With two new world records making international headlines over the past few days, the idea of being ‘hyper-focused’ is something which is being greatly talked about in the wider press at the current time.
You might have seen the incredible footage of pilot Luke Czepiela landing his plane on top of the Burj Al Arabin Dubai a few days ago. His ‘runway’ was a mere 27 metres long.
Luke had undertaken a lot of practice runs for his stunt to work. And when I say a lot, I really do mean ‘a lot.’ He actually undertook the exact manoeuvre some 650 times – before he did it for real.
In the comfort of a therapy room, we can help our clients to practice their ‘perfect outcomes.’
Trance allows the brain to rehearse scenarios over and over again so making it easier for someone to achieve their goals when they come to carry something out for real.
The tennis player who can visualise success and the perfect serve or the boxer who can imagine the feelings around winning the bout before their TV interview where they can talk about their success in the ring.
And then there’s the racing driver who can feel the sensation of the champagne being sprayed all over the place once they’ve won.
All are powerful visualisations – and all can really help someone to be in the right type of mindset to ensure a better chance of success.
Earlier this month, Switzerland’s Lake Sils hosted 40-year-old Czech free diver David Vencl who successfully set a new world record in its icy depths. He swam to a vertical depth of 50 metres below the ice – all with no wet suit.
The achievements of both Luke Czepiela and David Vencl cannot be underestimated. They show us that with the right levels of discipline, training and determination that the seemingly impossible can be achieved.
Clients succeeding in achieving their goals
We might not always get to work with someone who is looking to set a world record. Equally, you never know what that ringing phone or unopened email might bring for you!
Every client who comes to see us will be attempting to succeed in their own challenge. It might not be diving to seemingly impossible depths in icy lakes, but, for them, it could be something which is equally challenging.
Helping them achieve that target could make all the difference for their life as they work with you to make all of the small positive changes which will help them move forward.
The same principals apply for someone looking to lose weight as it might do for sports’ people, like Luke or David, in their approach to achieving their targets.
Small steps. Preparation. Planning. And positive thinking that they can achieve the seemingly impossible.
A crucial component for a client is the knowledge and belief that their goals are possible – and not an ethereal notion which exists in their mind.
Boasting confidence levels in themselves is crucial and being able to provide them with the quantitative data which clearly shows how previous clients have positively responded to therapy can provide a marked effect on someone seeking help.
Recording outcomes
As such, please don’t forget to keep recording your outcomes. Your input into the CORP project is very useful in monitoring the effectiveness of modern psychotherapy techniques.
The results help us ensure our research continues to be seen as the largest such study of its kind. Its’ transparency allows clients to see how their journey should progress during the course of their treatment with us.
And it’s not just the quantitative data which is useful. Figures are great for graphs – but words can also be useful when explaining how someone feels. In other words, the qualitative results are also important in building confidence for a client.
Think about your website. Do you monitor your ratings? Do you encourage people to provide anonymised testimonials following the successful outcome of their treatment?
Having those all-important quotes appearing on your platform can really help someone to take their first step in sending that email to you – or giving you a call.
The enquiry might not be from someone looking to set a world record but it will be something which, for them, is equally important for the person who is seeking your help.
Whatever their goal. Whatever their challenges. Whatever they’re seeking to change then it can be a real relief for them to know that they can work in a strong therapeutic alliance with you.
Reducing stress levels and the power of visualisation
I read a brilliant news feature a few weeks ago looking at whether or not hypnotherapy could help with fitness. As a NBH member then I guess the answer won’t surprise you!
So, here is the plot spoiler, the journalist reported that she had found her session to be beneficial in helping her keep to her fitness schedule. The single hypnosis session was designed to focus her mind on the upcoming fitness class – and it worked.
We have all worked with clients who might be looking to lose a few pounds or who may have decided to focus on a significant fitness goal. Our skills and training can make all the difference for them.
There have been a number of quantitative studies which examine the impact of regular hypnotherapy sessions on the performance of athletes and sports’ people.
All of them seem to show a direct correlation between focused trance work and a positive result for the individual.
Sport psychology is a huge arena and the power of the brain cannot be underestimated in its effect for someone taking the penalty kick of a lifetime. One that could led to celebration – or relegation.
It’s great when we receive feedback from members who’ve successfully completed their training and who are now working with national and international sports’ people.
Members will recognise that one group session might help someone make it to a nearby gym class but, for real and significant measurable results, we could be looking for an individual to engage with us over a period of eight to 12 sessions.
Sports’ training often focuses on repeating a set of movements over and over again so we learn how to quickly ‘parry and riposte’ to a lunge, strike or tackle. In other words, we’re programming our primitive brains to respond instinctively to a situation.
On the field, this can result in a number of changes to our physiology – from the hyper focus we might experience, and the resulting ‘tunnel vision’ which a rugby or football player might feel, through to adrenaline coursing through the veins of a ‘free diver.’
And it’s that focus on goals which we can create by encouraging our clients to feel relaxed and helping them to reduce their ‘stress bucket’ levels to a point whereby whatever they realistically want to achieve becomes achievable.
