Chapter 8
Chapter 8: Understanding to Be Understood: Meta Programs
Meta Programs
In This Chapter
▶ Discovering meta programs – your unconscious mental filters
▶ Eliciting other people’s meta programs
▶ Modelling the personality traits of people you admire
I
n 1956, George Miller carried out research on the millions of bits of data
that bombard the senses of humans every second. He discovered that the
conscious mind can handle only between five and nine pieces of information
at any one time, which means that an awful lot of information is filtered out.Meta programs are some of these unconscious filters that direct what you pay
attention to, the way you process any information you receive, and how you
then communicate it.When you want to build rapport with someone quickly and you’re forearmed,
you may choose to dress, behave, or at least speak like that person. And by
the latter we don’t mean that you mimic someone’s accent, but instead that
you use the person’s vocabulary. When you begin to hear other people’s
meta programs, you have the choice of using the same words and phrases as
the person with whom you’re interacting. Because people use meta programs
mostly unconsciously, when you match their meta programs, what you say
has the added dimension of communicating with their unconscious mind
simultaneously with their conscious mind.In this chapter we introduce you to seven meta programs that help you to
communicate more effectively and more quickly; and as you experience the
benefits of better communication, we hope that you’re motivated to discover
more about other meta programs.