6 As soon as the intensity of the feelings begins to diminish
(again, you need to calibrate them to establish when this
occurs), stop applying the anchor and bring them back to
the present. You can repeat these steps a few times if you
want to ensure that the anchor and the state are associated.
7Test by applying (firing) the anchor. If the anchor works you
will see the person reproduce all the external behaviors of
the state once again. If this doesn't happen, go back and
repeat the process, checking for full association, intensity of
the experience, and accuracy of the anchor.
8 Now test the anchor in a future situation. Ask the other
person to identify a future situation in which they want to
have the anchored state. Ask them to imagine that future
situation and as they do that fire the anchor. Watch what
happens. If the anchor works you will see them manifest the
same external responses to the anchor in this future
situation. Eventually they will be able to think of the future
situation and get the state automatically without having to
fire the anchor.
You are anchoring other people all the time. The question is,
are you anchoring them in resourceful or unresourceful ways?
In a company for which I worked some years ago, there was a
team meeting every Friday afternoon. This unfortunately was
when most of the team felt at their most tired, but it was the only
time we could all get together. Naturally, most of the team
wanted to make decisions quickly so that we could leave early
and go home. Harry, one of the team members, often had very
creative and constructive ideas. However, when he started to
speak, he would raise a difficulty with what had just been
discussed. This was a consistent pattern for him. The result was
that virtually every time he opened his mouth the rest of the team
seemed to groan inwardly and usually ignored or attempted to
quash the point he was making. Harry had effectively anchored
this response just by opening his mouth!
TAP INTO YOUR INNER POTENTIAL: ANCHORING 197