Chapter 11: Working with the Logical Levels 183
Behaviour
Your behaviour is all about what you say and do – what you consciously get
up to. In NLP terms, behaviour refers to what you think about as well as your
actions. NLP also points out that all your behaviour is aimed at a purpose,
and has a positive intention for you.Change at the behavioural level is easy to make when you have a real sense
of purpose, and it fits with your sense of identity and your beliefs and values.Ask yourself the following behaviour questions when you think that you may
need to change your behaviours in order to get the results you want:✓ Do your behaviours support your goals?
✓ Do they fit with your sense of who you are?
✓ What do you do that makes life interesting and fun?
✓ What do you find yourself saying habitually? Can you detect
any patterns?
✓ What do you notice about other people’s words and sayings?
✓ How aware are you of people’s behaviour – for example, how they walk,
the tone of their voice, and their smile?
✓ What colour changes do you observe in people as they talk?
✓ How does your breathing change, and when?
✓ What body language do you adopt in different circumstances?
✓ Does the sound of your voice fit consistently with what you’re saying?
Maximising effective behaviours
In order to create positive change, developing the behaviours and habits
that serve you well is a good idea. Often, small changes have an incremental
effect. If you’re slimming to fit into a new outfit, eating a healthy salad each
day in place of your sandwiches is a valuable habit to cultivate. In the same
way, if you’re trying to improve your meetings at work, good behaviour for a
team would be to set clear beginning and end times.When Manuela wanted to drop a dress size in weight for her daughter’s wed-
ding day, she realised that she had to take her dieting seriously. She worked
with a nutritionist who taught her about adapting her diet and gave her a
record sheet to write down everything she ate, the supplements she took, and
the exercise regime. She also gave Manuela a notebook to make a daily note of
everything that had gone well in her day and introduced her to a motivational
fitness trainer. This daily regime kept Manuela on track to regain her slim
figure and have wedding photos that she’s delighted to look at.