Robert Dilts – Sleight of Mouth The Magic Of Conversational Belief Change

Sleight of Mouth works with language patterns and, most particularly, with spoken language patterns. Language is one of the key representational systems from which we build our mental models of the world, and has a tremendous influence upon how we perceive and respond to the world around us. Meanwhile, Robert Dilts is a sublime practitioner of his own techniques mostly because of his own personal warmth and his direct and uncomplicated interactions with people. This book, therefore, is to Dilts’ practice of NLP as any recipe book is to the practice of cooking, serving and eating delicious food. Certainly, the recipe is there, and all of the ingredients are described, but there is nothing of the flavour, the aroma, the atmosphere or the human vitality that lie at the heart of these skills. When sleight of mouth works best, it is because the internal logic of the subject’s statements are working against their own self interest, and I have seen and heard Robert Dilts respond to such statements by the inverting the logic to operate FOR the subjects self-interest and returning it as a question (an offering) to the subject. What is striking about such an interaction is not so much the linguistic skill of the man (which is impressive) but his compassion his ability to recognise, in a very short sentence, how someone can be helped to help themselves. You don’t find that in the book.

If you are into NLP in a big way then this is more or less a MUST READ. It is far from the easy “do it yourself” style that you get from the likes of Tony Robbins (who is also good but in a different way) it is aimed as NLP Master practitioner level readers. It’s full of great explanations and examples. I recommend reading it a few thousand times. As an NLP coach, I find the slight of mouth patterns a huge help in my sessions. This is an excellent book.

About Author:

Robert Dilts (born 1955) has been a developer, author, trainer and consultant in the field of Neuro-linguistic programming (NLP) since its creation in 1975 by John Grinder and Richard Bandler.

Dilts has made many personal contributions to the field of NLP including the authorship of the Encyclopedia of Systemic NLP. He is best known for his work on beliefs and strategies. He is also known for introducing many ideas of spirituality into NLP.

Dilts is the author of numerous books including Sleight of Mouth on a set of language patterns for shifting beliefs, Changing Belief Systems with NLP, Beliefs: Pathways to Health and Well-Being with Tim Hallbom and Suzi Smith and many others. He is also the primary author of NLP, Volume 1 with Richard Bandler, John Grinder and Judith Delozier.

He founded Behavioral Engineering – a software company in 1981. There he developed numerous education software programs. Math and Spelling Strategy were licensed by Apple Computer as part of its Special Delivery Software

As a student at the University of California at Santa Cruz (UCSC) in the 1970s, Dilts was the author of the comic strip “Jimmy the Geek“. Dilts graduated from UCSC in 1979.

Robert Dilts studied under Bandler and Grinder since 1975. According to Marilyn Atkinson, founder of Erickson College, Dilts interpreted Gregory Bateson’s work with logical levels which introduced the power of systemic thinking as a framework for asking great questions.

Helene Aubrey, founder of the coach training school IDC in Switzerland, came to coaching after attending an NLP training program in California with Robert Dilts in 1997 when a classmate introduced her to coaching.

In 2003 Dilts wrote From Coach to Awakener and defined coaching as “the process of helping people and teams to perform at the peak of their abilities. It involves drawing out people’s strengths, helping them to bypass personal barriers and limits in order to achieve their personal best, and facilitating them to function more effectively as members of a team.

Thus, effective coaching requires an emphasis on both task and relationship.” Seeing coaching as more outcome-oriented than problem-oriented, Dilts sees coaches emphasizing change while concentrating on defining and achieving specific goals.

Dilts identifies two forms of coaching – executive coaching and life coaching (referred to as capital “C” ). He also sees small “c” coaching as focused at the behavioral level of promoting conscious awareness of resources and abilities, and the development of conscious competence. He defines the competencies and skill set of capital “C” coaching as caretaking, guiding, coaching, teaching, mentoring, sponsoring, and awakening.

Dilts has made many personal contributions to the field of NLP including the authorship of the Encyclopedia of Systemic NLP, based on the work done with Milton Erickson and Gregory Bateson. He is best known for his work on beliefs and strategies. Dilts is the author of numerous important books and workshops, many also translated in Romanian. Since more than 30 years, he has worked as a consultant at some of the biggest companies such as Hewlett Packard, Apple Computer, Fiat, Telecom and Trenitalia.

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