NLP Business Masterclass

Rating:
Summary: I was hoping for more from Prentice Hall ! :(
Review: Cannot these concepts be presented in plain English rather than convoluted jargon? If you, like me, have been looking for a book that will bring NLP skills to the real world, you've probably noticed that 90% of the titles are published by "Meta Publications" or "Metamorphus" or "Crown House" publishers - all seemingly established by nlp trainers. The usual approach of the books is to present transcripts of training seminars (with commentary annotations if you're lucky). At least this book ATTEMPTS something more than that.

Unfortunately, it still requires that you steep yourself in the whole language of "meta-" this and "meta-" that and try to wrap your thinking about business situations in that quagmire. If I had not already worked my way through O'Connor & Seymour's "Introducing NLP", I would have given up on this book after a few chapters.

Even more aggravating is the shallowness of the material once you learn the jargon. The book jacket promises to help you "get the best from your teams, motivate people, developed committed responsible staff, develop leadership." OK - so who doesn't? What it offers is little more than management principles you've been learning since day one. If nlp has the potential to "influence success and change" in corporate environments, it's going to take something beyond this item to achieve it.

In the introduction Molden says one of his favorite books is Peter Brook's "The Empty Space." I think I get the joke now: Although every page of Molden's book is covered with words, the effect is to provide us with Empty Space on which we are to imagine all the "Magic" and "Ultimate Human Potential" that nlp is supposed to offer. Potential? Potential to continue buying nlp books until I give in and attend the "Master Trainers' " seminars and be initiated as a High Priest with secret handshake and jargon password? Does that work for you? Ah, then perhaps you'll want this book.

Despite the praise of Don Mitchell (who rates all positive-thinking books with five stars) and George Zee (who loves EVERY badly edited nlp book ever printed): CAVEAT EMPTOR. If you are a management professional who wants to determine whether nlp holds promise for more effective corporate functioning... don't hold your breath looking for it here. Struggle through the jargon & amorphous conceptual landscape of O'Connor & Seymour first; then you'll be better equipped to evaluate the inflated claims for "the magic of nlp."

Rating:
Summary: I was hoping for more from Prentice Hall ! :(
Review: Cannot these concepts be presented in plain English rather than convoluted jargon? If you, like me, have been looking for a book that will bring NLP skills to the real world, you've probably noticed that 90% of the titles are published by "Meta Publications" or "Metamorphus" or "Crown House" publishers - all seemingly established by nlp trainers. The usual approach of the books is to present transcripts of training seminars (with commentary annotations if you're lucky). At least this book ATTEMPTS something more than that.

Unfortunately, it still requires that you steep yourself in the whole language of "meta-" this and "meta-" that and try to wrap your thinking about business situations in that quagmire. If I had not already worked my way through O'Connor & Seymour's "Introducing NLP", I would have given up on this book after a few chapters.

Even more aggravating is the shallowness of the material once you learn the jargon. The book jacket promises to help you "get the best from your teams, motivate people, developed committed responsible staff, develop leadership." OK - so who doesn't? What it offers is little more than management principles you've been learning since day one. If nlp has the potential to "influence success and change" in corporate environments, it's going to take something beyond this item to achieve it.

In the introduction Molden says one of his favorite books is Peter Brook's "The Empty Space." I think I get the joke now: Although every page of Molden's book is covered with words, the effect is to provide us with Empty Space on which we are to imagine all the "Magic" and "Ultimate Human Potential" that nlp is supposed to offer. Potential? Potential to continue buying nlp books until I give in and attend the "Master Trainers' " seminars and be initiated as a High Priest with secret handshake and jargon password? Does that work for you? Ah, then perhaps you'll want this book.

Despite the praise of Don Mitchell (who rates all positive-thinking books with five stars) and George Zee (who loves EVERY badly edited nlp book ever printed): CAVEAT EMPTOR. If you are a management professional who wants to determine whether nlp holds promise for more effective corporate functioning... don't hold your breath looking for it here. Struggle through the jargon & amorphous conceptual landscape of O'Connor & Seymour first; then you'll be better equipped to evaluate the inflated claims for "the magic of nlp."

Rating:
Summary: NLP with understanding
Review: David Molden is consistently clear and creative in introducing NLP (Neuro-linguistic Programming). Instead of the frequent regurgitation in quite a few NLP books, his examples and applications reflect real grasp and mastery. It is a pity that his previous book, Managing With the Power of NLP, is no longer easily available.

Section 1 (Principles of NLP: the foundations of success) and Section 2 (Patterns of NLP: an awareness of difference) give an excellent and succinct coverage of extensive NLP material. Most readers, regardless of background, can gain a better understanding of NLP from these sections in spite of the examples from business applications.

Section 3 (Tools, techniques, and skills: creating change) and Section 4 (Modeling excellence: how to be the best) have included contributions from 10 other people from diverse backgrounds. They are somewhat uneven in terms of clarity and scope. Molden's own article on "Kill the habit - for ever!" is a gem. It reflects the essence of NLP in being aware of one's own mental processes and redesigning them, first applied to smoking, then generalised to other habits.

[Some examples, in my humble opinion, may not illustrate the topic so well. E.g. On Complex equivalence and Referential index (pp. 105, 107)....]


Rating:
Summary: A disappointment
Review: Have you read a lot of the NLP books out there, and maybe even poked around to see what's on the internet about it, and yet still feel like you haven't quite gotten it?

Join the club.

That's because NLP often involves so much that you can't write down, that even the people who can do it quiet well can have a hard time writing good books about it.

'NLP Business Masterclass' is one of the rare exceptions that will provide you MANY exercises of things you can experiment with IN REAL LIFE, right now, to learn how to incorporate the methods and insights that make NLP so valuable.

It might help if you already know something about NLP, although it's certainly not necessary. But even if you're an NLP trainer, this book has much to offer. So no matter what level you're at, I cannot more strongly urge you to buy this book, get some friends together and play with the exercises, until you find that you can't NOT communicate with the new levels of effectiveness, clarity and impact that you've learned.

Rating:
Summary: A disappointment
Review: I had high expectations of this book. But the material presented in it could not even come close to meeting them. This book does not add anything to what you already know.
Determine what you want and take the necessary steps to achieve that goal. Have strong believes and principles but stay flexible and be able to adapt when required. Be open to others, listen to what they have to say. Share your point of view, but don't force it on people. Study "succesful" people and learn what makes them succesful. Then integrate that information into your own life.
It's amazing the author needs 300+ pages to deliver this message.

There are many great books available on how to reach your full potential as a person, but this is not one of them.

Save your money.

Rating:
Summary: The Best Business-Oriented Introduction to NLP I Have Seen
Review: Many people write to me to ask how they can find a good intorduction to Neuro-Linguistic Programming that they can use in their business lives. I usually refer them to Frogs Into Princes by Dr. Richard Bandler and Dr. John Grinder, the two founders of NLP. Having read this book, I will change my recommendation in the future to suggest NLP Business Masterclass.

The comments I make in this review are based on having read over 20 books about NLP and having taken two courses with Dr. Bandler, the co-founder of NLP, and many other courses with Anthony Robbins, who is an outstanding practitioner of many NLP-like methods.

Neuro-Linguistic Programming is a way of influencing others and yourself to achieve more. The work is based on observational research about the ways that people are most effective with one another and with themselves. Think of it as a tool kit for rewiring your brain to better serve your interests. The techniques themselves are amoral in content, and do have the potential to be used inappropriately. I encourage you to use these methods in ethical causes and in ethical ways.

You will learn things like how to get yourself into a positive state of mind and body for accomplishing more, how to "read" other people better, ways to influence others more powerfully, and processes for enabling groups of people to be more effective.

People who feel at sea with others will find this approach to be very eye-opening for helping them develop better "people" skills.

The book is mostly an accurate summary of NLP, as I understand it from the literature. The main difference I found was that three principles seem to have been added from the change-management movement. But nothing important in NLP has been deleted, so I didn't mind that addition.

What makes the book valuable for business people is that it positively teems with business examples, something I have never seen in another book about NLP. The examples seem to be drawn from the experiences of the 10 U.K. NLP business consultants who collaborated in creating this book, and who wrote a number of the chapters.

The book also has many exercises in it. Although I liked the exercises, they usually did not have as much of a business context as the examples did. I found that characteristic somewhat inexplicable. Perhaps the next edition will remedy that missed opportunity.

Do realize that this book is an introduction to the subject. You get an overview the basics, but just enough. Mastery will not come from this book alone. The book does offer good footnotes, though, so you can read the more detailed works for yourself to get a more detailed understanding for practicing these ideas. Only through practice can you actually "master" them.

If you are new to NLP, you should realize that Dr. Bandler has since devised some simpler and more powerful methods that he feels supersede NLP. You can read any of his books since 1994 to get a flavor for that work. They are not especially business oriented.

NLP is still a valuable discipline, and the explanations here will give you much insight into how to be a more effective communicator both with yourself and with others.

I urge you to think seriously about what you want to accomplish with your life. NLP will greatly enhance your ability to succeed. If you start out by raising your sights to that which is most important and exciting to you, you will get much more out of this book. After all, why settle for being ordinary when you have the potential to be much more? Our own "stalled" thinking is our biggest hurdle to progress, after all. With this book, you will have many more stallbusting techniques to rely on.

Exceed the limits of your perceptions!

Rating:
Summary: When you turn to the chapter on "Alignment" you'll say...
Review: When you turn to the chapter on "Alignment" you'll say to yourself, "Wow, this is the master formula for change".
Are you a student of NLP, then take a few hours and study this simple to read easy to assimilate and act upon wisdom. I have been a student of this art and science for 15 years; this work is really head and shoulders above most of the other work. It is practical, fun to read and easy implement - give it a try.