Since I do offer hypnosis training on a regular basis, the question often comes up — can anyone learn to do this and become a hypnotist?
Sometimes when people ask me if hypnotists have a special hypnotic power, I reply “Yes, and no.” And that’s a truthful answer!
The answer is “Yes” in the sense that I can teach you the techniques on how to do hypnotic inductions, or the knowledge of how to perform a specific NLP technique or a set of steps.
It’s “Yes”, anyone can learn to become a hypnotist, in the sense that we can even talk about how to gain rapport, how to do a proper pre-talk, and how to test for suggestibility (we also call them imagination games). You CAN learn all of that, and in fact you can be very effective with it.
And for most things, you can learn to do hypnosis by having no innate talents before you came to the training.
However… the answer is also “No,” in that it’s difficult to teach intuition, and true persistence, and thinking in abstract ways. These are all skills needed by someone who wishes to become “the best in the world” type of clinical hypnotist.
And it’s a quality that is difficult to quantify. It requires thinking on another level — getting rapport on another level. Not being a “yes” person, and getting deep rapport with the subconscious mind. Of course, our main course teaches you how to become damn good at clinical-style work.
So why then, if it is so easily taught, do I stubbornly insist that the answer to the question “Can anyone learn to become a hypnotist” is both Yes, AND No?
It’s because everything looks rosy until you’re dealing with a hard case. And when someone’s training gets exhausted, where do they go THEN? That’s the type of grit that you only get from actually doing it, and not giving up. Sheer persistence and confidence that you will get somewhere. Putting yourself on the line.
When someone comes into our office, we “read” them within a few minutes. We ask them specific, targeted questions which are designed to elicit what their actual problem is. It’s not uncommon for a client to begin talking, and about 5 minutes into the conversation we’ll say “Ok, I already got what the thing is. You ready to go into hypnosis?”
I honestly don’t think this is quality that can be taught, because it’s who you ARE. If you’re not grounded in yourself, then your results in supporting and empowering others might be sporadic at best.
However, I also believe that someone can go through a deep change themselves, and they will eventually develop the personality traits necessary to do “the real work” and become a hypnotist – not just do hypnosis.
But can wisdom be taught over a hypnosis weekend? Not really. It requires being actually out there in life, discovering who you are. And that’s what it takes sometimes to get past the critical factor.
Comments? Is it possible to teach intuition and wisdom? Let me hear from you.
By the way, our next training is coming up in April, in the Washington DC area. E-mail for more information.
