As I replied, the most important ‘secret’ is to know what you really want.

In other words: Know your outcome.

It’s the first step of the old USF (Ultimate Success Formula) or NSF (NLP Success Formula) – Know your outcome, Take massive action, Notice the results and Adjust until you get your outcome. It’s also one aspect of OPA (Outcome-focused, Purpose-driven, Action plan) that Tony Robbins advocates: Know your outcome, Connect with your purpose, and Take action.

And not just the surface of what you want, but your intention.

Nobody just wants to lose weight, or get married, or make more money. Instead, they want what they think they’ll get from having those outcomes and goals – to be more healthy or more attractive, to feel more security or love, to have more fun or adventure. Someone with intense focus on what they really want is immensely powerful because they align themselves behind that outcome in negotiations and in daily decisions, while being far more flexible in finding alternative ways to fulfill their intention and get what they’re after.

Without knowing your intention, it’s easy to get lost or fixated on obstacles. Connecting with your intentions, mission, values and purpose help you remember “why” you are doing something, so that when those obstacles arise, you can enjoy more resilience in overcoming whatever challenges come your way.

So as you prepare for the annual “New Year Resolutions” when you can review the year that has been and the year ahead, I’d encourage you to pause for a moment to reflect, and connect with your intention. And what you want that intention for – not “why” you want something, the reasons, explanations, stories and excuses, but specifically what you think it will give you.

And if you can focus on what you really want, you just might get it…

A few NLP techniques that are relevant here include: Grinder’s Outcome-Intention-Consequences, n-Step Reframe, Well-Formed Outcomes, Core Transformations, SCORE/ Emergent Discovery, Timelines, Outcome Accelerator Pattern…

I personally discovered NLP by picking up Tony’s Unlimited Power, a book that some consider to be something of a stylized version of an NLP training.

Earlier today, I found out that Tony has just launched his new website.
Something that I found as I explored it was that you can now take his Personal Strengths Profile free of charge.

It’ll take about half-an-hour to run through it, but I just did it and thought it was good enough to suggest that you consider it too. It has a bit of Disc, but also a very interesting values assessment.

FYI I (Dan) have just finished the Graduate Certificate of NLP, and been certified as a Trainer of New Code NLP. As the first person in China to complete this, I’m pretty pleased about it. The GradCertNLP was 40 days of training, roughly equivalent to an advanced Master Practitioner training. It was a big commitment in time and energy, but I am really pleased with the results.

We are looking to having the first weekend of our Master Practitioner training at the end of March. This will be a great adventure for us, taking up some advanced NLP patterns, NLP Modeling, language patterns and an in-depth exploration of virtual questions, values and the core of what drives us. I am contemplating offering a Practitioner of New Code NLP training but we haven’t set any dates yet.

This Sunday afternoon, please join us to explore personal change through The 7 Master Steps for Lasting Change with Dan Smith.

These seven steps provide a structure within which we can apply the skills, strategies and techniques of NLP when working with ourselves or others to create change. It’s simple enough for you to love it yet comprehensive enough for you to use it.

And here’s a flyer you can download…