Émile Coué, a French psychologist and pharmacist in the late 19th century, was one of the first individuals to make use of optimistic autosuggestion as a popular form of psychotherapy and self-improvement.
His most famous method – the Coué Method – involved saying the positive affirmation, “Everyday, in every way, I am getting better and better” at the beginning and end of each day. It was meant to be repeated in a clear and focused state of mind.
Coué believed that through the use of autosuggestion and imagination an individual could motivate their self to better living habits and health. Émile Coué noticed that he could improve the effectiveness of a drug by praising its effectiveness to his patients. This discovery eventually became known as the placebo effect.
These kinds of findings turned Coué’s interests towards hypnosis and digging deeper into the nature of suggestion. Coué observed that the main obstacle to hypnosis and autosuggestion was willpower; in order for the suggestions to be most effective the individual had to reserve judgment and accept the suggestion based on an element of faith.
This could explain why hypnosis can be so hard to study reliably using the scientific method. Because each individual has their own degrees of suggestibility, and the hypnosis-patient relationship is so crucial to the effectiveness of the treatment; which makes it difficult to establish a good control group.
The power of suggestion has proven to play a huge yet perplexing and largely unexplained role in human psychology. According to a recent article by Wired Magazine, placebo drugs have been getting more effective over time. Perhaps this is due to society’s growing acceptance of pills as a convenient “cure-all” for all of our problems? On a related note, one blog by a U.K. neuroscientist even reports on placebo side effects, which could theoretically account for some of the side effects common in various medical treatments, not just psycho-pharmaceuticals.
It seems only natural that with all of this evidence on the power of suggestion that scientists should begin to seek what factors play a role in making a particular suggestion powerful. Hypnosis should not just be seen as a tool that only works on “highly suggestible” persons, but also a tool that can be learned and applied by everyone.
Coué himself claimed that he was not a healer, but one who taught others how to heal themselves. To read more about Émile Coué I highly recommend this blog entry by UK Hypnosis, which gives a very fascinating and in-depth analysis to Coué’s practices.
Hypnosis is a set of effective communication techniques for shaping one’s beliefs, attitudes, thought-patterns, and behaviors. Often these communication techniques take advantage of direct or indirect suggestions, of which a participant may accept or deny, depending on their own free will or “condition of suggestibility.”
Hypnosis shouldn’t be associated with a particular state of consciousness or awareness. Different uses of hypnosis may call upon different mental states. A patient in hypnotherapy may be put in a deep sleep or trance state in order for the therapist to have better communicative-access to a patient’s subconscious mind; but a stage hypnotist allows his or her participants to keep their awareness focused outwards within one’s environment. Some hypnosis plays upon the imaginative and generative faculties of the mind, while other hypnosis utilizes the exploratory and perceptive faculties of the mind. So, there is no one mental “state” that hypnosis can be really associated to – this is why I keep its definition strictly in the realm of communication.
A hypnotist is essentially no different than a good communicator. A hypnotist must have a good sense of flexibility in his or her vocabulary, tone of voice, and body language in order to be the best communicator he or she can be. In other words, a suggestion that works on one individual does not necessarily work on another individual. This is due to the inherit subjective nature of language, meaning, and communication. There are some hypnosis techniques that are specifically designed to elicit this subjective information from the patient, and using this information a hypnotist can gain a better strategy on how to effectively communicate to that individual. Elicitation strategies are not always used by hypnotists, but they are especially common for hypnotherapists – those who are trying to reshape a participant’s underlying beliefs, attitudes, and thought patterns regarding a situation.
Stage hypnotists don’t need to do these elicitation strategies since many participants are volunteers and thus already have a high suggestibility or willingness to “play along” with the hypnotist. Another thing that plays a strong role in suggestibility during hypnosis shows is the social role of the hypnotist: he is the star and leader of the show, he has a certain aura of command within the room. Thus, it is easy to find obedient participants. And of course – these participants almost always have a fun time participating and using their imagination during hypnotist shows, so the entertainment aspect of hypnosis itself is always an enticing suggestion.
How do suggestions work?
Suggestions can work in the same multitude of ways in which we can learn. This can be through story-telling, analogies, asking questions, giving commands, providing information, evoking the imagination, encouraging contemplation, or a person’s body mannerisms and body posture – all of these are different mediums in which a suggestion can take place.
A third party does not even need to be present in order for a suggestion to be suggested. Instead, an individual may even suggest something to their own self and then try to convince this self that this suggestion is the right thing to do. This interaction is typically the conscious self speaking with the unconscious self. The unconscious self is best communicated to when it is brought into consciousness – this is why it is typically called “subconscious” (which is just a useful term for: mental activity than can be brought into conscious awareness. This is mental activity that is often ignored by the conscious mind, despite the role it plays in our thoughts and behaviors). Another way to describe it is our “conditioned self.” It is responsible for those actions we do that we continue doing, without question, because they have become second-nature.
Some hypnotists believe that all hypnosis is self-hypnosis. In other words, the “suggestion” always originates in the mind of the individual in which it is being suggested, and then from there the individual either accepts or declines the suggestion.
The environment plays an important role in suggestibility as well. If a hypnotist tells you over a YouTube video to quack like a chicken it may not be as effective then if you were in front of a live audience who are all waiting for you to respond as a chicken. In reality, this is little more than social pressure and conformity, but it is all suggestion when it comes to the world of hypnosis. A good hypnotist must therefore keep a strong mind on the environment, and the varying ways this can affect a particular person’s response to a suggestion.
What effects the degree of suggestibility?
- A. The individuals preconditioned “map of the world.” In other words, his or her preconceived concepts, language tendencies, thought-patterns, attitudes, and behavioral tendencies to a given subject or situation.
B. The environment in which the suggestion is being given (You wouldn’t take a puff of a blunt right in front of grandma, but you might do it in the presence of a bunch of your friends).
C. The delivery of the suggestion: using effective verbal and reasoning skills, appropriate vocal tone, and congruent body language.
How can a hypnotist get better at giving suggestions and being an effective hypnotist?
- A. Be a good listener. Pay attention to others’ word patterns and language tendencies.
B. Pay attention to universals behind the meaning of body language and posture.
C. Read up on psychology, how the mind learns and creates associations, and how the mind and its environment interact.
D. Keep practicing and gaining new experience. Experiment with different delivery styles and develop your own kind of niche for communicating effectively with others.
Throughout the past decade the biggest trend in pop psychology has been that positive thinking, along with little effort, can get you all you’d ever want out of life. Many who subscribe to these philosophies (readers of books like “The Secret” and “Law of Attraction”), believe that one can wish prosperity and success into their life simply by will-ing whatever they want into existence.
Step 1: Think Positive
Step 2: Imagine what you want
Step 3: Keep the picture clear and distinct in your mind
Step 4: Wait?
Step 5: Wealth!
What a great idea – if only it were that easy!
Perhaps what people find most compelling about these beliefs are that they require so little work yet promise such huge rewards. It’s sad to think what must go through someone’s mind before they are lead to believe such hogwash. But let me tell you now, as an ex-positive thinker, success isn’t as easy as these “professionals” make it out to be. Most not only severely over exaggerate the power of thoughts but end up leading their consumers down a disastrous path into bizzaro world.
Another common phrase of the new-age, pop-psych community is that you have the power to “create your own reality.” I believe in this to an extent, but differently than how most usually take the claim. Typically, people get hooked on the idea that their mind is the world. In philosophy of mind, this view is know as solipsism or the belief that there is no external world, just your internal one. I sometimes wonder why these people bother leaving their house at all. If our minds were that powerful, why not close your eyes and fully imagine the world you want to live in – and you can just stay there, right? You could hang out in Hawaii, sit by the beach, and drink margaritas into eternity.
What it boils down to, however, is most of us perceive life as having an external world, and even if it isn’t the ultimate reality of the universe it is still best we work within our senses and not within our dreams.
It is true that we can create our own reality, but it takes hard work, dedication, a strong will, and time – NOT just the “will” part. To create your own reality you need to first open your eyes and look at the canvas your God gave you. When you take out your red paintbrush and begin your art don’t tell us that it is green. When you paint a dog don’t tell us it is a cat. The answers to your reality are equally “out there” as they are “in here,” so be truthful and balanced.
If positive thinkers believe so strongly in the power of their will why not sit on a highway and will all the cars away so they don’t hit you? What about banging your head against a wall and will-ing it to go through to the other side?
Maybe these aren’t the best strategies for success. Maybe we should pay better attention to our environments and less time in our heads. I am not saying ignore the mind altogether; the mind is your map and compass. But what is a map and compass with no land to explore? At best, a pipe dream.
So my message of warning for all of you positive-thinkers out there: beware of your positive thinking! Instead of being positive, I recommend you be open, but critical. Learn to be flexible with the mind – play around with your perspective. It is fun to find the good in the bad but also to find the bad in the good. If you are only paying attention to the good side of things then how can you find room for improvement? Similarly, and this is congruent with the positive thinkers across the world, how can you be proud of your accomplishments if you only see the bad? It is evident – what we really need is not positive thinking but balanced thinking. On top of that, why not make it sharp, intelligent thinking as well? Why not have your thinking grounded in your observations and not in your fantasies? Could that be a better strategy? Think about it…
Addendum (7/4/09)
I found some scientific findings that confirm my sentiments made in this article. There was a study done by Canadian Researchers that shows how some Self-help ‘makes you feel worse’. Apparently the study tested what is commonly known in the self-help community as “Positive Affirmations” – basically – repeating positive statements in order to build a habit of more positive thinking. Unfortunately, those who had low self-esteem were found to feel worse after these statements and only those who already had high self-esteem were positively effected.