Leading with NLP

Change and Challenge 185

also needed guidance on how to conduct the interviews. We
designed a series of questions they could use to elicit good
information from the participants – their goals, values, pre-
sent difficulties, the resources they needed and any possible
advantages they saw in the present situation. What had been
missing was a clear second position from the participants.
The third area was leadership. Sustainable change needs
leadership. UNIDO facilitators needed to model leadership
skills and the workshop participants needed leadership skills
to drive the initiative on their own and continue the changes
that the workshop had started. They needed to develop a vi-
sion. The UNIDO workshop had to spend more time
helping them anticipate the future, mentally rehearsing,
thinking of the possible problems and exploring solutions in
advance – a process called ‘future pacing’ in NLP. Once the
workshop was over, UNIDO had to keep the connection alive
to encourage and support the initial enthusiasm that
brought them to the workshop. We even looked at holding
three separate workshops, one for the target beneficiaries on
their own (in this case small business entrepreneurs), an-
other with the other stakeholders and a third for all the
stakeholders, specifically to identify areas where external
help was needed.
When we looked at the whole system over time, helping
the participants develop as leaders was the area with the
most potential for change.

Participation

Selection

Expectations

Interiews

Commitment

Sustainable change

Leadership

Workshop

1. What do you want?


2. What is the present situation?


3. How can you move towards what you want?