho-logical sense within your structures (systems) of meaning. However you framed the experience is how you experience it. That’s why we say, you are never the problem, the frame is the problem. And that why we focus on the skills that make us competent to enable you to identify, quality control, and transform the frame so that it gives you more quality experiences.

What do Neuro-Semanticists do? Chiefly, they are change-agents. As modelers of experiences, detectors of meanings, and framers and re-framers of meanings, they teach, train, coach, and facilitate change. When you contact a trained Neuro-Semanticist, you have someone who can help you with your frames, someone who can empower you to win the inner game. And, of course, when you win the inner game, then winning the outer game becomes a cinch! You can now win the game of being a great lover, mastering fear, becoming fit and slim, becoming a business expert (to quote the name of four Neuro-Semantic books). You can also win the game of learning, leading, coaching, writing, being resilient, mastering your emotions (to mention the theme of a few of our key trainings).

How can Neuro-Semantics help you? If you are reactive and have “buttons” that people or events can push and “get you,” rattle your cage, and trigger a reactive response in you, then these semantic reactions “have” you instead of you “having” (choosing) them. So if you want to change that, a Neuro-Semanticist can help you detect your meaning frames that set up the structure of this semantic reaction and provide you patterns for changing it.

If you have semantically over-loaded something— given something too much meaning— so that it controls you, and you want to change that, then a Neuro-Semanticist can facilitate your discovery of how you have created that structure. If you have over-loaded food so that you eat for psychological reasons, you can change that. Then winning the fit and slim game will become a piece of cake!

If you have semantically over-loaded dysfluency and given “speech” that does flow easily limiting meanings like “I am inadequate,” “Others will reject me,” “My future is doomed,” then you will probably develop a semantic reaction such a “trying hard not to be dysfluent” which as a “command negation” will make it much worse. The result will be stuttering and blocking. Then using your self-reflexive mind, you will jump logical levels and set even more limiting frames about the stuttering that will lock it in. Then live in that distressful state for a period of months or years and your meaning frames that govern this will drop out of conscious awareness and become embodied. And because this creates the semantic reaction of fear, sense of threat and danger, it will become a phobia in your throat and breathing. The problem is not you. The problem is your frame. [Dr. Bob Bodenhamer has detailed all of this in Mastering Blocking and Stuttering, a very powerful Neuro-Semantic book].

What can a Neuro-Semanticist do or what can Neuro-Semantics do about all of this? Lots! That’s because the problem is always the frame, never the person, and every semantic reaction makes sense— to the meaning-system out of which it comes. All we need to do is find the frame and then invite a choice— will you keep how you are currently structuring your meanings

or not? It’s that simple; it’s that profound.

Can you have an empower Neuro-Semantic year? Yes, you can! And I hope you will. If you are new to this newsletter, you can find over 5,000 pages of information about Neuro-Semantics on the basic website (www.neurosemantics.com). That’s the equivalent of 15 full-size books! And it is all free! If you want more, there are approximately 50 books on Neuro-Semantics and increasingly more by various Neuro-Semanticists around the world and in numerous languages.

So as 2011 begins, may you have a great transformational Neuro-Semantic year! May you have a year of transformative change and growth so that you unleash your real self, that you unleash more of your potentials, and that you actualize your highest visions and best performances!