Neuro-linguistic programming, or NLP, may help you overcome these challenges. The 2013 book NLP: The Essential Guide to Neuro-Linguistic Programming defines NLP as the study of subjective experience. We base what we consider to be truths on perceptions from our individual experiences. Our recollection of those experiences affects how we interpret what has happened. We remember our experiences through pictures, sounds, feelings, smell, and taste. Using this knowledge, we can make positive changes in our lives, such as breaking bad habits or changing a fear (of public speaking, for instance) into a strength. We can also use NLP to adjust our messaging to improve audience retention and motivate people to take the desired action.

This article focuses on how you can use NLP internally for self-improvement and externally when working with others. To use NLP effectively, we need to understand how people learn.

This learning process can affect our perceptions. If we try something new and have an unpleasant experience, we may mistakenly perceive that what we are trying to learn has caused our discomfort. For example, consider a new employee who is learning how to operate a forklift safely.

USING NLP TO ENGAGE In addition to helping us interpret results in new ways, NLP can also help us engage others. The key to engaging others is to move them from System 1 thinking to System 2.

Recall that System 1 thinking is concerned with self-preservation. If you don’t feel safe, System 1 will dominate. When you give a presentation to company executives, for example, they are initially trying to decide if you are a threat to the organization. Unless you have satisfied their System 1, you may as well be talking to a wall because they won’t be evaluating the content of your presentation.

Perhaps you’re thinking, “I don’t work for an outside company trying to sell a product or service. I’ve worked for this company for the last 20 years. They know I’m not a threat, so I don’t need to make them feel safe.” If you believe this, then you have set yourself up for failure. For many organizations, insider threats such as disgruntled employees pose as much of a concern as outsider threats. Some employees resist change; others are “retired on-duty”—doing as little work as possible while still collecting their paycheck. If you give a presentation to executive management, they may not yet have determined whether you are a threat. For this reason, you need to address their System 1 thinking. Even if you have a good relationship with the executives, you should still manage their System 1 thinking to get them in the correct mindset for System 2.

Unfortunately, proving you aren’t a threat is not simple. If you want to appease someone’s System 1 thinking, you need to let them know what benefit they will receive. For example, if you are trying to convince the executives to adopt an actively caring culture, you would discuss its benefits—how such a culture will improve not only health and safety, but other areas of the organization including client management, issue resolution, invoicing, and accounts payable. You would emphasize that correct implementation of the culture change would lead to less staff turnover, which will help lower overhead costs. You might spend the first 20 minutes focusing on System 1 to capture everyone’s attention. Then you could spend the next 10 minutes giving details, thus engaging System 2, before returning to System 1 in the last 5–10 minutes. At this point, you can finish the presentation and ask if anyone has questions.

You may think that 10 minutes is not enough time to provide all your detailed information, and you are probably correct. You can remedy that by leaving everyone additional documents they can review at their leisure or pass along for someone else to evaluate. The fact is, if you do not appropriately address System 1, you will fail to engage your audience when switching to detailed facts and information that require System 2 thinking. It is better to spend more time focusing on System 1 than losing your audience by switching to System 2 too quickly. Once your audience understands how they (or their organization) will benefit from what you have to offer, they will become more engaged. If your audience asks questions that focus on implementation details, you will know that you’ve addressed their System 1 adequately. If you do an excellent job of managing their needs, they may even get excited about the benefits your proposal will provide the organization.

USING NLP TO INFLUENCE If your goal is not merely to engage but to influence, you still need to address System 1. People are more receptive to a message if they do not perceive you as a threat and understand how they can benefit from what you have to offer. Once you have their trust, you can focus on delivering your message and identifying ways to motivate your audience to act.

A helpful technique for educating people is to have them perform an exercise to implement what they have learned. Hands-on experience will help them realize that they can perform the actions requested of them. Finally, you need to “set an anchor”—that is, instill a memory—that they can use to motivate themselves to act. For example, let’s say you are trying to motivate people to act when they see a hazard. To set an anchor, have a coworker talk about an injury caused by an unmitigated hazard and its impact on his or her life. Once you have set this anchor, have a second employee explain how a health and safety initiative prevented an incident because somebody took action. Finally, as an added incentive, you can implement a recognition program to celebrate people for addressing hazards.

INSPIRING FAVORABLE DECISION-MAKING This article offers only an introduction to NLP. Many NLP books focus on the self-help aspects of the research. With a little thought and ingenuity, you can make some minor adjustments to these techniques and use them to capture people’s interest, engage them to take action, or influence them to make a favorable decision. NLP will also help you as a health and safety professional to stop focusing on negative results when projects go awry and identify ways to improve your approach, ensuring success in the future.

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