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Here are some thoughts on how you could be thinking when faced with the requirement of doing a modelling project. First of all start with - "Yippee!! What a fantastic opportunity for me to discover something I really want to know about." And then follow it up with an incredulous whisper/clamour "I may even be on the point of creating something that will make me my first million/training product/promotion route/the bestest friend in all the world." In the process you will have stepped into the real world of NLP. You will have begun the magical process of adding to the all-engrossing pool of understanding: namely "How do we tick?" and "How can I enable someone else to tick more effectively for them?" In doing so, you will be able to call yourself an NLP practitioner with pride and authority. However the starting often seems to be the most difficult part - blank canvas and all that. So here are some simple pointers which hopefully shed light on the process of choosing and removes the doubt or frustration that many people experience.

1. PURPOSE Remind yourself of the purpose of this project. This project lies within the context of your Master Practitioner certification process. All we are asking of you is that you can demonstrate your ability to deliver the stages within the modelling process, and come out victorious at the other end.

By this we mean:

1. Identifying the desired behaviour
2. Eliciting the elements of experience operating within that behaviour: gathering the data.
3. Identifying the key elements which are essential for driving that behaviour and adding your You-ness to the model: creating your Model
4. Testing your model on yourself to find if you are able to achieve the desired behaviour: self acquisition
5. Identifying ways of 'teaching' your Model to another person, so that they can have a similar experience: acquisition by other

So at your presentation, by whatever means you choose, you are giving your fellow participants a direct personal experience of how to acquire the intended behaviour.

2. SMALL SCALE You are baby modellers, taking your first conscious steps - no disrespect. If you have aspirations for changing the world with a mega lifetime project, keep that for after your Master Practitioner programme. It would be equally naïve to expect to become Monet or Darcy Bussell overnight. The simpler the subject/behaviour the better. The interesting thing is that this simplicity is highly likely to be transferable across context and scale. That is the beauty of a good model.

3. END USER Decide if this is learning for you - much the best idea since self interest is the best motivator - or because it might be useful for someone else. You may be considering something that could make a difference in your workplace. Unless your course funding depends on this, I would keep this quiet. You don't need external pressures, and you may find that you've painted yourself into a corner, which would reduce your flexibility and resourcefulness. Go on, pick one for yourself. Indulge yourself and give yourself this treat.

4. ECOLOGY You need to be fully mindful of all the factors which can influence your decision - such as time available, resources required, access to exemplars, costs. If you have chosen something that really interests you, then you are likely to have a hobby mindset rather than seeing this as a homework chore. However, you do have a life outside NLP (I believe) so be realistic - less is likely to be more. You don't want to create a rod for your own back.

5. PINPOINTING THE DESIRED BEHAVIOUR Ask yourself - "What do I want to be able to do - specifically?" This can be a delicate process. Trust your waters to tell you exactly what it is you want to model - the "That's it!" moment.

1. Chunking down: When David Gordon was here, we began to model his ability of Story Telling, the modeller realised that she really wanted to focus on his timing ability even though she had started out asking about his story telling ability. For someone else it might have been an aspect within how he knows which story to tell.
2. Freeze Frame the process: All skills and behaviours are part of a through time process. It might be that the critical part is at the moment of deciding to do it, the point of starting, or during, or the point of finishing. Obviously, the skills involved in creating, choosing and telling are significantly different. It might be the finer distinctions within the process might hold the key.
3. Up root your flag: Even if you have gone some way to eliciting the information about

6. UPROOTING YOUR FLAG You may have thought you had found your desired ability and you pitched your flag. You are now well into the process of eliciting the elements of experience involved, and then you discover the golden nugget. Let go all your work, uproot your flag and start afresh - no matter how much time you think you have 'wasted'. You will waste so much more trying to make the wrong information fit the shape you are after. It's all good practice, and you have just increased your likelihood of generating an effective model a hundredfold.

7. KNOW WHAT YOU ALREADY KNOW The territory is unlikely to be totally unfamiliar. There's a relief. There are bound to be elements within the exemplar's experience which you can already do. There is no point taking up time to explore and develop aspects that are already part of your wiring. Concentrate on the elements which are new to you. For what it's worth, you may find yourself incorporating your existing knowledge when you are at the stage of customising your model.

8. SELECTING YOUR METHODOLOGY David, John Mc, Judy and James and Penny all offer different ways of going about modelling. You also have the work of Robert Dilts to draw on. You are likely to adopt the one that you find easiest to use. At later stages, you may be interested in exploring and combining. However for the moment, go with what you feel comfortable with.

9. CHOICE OF EXEMPLARS Your thinking may be influenced by your access to appropriate exemplars. Much will depend on what you want to come away with.

1. Idiosyncratic Model: You may want to be able to do something in the way that someone you particularly admire does it. If this is the case then you would want to get at least three different contexts in which they manifest this behaviour. Whatever you come up with, will be heavily influenced by this person's personality.
2. Generic Model: You may want to go for a generalised model, in which case you need to identify at least three exemplars possibly who operate within the same contexts. You could also use books films etc. Then you will sort for the similarities between them. This way personalities would not feature and clear patterns would be identifiable.

10. PREPARE TO ENJOY IT!

    Fran Burgess
    23 May 2005