a natural choice. We already have these alternative choices in
our repertoire. We just need to note when we are behaving in
a way that is in line with how we want to be and mark it out
(anchor it) so that we can access it when we choose.A delegate on one of my courses who had lived a fairly
depressed life and was often in a down state said, “If there is
one thing that I have learned with NLP it is that if I ever
experience a resourceful state, anchor the bugger!”Before I started to write this morning, in my head I saw the title
of the chapter I was going to work on. I pictured any writing I
had done to date on this subject. I asked myself what was
important to me about this subject right now in my life and how
I was using this topic for myself today. I remembered images of
situations where I had used this topic to make a difference for
myself and I also began to imagine (by picturing them)
situations that might occur during the day that would be helped
by my paying attention to this theme. I began to feel associated
and experienced a sense of satisfaction. As I allowed that to
develop, it became a feeling of eager anticipation of what I
could say when I sat down to write. I started to create some of
the sentences and examples I would use.The above is a strategy.Yesterday I was feeling tired. My husband used what I
considered to be an emotive word in something he said to me.
It was an emotive word because for me it was an anchor for
feelings of inadequacy. I heard the word and started to repeat
what he said to me over and over in my mind. I told myself that
he “should” not have said that and began to imagine ways in
which I make a point to him in conversation. I imagined him
avoiding this indirect feedback and started to feel annoyed. I
remembered (by picturing them) situations in the past (that
didn’t involve him at all) in which I had had similar feelings. The
feelings intensified. He spoke to me again. I snapped back.176 NLP AT WORK