The Rules of Suggestion in Hypnosis

No matter what kind of hypnotic suggestions you decide to include in your self hypnosis script there are a set of rules that must be applied when structuring and delivering those suggestion, with a certain method of speaking to the subconscious in order that the messages be understood as intended. Get this methodology learned right and you will be able to use an immensely powerful tool to your advantage without even having to give it much conscious effort. The power of self hypnosis:

1. MOTIVATING FACTOR must be strong. Your conscious mind will not be fooled into doing something without a core reason behind it. If you decide to learn to fly using only the power of your arms you will have a hard time making yourself accept such a duty as it has no reasonable sense. However if you wish to spend your day working in an unpleasant office but get paid well at the end of it you will stand much better chance of convincing yourself it is the right thing to do. What ever your motivating desire is it must counter any opposing desire, E.g. desire for health and wellbeing must outweigh desire to smoke cigarettes if you are to successfully quit.

2. ALWAYS BE POSITIVE! The law of reverse effect means that whatever you are trying not to think about you will invariably think about E.g. try not thinking about pink elephants… In the same way you cannot wish simply ‘to stop smoking’ as it will suggest to the subconscious the act of smoking once more as the mind does not understand ‘No’ or ‘Don’t’. What you must instead do is frame each suggestion positively and leave the negative components behind. ‘I am feeling healthy with clean lungs as I breathe freely and happily’.

3. USE THE PRESENT TENSE. Never say ‘I will do this’ or ‘I am going to do that’ because your subconscious mind only works in the present moment. ‘I am a healthy person’ must be the message, as though you are already doing whatever it is you wish to achieve. When you construct your suggestion do not merely read it; feel it, imagine yourself doing it and live it; the subconscious is linked in this way and it is the only method to truly connect it with what you are trying to achieve. Do not give the subconscious any excuse to delay!

4. SET A TIME LIMIT.  We have just said that the subconscious needs to always be in the present, but the conscious reasoning side of the brain still has its limits. Some things cannot be done overnight, such as learning a particularly difficult new skill, and will take time to develop, so a realistic time frame must be set. Find out how long it would typically take to learn a set skill and then set your time to half that amount. Once programmed towards a goal your subconscious will never stop working and will achieve the target far quicker than you could imagine. Don’t set a limit and the subconscious will wander less purposefully…

5. SUGGEST ACTION, NOT AN ABILITY FOR AN ACTION. Do not say ‘I have the ability to ride a bicycle’ but instead ‘I ride a bicycle with incredible skill’. This is for similar reasons as stated above in using present tense; it is the kind of language that works best for the subconscious mind.

6. BE SPECIFIC. You stand a far better chance of success if you focus on one single aspect at a time instead of multi-tasking on several different things. The more focused and specific the suggestion is the more likely it is to succeed with the all-important subconscious aspect of mind.

7. USE SIMPLE LANGUAGE. Suggestions should be tailored as if speaking with a bright ten year old child. Longer words are useless extravagances that expend energy needlessly in deciphering their meaning. Simple and direct commands translate best with the subconscious mind as they can only be interpreted one way.

8. EXAGGERATE AND EMOTIONALISE. The subconscious is the foundation of all our emotions, so stirring words and powerful images excite and influence it into following your commands all the more strongly.

9. REPETITION. The subconscious mind is heavily influenced by repetition. Repeat anything enough times and the message will be engraved into our memories. Use a suggestion on yourself as many times as you can and results will come to you; daily repetition is certainly recommended. Just think of that TV advert you hate with the all too catchy jingle that has stuck in your head…maybe you don’t like it but the message has certainly rung home! 

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