When I taught hypnotherapy, not that many years ago, I had the pleasure of counting among our staff some pretty amazing people. And among these "folks" a core of experts actually had a lot to do with the direction the rest of my life was to take.
The Institute I eventually founded, actually began as a club. A couple of us started meeting every other Monday night to discuss what was possible with the mind. A few friends were invited and eventually this evolved into a 'club' open to anybone who claimed to work with the mind. Our group eventually counted among it's members 2 Psychologists, a Doctor, a Zen Master, 2 Yoga Instructors, a Krishna devotee and 3 of us Hypnotherapist types. We would toss out a concept (like, say, meditation) or a generic topic (like dealing with Phobias) and give everybody 2 weeks to research out what their particular venues taught on the subject. Our meetings boiled down to a 10 minute or so "report" by each person followed by an in depth, open discussion. We kept copious notes, and this become the basis for a lot of the techniques we eventually taught at the Mind Dynamix Institute.

A lot of the 'conclusions' we drew might be considered safe and predictable. But a couple 'techniques' that we fine tuned into very powerful working tools might ruffle more than a few traditional feathers. And I guess it's because I get some kind of sadistic pleasure out of 'bucking the system' that I thought I'd share a few of them with you this month.

The first technique is something we called 'Creating Obstacles'. I'm not sure if you'd call this a technique as much as a general policy or mindset, but whatever you'd call it, it was an extremely powerful way of supporting a Hypnotic Practice. The basic concept of 'Creating Obstacles' is to make it difficult for clients to achieve their goals. Yes, that's exactly what I meant. If you can make it difficult for a client to attain their goal, you may also greatly increase the chances of them eventually attaining it.
I believe the concept originally came from our Zen master. He explained to us a method he used to 'screen out' those who were ready to make changes. Basically, he kept himself separated from his following so that meeting with him actually became a goal in itself. By the time you were actually granted an audience with him, it was generally agreed that you were well on your way to becoming a leader in the movement. Basically, without even saying a word, the message came out loud and clear that if the master was willing to spend time with you, then you were about to suddenly make incredible changes in your life. I can almost hear him laughing as he explained that the reason he could boast a 100% success in showing 'dramatic change' in any followers he counseled, was because he simply refused to meet with anybody who wasn't already well on their way to getting there. The meeting itself became a right of passage. And the fact that his time wasn't diluted with ill fated meetings, allowed him the luxury of dedicating more of his time and attention to those who could do the most with it.

At a practical level, we developed a series of ways to 'pre screen' clients to assure that our time was spent only with those who were serious. Part of this pre- screening process involved raising our fees. When everybody else in town was charging $50US an hour to do Hypnotherapy (back in the 70s), my students were walking out of my office offering their services at $75US an hour. Perhaps they didn't get quite as many clients up front, but those that did show an interest, had obviously decided to 'go with the best' rather than 'buy the cheapest'. By choosing to pay the extra $25, they had already presupposed the ability of our therapists. I remember actually having my students rehearse the answer they would give to anybody that asked why they cost more. They were basically told to look the person right in the eye and explain that they were interested in finding people who were serious about wanting to change. "If you really want to stop smoking" they'd explain, "then the extra $25 won't make a difference". It wasn't long before clients started bragging to their friends that they "went to the best", that they "were willing to pay a bit more to get quality". And this mystique more than paid for itself with plenty of new clients. In fact, we did a study, and found that by the end of a year, most of our students found that more than half their clients had failed with some other Hypnotherapist in town and had decided to come by and try their services at a higher price. Let's face it, would you want the cheapest heart surgeon in the hospital to work on you?
And this "pay for the best" image began when a prospect made their first call. My students were told to explain that "if you're shopping for price, I can tell you right now you probably want to look somewhere else, because we are one of the more expensive centers around. If you're looking for results, our track record is pretty impressive. Normally our 'smoking package' involves two sessions done one week apart, and both sessions will end up costing you a total of $150. If you can afford that, I'd like to invite you to come in for a free screening session during which we'll determine if hypnosis will work for you." What's he going to say? "No, I don't think my health is worth an extra $25"? The free 20 minute session is an easy way to get them in, and it fits in well with the overall image you're looking to portray, and fits in nicely with the next "trick of the trade". Sometimes the "Free Session was actually done as a "mini seminar" where, say, 10 people trying to lose weight were all invited for a Monday night demo.
Another 'trick' that helped create the feeling of inaccessibility, was a hidden policy we asked therapists to take of forcing clients to wait at least a week for appointments. Basically it worked like this. You would come in to talk about, say, losing weight. A therapist would do the 20 minute "free consultation" with you during which he would sell you on the great things that were going to happen to you once you started, but then would tell you you'd have to wait till "the end of next week before we could fit you in". If you wanted to set the date, you had to pay, in advance, for your last session (weight loss was a three session process). This was a non refundable deposit you made in order to hold your place in line. 
Think of what now happened in the minds of this subject. He's already made a commitment. He's already stated, with his pocketbook, that he wants to make this happen, that he's looking forward to changing. Now he's sent home to think about it for a week. What do you think is going to happen? Is he going to spend the week condemning himself for spending money? No way. Very much on the contrary, he's going to spend the week in heightened anticipation. Every time he walks up to the lasagna at the buffet, he's going to remind himself about how next week he's not going to do this. Every morning when he gets up, and thinks about how hard it is to do his exercises, he's going to start thinking about how next week he's going to enjoy the workout. We would back up the subtle 'suggestions' by giving them a pamphlet explaining the changes they could expect, and telling them to watch for times when they did things they were going to change next week. Heck, by the time the person walked into my office a week later, I could almost ask them for a check and send them back home. With that kind of 'build-up' you can't go wrong. 

I even use this 'method' on my therapy tapes. Unlike most tapes that simply jump right into the hypnotic sessions, I begin with a talk about what's going to happen and how they need to react. I then do a mini hypnotic session and tell them they are NOT GOING TO CHANGE ANYTHING for a day. I tell them to spend a day being very aware of the changes they need to make. Spend a day taking mental notes of the times you fall short. After the 24 hour 'waiting period' they'll be ready to jump into the 'change your life' portion of the CD. Letting them 'sweat' for a day gets them ready to change when the moment is at hand.

Part of the persona we tried to create for our students also involved an image of almost a psychic ability to do instant diagnosis. No they didn't really do it, but my students were told to look for factors that might keep therapy from being effective and use them as excuses to turn away clients. That's right, send people home who walked in ready to pay good money. That was a difficult one, but it did two things. It allowed those who were serious to make whatever changes were needed to be able to 'earn the right' to come back for therapy. It also cut down tremendously on failure rates. Let's face it. If you know this person's attitude is going to keep you from being able to hypnotize them, then accepting them as clients is little better than robbing them at gunpoint.

I mentioned earlier about the 'Free Screening' session. This was advertised not as a time to try and sell hypnosis. Instead, it was made very clear in our brochure that 'not everybody can be hypnotized, and among those that can, not all can benefit from Hypnotherapy. This session is a time for a qualified hypnotherapist to determine if our services will actually work for you'. The Free Screening session went something like this:

The client walked in, wondering if she would actually be able to stop smoking this time. The therapist would perform a sway test and perhaps a balloon/book arm test (or any other prehypnotic convincers) and determine that the client could, in fact, be hypnotized. Only on very rare occasions did someone actually fail the convincers (for obvious reasons). But then the therapist would start asking questions. The questions were designed to put the client on the defensive. Without saying so, the environment was turned to the point that the client felt they had to sell the therapist on their 'worthiness' for therapy. Questions like, "why do you want to change?" or "It this really your choice, or are you giving in to the pressure of your husband?" forced clients to 'sell us' on the idea that they were really ready to make it happen. 
If the client seemed uninterested or uncommitted to changing, the therapist was told to get up from his or her chair, walk to the door and then say, in as sympathetic, understanding voice as possible (being very careful not to become belittling), "Sally, I'd love to help you, and the truth is, in the long run, hypnosis is probably your best bet for stopping smoking, but I don't feel you're committed enough to changing. If I took your money today, I'd just be stealing from you. Why don't you take a couple weeks to think about why you want to stop smoking, and then, if you'd like to schedule another free appointment, I'd welcome the chance to see if you're ready to make it happen." 

Believe me, you're going to separate the men (or women) from the kids here. Those who might otherwise be straddling the fence, but really do want to change, aren't going to let you get away with it. I've had people offer me extra money, beg me to give them a chance, even make commitments to 'cut back enough to prove they're serious' if I'll let them schedule another meeting. The prideful and highly insecure (the gang that won't really commit to changing anyway, because of fear of failure) will probably leave in a huff. But that's okay. They would have been another failure added to your reputation. By prescreening clients in this way, you accept only the ones you know you can help, and you push the others, hoping they decide to take the momentum and move in the right direction. And those who eventually make it, will respect you for being straight with them. They'll become your greatest advocates. They'll go all over town telling others about how you actually refused to take their money until they were ready to really make it. And you'll soon find a long line of people preparing for their 'audition'.

One final, extremely powerful, way of 'Creating Obstacles' is to force clients to fail. That's right, actually sabotage their progress. No, it isn't as mean as it may sound. Basically, when you come across a tough customer who just doesn't seem to make it happen, you offer to use a technique "that'll make it happen for you", explaining, however, that it is the "hard way to get there". For those willing to try anything, this will be a welcomed escape from all the "quick fix" versions of therapy they've tried over the years. Once the client agrees, you set a breaking point at which they'll suddenly be able to win. 
A person looking to lose weight may be told, hypnotically, that "you're going to find that you can't lose weight. In fact, you're going to discover that you're going to start overeating, and continue to gain weight at a fairly rapid rate until you pass the 300 lb mark. Once you weigh yourself at 300 lbs. You'll find that you will suddenly be empowered to change. At that moment, you're going to discover the mental key to taking control and you'll be able to lose weight the way you've always wanted to."
Obviously this "set point" shouldn't be more than 15 lbs. away. Telling a 125 lb. woman that she's going to continue to grow until she reaches 300 lbs. will definitely get you a result, but probably not the one you're looking for. Smokers might be told that they are going to go through a week of smoking twice the cigarettes they now smoke daily (that's a very powerful, loaded, suggestion. Even a die hard smoker will learn to hate cigarettes is forced to double up for a week). Stress clients can be told they will become painfully aware of the times when stress controls them, and feel completely powerless to make any changes for a week. Be careful about pushing people with neurotic issues over the edge.
Now think about what happens in the minds of these people. All the programming that has told them for years that they couldn't stop smoking will now go crazy. This person will feel very much like a slave, and most of the arguments he or she has been ignoring for all these years will suddenly become real to them. They'll start to wonder if they're going to die before the week is over, they're going to start feeling that cigarettes are just getting in their way, they'll despise the addiction they now have to cigarettes. In fact, most will spend the better part of the week hoping they're not going to have to spend the rest of their lives paying twice as much for cigarettes and pumping them into their mouths indiscriminately. When they walk into your office a week later, they're going to be ready to change. Trust me, it works like nothing else I know how to do.

The one thing you do want to be careful about here, is, like I mentioned earlier, pushing someone over the edge. Be very careful with this 'overdose' method of therapy. Obviously, telling a heroin addict that he'll double his dosage would be disastrous. Telling a spouse beater that he's going to hit his wife twice as hard or twice as much might help him change his mind about abuse, but would certainly not be a wise move in the bigger picture. If you're very careful as you orchestrate your 'set point' therapy, you're going to be amazed at how powerful it is.

Creating Red Herrings. It almost sounds sinister, doesn't it? Basically, this relatively simple technique creates an air of mastery in the minds of your client. When two people talk, there's always a series of subtle, almost subconscious 'signals' each party listens for. In a client/therapist relationship, this signal is pretty simple to predict. The client is busy trying to figure out if the therapist can actually make this work. She's busy looking for subtle hints that tell her he's not as competent as he's putting on. She's intently focused on 'bits of wisdom' that show his competence. Well, give them to her. No, don't sit there talking theory all through your session, but instead, create the impression that you know so much more than she does, that you can read things into her actions she doesn't begin to understand. React to a made up set of rules that convince her you know what you're doing.
How's that done? Well, it's done by rehearsing certain reactions and suggestive questions. Imagine you're sitting in front of me, explaining why you want to lose weight. You tell me you've been overweight all your life, and you feel you can't make it. Suddenly, out of nowhere, I look at you and smile for no reason. What happens? In your mind, you assume I just heard something I was looking for. Suddenly you start trying to think back and remember what you said that might cause me to smile. If the timing was right, you're going to find nothing you've recently said deserves the 'look of understanding' you're getting. You might even ask why I'm smiling, and in keeping with my Red Hearing technique I explain illusively, "Oh it doesn't really matter, but tell me, how many times have you tried to lose weight on your own?" The honest truth is, it really doesn't matter. Nothing you said meant anything to me. Nothing that's just happened justifies my smile. But the fact that you think I know something you don't, gives me a very powerful therapeutic leverage. You're now going to focus more intently on what you're saying and my responses. You're also going to believe that somehow, in my years of experience, I've managed to develop a level of sensitivity that's almost Psychic. Powerful place to come from, isn't it?
Another way to use the Red Herring technique is to ask pointless questions. Don't line them up incessantly, but occasionally ask questions that seem to tell you something only a highly competent therapist could discern. As you tell me about the time you managed to stop smoking for 6 months on your own, I suddenly ask, for no apparent reason, "What did your mother do for a living?". When you answer, regardless of what your answer is, I raise my eyebrows knowingly and smile. Guess what happens? Suddenly the client tries to figure out what their mother's profession has to do with you stopping smoking. Not understanding, they assume you must be far more wise, far more sensitive than they are. They'll soon stop trying to figure you out and start accepting you as an undisputed authority.
Sounds crazy, but it works wonders.

Finally a couple of techniques I'll finish with is the 'Compounded Suggestion' and the 'Predetermined Conclusion' techniques.
The Compounded Suggestion technique is a group of suggestions told at the same time. Even in a non hypnotic state a person is far more likely to obey suggestions they don't have time to understand. I use this technique on stage regularly to take a difficult subject and suddenly convert them into great performers. I use this technique incessantly in therapy setting to establish my ability to 'make your mind do what I tell it to'. 
If I were to ask you to stand and bark like a dog, chances are you wouldn't. You'd have plenty of time to consider the ramifications and probably not do it. Suppose, instead, that I ask you to "Stand up, scratch your head, and bark like a dog." You'll be so busy trying to remember the sequence and list that you won't have time to think through each suggestion individually. In a therapy setting I might tell a smoker, before ever hypnotizing them, that "I want to take a deep breath, put your hands on your head, close your eyes and think of the 5 main reasons you know you'll never smoke again." Imagine me telling a client that I want him to tell me why he's never going to smoke again. It would never happen. Long before they opened their mouth, they would have already caught the suggestion and immediately become defensive. "Who says I'll never smoke again?" their inner mind will start yelling, "You're being mighty bold to be so confident you can pull this off." In fact, making a blatant statement like that will almost surely be more harmful than good. When it's Compounded with the other suggestions, the subject will be well into working on reasons before they'll even begin to think something is wrong. I also use this technique a lot while subjects are hypnotized. Instead of statements like "You're going to stop smoking", which would cause defensive reactions, I might say, "You feel so good, so in control, so free of the cigarettes, that once used to ruin your life." They'll accept that suggestion even if they aren't hypnotized. Don't underestimate the power of a Compounded Suggestion. If  you need proof, try telling your kids to "Do me a favor. Turn off the television, pass me that book and take out the trash." You're going to be pleasantly surpised.

A 'Predetermined Conclusion' is just that, taking something for granted. Statements like, "Because you now are able to lose weight, you feel so free, so in control". The fact that I believe we've now "reached that magic spot" makes the client accept this as a reality as well, a reality that means the therapy has already worked. A conclusion that embeds a powerful conclusion in the minds of my subjects. I use this technique regularly in negotiating and even in asking for favors. Instead of asking you if you think you might come by my house and help me move, I might make a statement like, "Bob, I need your help moving on Saturday, and afterwards I'll buy you dinner." Again, I assumed you would say yes and went on and quickly changed the subject (in your mind) by making you wonder what's for dinner. Try it, it works wonders as well.
I realize these techniques may seem unorthodox and way off the beaten track, but then, most of the 'normal' therapy has become useless precisely because clients are 'wise' to our ways. Isn't it about time we pulled a few extra tools out of our bag of tricks?