From tom@transcore.

com Sun Jan 19 20:32:47 1997

Newsgroups: alt.self-improve
Subject: alt.self-improve FAQ (part 3)
From: tom@transcore.com (Thomas Wong)
Date: Sun, 19 Jan 1997 20:32:47 GMT

5. Lifespring

(From jmd@bear.com, Josh Glazenburg-Diamond)

"I am a graduate of the entire Lifespring program--I took the trainings back
in 1990, and found them to be incredibly valuable.I work as an investment
analyst at a major bank in New York City.

I came into the Lifespring trainings looking for breakthroughs in my career

and in personal relationships (esp. with women), and all I can say is that
since then I have more than tripled my income, and gotten married to a truly
wonderful and beautiful woman (amongst other things). We just bought a co-op,
and will be having our first child next year. My wife has also done the
trainings, as have several of my friends and co-workers.

Lifespring, EST, and a few other such trainings all have a common lineage.
The basis was a research program at Stanford University back in the early 70's.
This spawned an organization called Mind Dynamics, which later split up into
Lifespring, EST, and the others. EST eventually mutated into Warner-Earhardt
and then Landmark Education--with a program now called The Forum. Lifespring
kept its name, but has undergone continuous modernization as new techniques
in personal growth have emerged. There are now Basic and Advanced trainings,
as well as several other workshops and programs.

The Lifespring trainings are an opportunity to uncover and redesign the

underlying assumptions out of which you live your life such that you
experience a profound shift in your ability to relate to yourself and others,
empowering you to fully engage your heartfelt commitments with freedom and
passion.

Participants often invite friends to a guest event--a free evening designed

to allow you to learn about what the training is and how it can support you.
It provides a small preview of the training experience. At the end of the
evening you are given an opportunity to enroll in the training. At the moment
I believe that the tuition in New York City $495, with a 100% money back
guarantee. It may be lower elsewhere (it was when I took the trainings).

I would say that it is worth attending. You can leave at any time, and
there is no obligation to pay if you just attend the guest event.

Oh, BTW, people who enroll their friends in the trainings do not get any
rewards for it (no tupperware or toaster-ovens). Mostly people bring guests
to these evenings because they see some breakthrough possible for them--not
like something is broken, but like a higher possibility exists--maybe
something that had not been thought of before. Often our friends see things
that we do not. Your friend probably sees some possibility for you in the
training, and that is why they have invited you. I say take the chance and
go for it."

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6. Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP)

(From stever@mit.edu, Stever):

NLP was developed in the mid-70s by John Grinder, a professor at U.C. Santa
Cruz and Richard Bandler, a graduate student.

Neuro-Linguistic Programming, as most people use the term, is a set of

models of how communication impacts and is impacted by subjective experience.
It's more a collection of tools than any overarching theory. NLP is heavily
pragmatic: if a tool works, it's included in the model, even if there's no
theory to back it up. None of the current NLP developers have done research
to "prove" their models correct. The party line is "pretend it works, try it,
and notice the results you get. If you don't get the result you want, try
something else."

Much of early NLP was based on the work of Virginia Satir, a family therapist;
Fritz Perls, founder of Gestalt therapy; Gregory Bateson, anthropologist; and
Milton Erickson, hypnotist. It was Erickson's work that formed the foundation
for a lot of NLP, thus the tight connection with hypnosis. Bandler and
Grinder's book "Patterns of the Hypnotic Techniques of Milton H. Erickson,
Volume I" is one of the best books I've ever read on how language influences
mental states.

NLP consists of a number of models, and then techniques based on those models.
The major models usually associated with NLP are: (a) Sensory acuity and
physiology: thinking is tied closely to physiology. People's thought processes
change their physiological state. Sufficiently sensitive sensory acuity will
help communicators fine-tune their communication to a person in ways over
and above mere linguistics.

(b) The "meta-model." A set of linguistic challenges for uncovering the

"deep structure" underneath someone's "surface structure" sentences.
[Sorry for the transformational grammar lingo.]

(c) Representational systems. These actually appeared in Erickson's work and

the work of others, though Bandler and Grinder took them much further.
Different people seem to represent knowledge in different sensory modalities.
Their language reveals their representation. Often, communication difficulties
are little more than two people speaking in incompatible representation systems.

For example, the "same" sentence might be expressed differently by different

people: Auditory - "I really hear what you're saying." Visual - "I see what
you mean." Kinesthetic - "I've got a handle on that."

(d) The "Milton-model." This is a set of linguistic patterns Milton Erickson

used to induce trance and other states in people. It is the inverse of the
meta-model; it teaches you how to be artfully vague, which is what you use
to do therapeutic hypnosis with someone.

(e) Eye accessing cues. When people access different representational systems,
their eyes move in certain ways. Lots of research has been done on accessing
cues. Most of it has "proven" they don't exist. My thesis was on accessing
cues and concluded the same thing. My real conclusion was that a person is
too complex a black box to test this effectively. Also, eyes move in ways that
are NOT related to information accessing. While I can visually tell the
difference between an "accessing cue" and a non-accessing movement, I can't
quantify the difference enough to base research on it.
(f) Submodalities. The STRUCTURE of internal representations determines your
response to the content. For example, picture someone you really like. Make
the colors more intense, as if you were turning up the color knob on a TV. Now
turn the color down, until it's black and white. For most people, high color
intensifies the feeling, and B&W neutralizes it. The degree of color, part of
the STRUCTURE of the representation, affects the intensity of your feelings
about the content.

(g) Metaprograms. These are aspects about how people process information and
make decisions. For example, some people are motivated TOWARDS GOALS, while
others are motivated AWAY FROM non-goals. TOWARDS or AWAY-FROM tells how they
respond to their world; which one a person prefers in a given context will
dramatically change how the person behaves.

NLP has several techniques for diagnosing and intervening in certain

situations. They have a phobia cure, a way to de-traumatize past traumas,
ways to identify and integrate conflicting belief systems that keep you from
doing the things you want, etc.

I first read about NLP in 1978, and thought it sounded great, but couldn't
possibly work. The founders made lots of claims about one-session cures,
which seemed implausible. [Fourteen years later, I still think they
overexaggerate at times, but I *have* seen two or three session results
that rival traditional therapists' results over months.]

In 1984 I took an introductory workshop and discovered, much to my surprise,

that it worked well. After messing someone up to the point where he almost
needed hospitalization, I decided to be trained in it fully, so as not to
repeat the mistake.

I find it works scarily well. So well that even someone with poor training
in it can do a lot of damage. There was no quality control in the field, and
a lot of people go around teaching NLP who know very little about it.
Performing NLP techniques is a skill. Probably only one in ten NLP
Practitioners are in the top 10% of NLP skill level, and maybe even fewer
than that (:-).

ONE WAY an NLP therapist might approach a client session is by understanding

the cognitive structure of how a client creates a problem. They then help
figure out the cognitive structure of an area of life where the client deals
satisfactorily. Then they would teach the client to use the good strategy in
the problem situation.

For example: a friend of mine was obsessed with her ex-boyfriend. She was in
such fear of him that she would fly into hysterics at the thought of him.
Cognitively, she made a big, bright movie of him physically harassing her,
with a soundtrack of him whining and lecturing her. The soundtrack seemed to
come from around her left ear, and was in the boyfriend's voice.

She had another ex-boyfriend who she was fine about. Cognitively, his picture
was small, framed, and in the distance. The soundtrack was her voice talking
about how nice he had been, and how the relationship was firmly in the past.

The work I did with her involved representing the problem boyfriend with a
small, framed picture. We removed the soundtrack of his voice, and added her
narration, instead. The result: she stopped obsessing about her ex, and went
on with her life, able to deal with him.
Some people have run into NLP-trained people (including Tony Robbin's) who
annoyingly mimic body posture to distraction, in an attempt to gain "rapport."
They were poorly trained. Go out in public; watch couples; watch good friends.
They walk in synchronization. They move in synchronization. They NATURALLY
mirror each other's movements. NLP just noticed this, and says "if you don't
have rapport, here's one thing to pay attention to."

A common question is "Does knowing what's being done make it less effective?"
I've found that knowing what someone is doing lets me barricade against certain
things, but there are definite cases where knowledge is not sufficient to keep
it from working. I was once in a group dynamics experiment where an outsider
watched our group and pointed out to us how we kept getting stuck, because of
certain behavioral loops we were in. EVEN WITH THIS KNOWLEDGE, we were unable
to break the loops without incredible effort. And then our efforts to break the
loops fell into the
same loops. Certain aspects
of NLP are like this: if someone is matching your representational systems and
doing it well, even if you are aware of it, they'll still communicate better
to you, as long as they're not incongruent about it.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
madnix!zaphod@nicmad.nicolet.com (Ron Bean)

NLP began by studying therapists who were highly effective,

and observing what they actually did, as opposed to what they
said they were doing--often they did things they weren't
consciously aware of, or couldn't explain adequately. For lack of
any other explanation, it appeared to be "magic".

The major discovery seems to have been that people don't all
think the same way. Many therapists find a technique that works
for several of their patients and try to generalize it to
everyone, and then wonder why some patients are "resistant".
NLP says the patient is not resistant, the therapist is! If it's
not working, try something else.

NLP practitioners start by asking the person a lot of

questions about how their particular thought processes work
(the "submodalities"), and also observing their non-verbal
responses. Then they can suggest specific changes in the person's
thinking that will have the desired effect.

This is very much like a post-hypnotic suggestion, except that

the person is not hypnotized (in the usual sense). It seems to
me that a hypnotist prepares a person's mind to accept a suggestion,
while NLP prepares the suggestion to fit the person's mind.

The other thing that impressed me is that they never assume

they know everything that's going on inside someone's head. When
someone seems to be 'cured', they have the person project
themselves into the future and ask "does any part of you object
to the change?" There may be a "secondary gain" in certain
situations that the initial "cure" didn't address. If there's an
objection, they can deal with it right away, rather than waiting
for the person to "fail" and fall back into the unwanted behavior
(they call this an "ecology check"). Bandler's early training
as a mathematician shows through in his precise use of language,
and his insistance on checking his work.
NLP Practitioners also use other techniques that are borrowed
from various types of therapy, but they are not unique to NLP.

Recommended books:
-1- "Using Your Brain--for a CHANGE" by Richard Bandler.
-2- "Frogs into Princes" by Richard Bandler and John Grinder.
-3- "Patterns of the Hypnotic Techniques of Milton H. Erickson," I & II, by
Richard Bandler and John Grinder.
-4- "TRANCE-formations" by Grinder and Bandler.
-5- "An Introduction to Neuro-Linguistic Programming" by Joseph O'Connor.
-6- "NLP: The New Technology of Achievement" by NLP Comprehensive Training Team.
-7- "Heart of the Mind" by Connirae & Steve Andreas.
-8- "Core Transformation" by Connirae and Tamera Andreas.
-9- "Unlimited Power" by Anthony Robbins.
10- "Beliefs" by Robert Dilts.
11- "Persuasion Engineering" by Richard Bandler and John La Valle.

For more information, read the alt.psychology.nlp newsgroup.

The major provider of NLP seminars and books in the U.S. seems to be NLP
Comprehensive found by Steve and Connirae Andreas. Another excellent source
is Advanced Neuro Dynamics (AND) run by Tad James. They offer trainings in
NLP, Hypnosis, Time Line Therapy, and Huna; their World Wide Web site has
some very good introductory material on NLP. IDHEA Seminars is run by Rex
and Carolyn Sikes. They perform NLP trainings. Rex is also one of the first
people certified as a DHE trainer and Rex and Carolyn are the creators of the
"Attitude Activator" tape. The NLP and DHE page run by Stever Robbins also has
some excellent information. See References and Resources for contact
information.

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7. The People's Network

The following is an article (advertisement) submitted by Paul Boudreau

(email: boudreau@niia.net, phone: 800-261-8044) that describes
the purpose and vision of TPN.

The Company

The Peoples Network is a youthful, privately owned, debt free, over five
year brain child of Jeff Olson and Eric Worre (NSA, Quorum, Texas
Instruments, etc.). The company pre-launch was September 1994 and
satellite program began airing February 1995. The official launch was on
20 July in Dallas TX at TPN's first international conference at Reunion
Arena. The Peoples Network (TPN) was heralded by John Milton Fogg on AOL,
as well as, by Scott DeGarmo of Entrepreneur Magazine. TPN is based, and
programming is broadcast from the Dallas Communication Center, in Dallas,
TX. This is third largest film production studio in the United Sates and
is the birthplace of JFK (Stone), Leap of Faith, Robot Cop II, and more.

The Products

TPN's original product is nearly 200+ hours per month of satellite

programming focused on self-education and personal/professional
development. The company has already attracted over 50 of the top minds
and coaches in every area of life mastery (business and finance,
motivation and inspiration, family and relationships, communications and
sales, health and wellness, fitness and effectiveness, etc.).

Industry leaders including Jim Rohn, Les Brown, Brian Tracy, Bruce Jenner,
Keith Klein, Denies Austin, Michael Gerber, Paul Pilzer, Mark Hansen, etc.
have all aligned themselves with the vision of TPN. In addition to these
top minds in several personal development fields via satellite, TPN
involves its end consumers and representatives with these giants through
the sales and promotions of live training and seminar events! TPN is a
company with a long-term perspective.

TPN's Peoples Direct distribution alliance includes a direct sales arm of

Simon & Schuster Books (Books Plus - expected soon), Music Direct with
Jimmy Bowen of Capital and Liberty Records, The People's Nutrition and
Personal Care, hundreds of faculty products with TPN's Faculty Direct
(CD-ROM software to training audios, to motivation videos, and print
material). A New York based magazine with commisionable subscriptions and
passive sales is expected soon.

TPN's nutritional products are designed to provide people with the

complete, balanced nutrition that is missing in their diet. The
foundation of the system (Phase4+) is actually manufactured by a
pharmaceutical company with the expertise of nutritionists, herbalists,
enzymologists, and other health professionals. This product has many of
the "sizzle" items such at 3 kinds of Pycnogenol, OptiZinc, ChromeMate,
and Super Protein. Other nutrition products include Keith Klein's
Opti*Meal replacement drinks designed for men and women. "Super Green"
foods in Smoothie drink mixes (Sport, Smart, Energy, and Immune
Smoothies), Inter-Cleanse (colon cleanser), Di-Gest (digestive enzymes),
and Re-Shape (a whole food diet system). TPN's Peoples Nutrition has been
the perfect addition to meeting the goal of "Supporting the Never Ending
Quest for the Best Within You."

This is a sample of just one of the product divisions in TPN. TPN

currently has over 300 products; however, this is just the beginning in
matching the goal to be the largest distributor of products, goods, and
services that maintain the values of personal development.

The Support

TPN has turned training into a profit center. TPN's training division
combines every aspect of training: personal training, home study, group
training, audio & video training, live events and seminars all to provide
an on-going, high performance training program at a distributors personal
pace. The Executive Training Program ($295 wholesale) includes three
video tapes, 14 audio tapes, a training transcript and work book, and a
"business building tool box."

Perhaps the most significant support tool (outside the large array of
four-color brochures, prospecting video & audio cassettes, etc.) is the
satellite itself. TPN has leveraged this device for informing the field
affiliates with weekly corporate communications and weekly satellite
business opportunity briefings. Frequent training is aired on a separate
channel in addition to the training by being a product of the product
ensures.

Most of the training and support tools have bonus volume and comissionable
aspects. This is truly a system where you can earn while you learn.
Compensation

Distributors initially earn a retail profit of 15-33% depending on the

items and division. Bonus volume is not less than 70%. Quick start cash
bonuses of up to $2000 are paid for entering the leadership position (a
matrix-like organization of 12 people - 3 with 3). $1000 training bonuses
are paid for helping others enter leadership. Finally, 5-10% commission
are paid on up to 7 generations of leadership.

There are no group volume requirements. Positions are based on

structure/volume. Positions cannot be lost and there are no break aways.
There are no sales quotas and $50 in personal sales volume qualifies a
distributor for bonuses in each division.

TPN is a product-driven company. TPN has taken something that has always
been a secondary product (frequently not a profit center) in MLM --
training and personal development and allowed it to become the primary
product. TPN further, in the spirit of successful internal consumption /
product driven companies, has introduced nutritional, personal car, and other
products to the marketplace that just make sense for our distributors and
customers.

Costs/Benefits Analysis

The new Executive 2000 program has an initial start-up cost of near
$1,000. This is a true representation of the total costs, distributor
fees, product, tax, and shipping. Participation in E-2000 is not
required; however, it makes the most sense. There is a $1,000 incentive
package with audio tapes, Regional and International Conference tickets,
and MasterMind Leadership Event tickets for the new distributor. Further,
this method qualifies you automatically for the maximum bonuses and
commissions in every division each and every month in a convenient and
efficient way. I was so impressed with the E-2000 program I converted
from my original involvement the day I saw the program.

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8. Scientology/Dianetics

The Church of Scientology (originally called Dianetics) was founded by L.

Ron Hubbard. The probable goal of someone in CoS is to become a "clear".
A "clear" is someone who is free of all "engrams". An engram is a trace
left by a traumatic experience that limits your happiness. The major book
on CoS is called "Dianetics" by L. Ron Hubbard. For more information about
Dianetics and CoS, check out a separate newsgroup called,
alt.religion.scientology. It should also be mentioned as a word of caution
that many consider Scientology to be a cult and that a number of ex-members
report the Church using intimidation and control tactics while they were
members and after they left the Church.

There is a Scientology Orientation Seminar which you can sign up for at your
local Church of Scientology (cost $15.00). You can also call 1-800-334-LIFE
for more information.

There are two Web pages specifically for critics of Scientology in the UK:
-1- Martin Poulter, http://mail.bris.ac.uk/~plmlp/scum.html
-2- Steve A, http://www.demon.co.uk/castle/scientology.html
For information on the darker side of Scientology see the following Web pages.
-1- http://www.mit.edu:8001/people/rnewman/scientology/home.html
-2- http://www.cybercom.net/~rnewman/scientology/home.html
-3- Electronic Frontier Foundation,
http://www.eff.org/pub/EFF/Legal/Cases/CoS_v_the_Net/
-4- Skeptic Magazine, http://www.skeptic.com/03.3.jl-jj-scientology.html

For general information on Scientology:

-1- Dave Touretzky http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~dst/Fishman/

-2- FACTNet http://www.lightlink.com/factnet1/
-3- FACTNet archives http://www.xs4all.nl/~fonss/
-4- Bob "Sloth" Bingham http://www.sky.net/~sloth/sci/sci_index.html
-5- Tilman Hausherr http://www.snafu.de/~tilman
-6- Modemac http://www.tiac.net/users/modemac/cos.html
-7- David Dennis http://amazing.cinenet.net/scientology.html
-8- Daniel Tobias http://www.webcom.com/~dtobias/sosueme.html
-9- Jerod Pore http://www.well.com/user/jerod23/clam.html

Misc Infomation:

-1- http://www.tiac.net/users/modemac/atack.html, "The Total Freedom Trap:

Scientology, Dianetics, and L.Ron Hubbard" by Jon Atack History of the CoS
and its founder; Origins and evolution of doctrine and practice;
Organizational structure of CoS and subsidiaries.

-2- http://www.cybercom.net/~rnewman/scientology/media/time-5.6.91,
"Thriving Cult of Greed and Power" Time Magazine cover article, May 6, 1991.

-3- http://www.demon.co.uk/castle/xenu/, "The Road To Xenu" by Margery

Wakefield. First-person accounts of security checks, bullbaiting, living
conditions of Sea Org children, the OT3 "wall of fire", being put in an Ethics
condition, the RPF, having to disconnect from her father.

-4- http://www.demon.co.uk/castle/penny.html, "Social Control Within

Scientology" by FACTnet director Bob Penny. Ever wonder how people get trapped
by a cult like Scientology? A companion to Wakefield's "Road to Xenu", this
book by an ex-Scientologist explains the mechanisms, explicit and subtle,
by which Scientology subverts the independence of its members.

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C/ Popular People and Media

1. Richard Bandler & John Grinder

Richard Bandler along with John Grinder, are the co-founders of Neuro-
linguistic Programming (NLP). Richard is the creative driving force behind
the development of NLP and the new field called Design Human Engineering
(DHE) which has evolved from NLP. In 1988 Richard was arrested for murdering
a dominatrix and was later acquitted. He is currently teaching advanced NLP
and hypnosis trainings.

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2. Stephen Covey (7 Habits of Highly Effective People, etc.)

Stephen Covey is the author of "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People"
which has been on the New York Times Bestseller list for the past several
years. The subtitle of 7 Habits is "Restoring the Character Ethic". This sums
up how Covey's work is different from many other approaches. While at Harvard
doing his MBA he researched a large portion of the self improvement literature
going back as far as the 18th century. What he noticed was that early on the
work focused on character traits and principles and that long term success
depended upon this. Early this century, the focus shifted to what he calls
the "personality ethic" which became the dominant theme in success literature.
In the personality ethic, success is viewed as a function of personality,
public image, attitude, skills, and techniques. If you learned the right
techniques and could impress the right people and you would be successful.
Much of Covey's work is focused on restoring the character ethic as the
principle focus, skills and techniques can only be successful in the long
term if they are built upon a strong character ethic.

Covey received his PhD from Brigham Young University where he spent many years
as a professor in the School of Management. He is also the founder of the
Covey Leadership Center and the nonprofit Institute for Principle-Centered
Leadership. Stephen and his center are widely sought by major corporations
as speakers and consultants. In addition to his 7 Habits he has authored,
"How to Succeed with People", "Principle-Centered Leadership", "First Things
First". In addition to his business writing Covey is also very popular among
members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints for writing books
dealing with religious and spiritual topics. Some of these books are,
"Spiritual Roots of Human Relations", "The Divine Center", and "Marriage and
Family Insights".

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3. Tad James

Tad James is a leading trainer of NLP and Hypnosis around the world. He
received a Bachelor's degree in speech and a Master's degree in Communications
from Syracuse University. He began his business career managing a radio station
in Wisconsin. In order to become successful as a broadcaster, Tad devoted
himself to learning sales, business, and management. He married and gradually
developed a successful business career, first in broadcasting and later as a
business consultant.

As problems developed in his marriage, he began to seek answers. He looked to

Transcendental Meditation and for a while, it seemed to solve some of the
problems he was dealing with. His work required a move to Hawaii to manage
another radio station, and eventually, with investors, bought a radio a radio
station and made more money.

After his first marriage failed, Tad married again and continued his quest for
further answers. He became involved with NLP and Hypnosis and, today, is a
Master Trainer of NLP and holds a Ph.D. in Ericksonian Hypnosis from the
American Institute of Hypnotherapy. He is a member of the faculty of the
Ericksonian Congress which is held bi-annually.

Tad is also the developer of Time Line Therapy and is the author of several
books,
including, "Time Line Therapy and the Basis of Personality," "The Secret of
Creating
Your Future," and "The Lost Secrets of Ancient Hawaiian Huna." Tad currently
spends
his time teaching seminars all over the world and in addition, recently became
President of the American Institute of Hypnotherapy.

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4. Anthony Robbins

(Editor Loren's Note: The following comments on Tony Robbins are based on
personal recollections of past discussion in the group and personal experiences,
additional contributions are as always more than welcome).

Anthony Robbins is one of the most prolific self-improvement personalities

currently around. He is probably best known for his infomercials pitching
his 24 cassette self improvement program called "Personal Power". He is the
author of two bestselling books, "Unlimited Power" and "Awaken the Giant
Within". He started his public speaking career giving seminars with Harvey
and Marilyn Diamond on physical health. Soon they parted company and Tony
began offering seminars on a fairly new subject called Neuro-linguistic
Programming. After a very short training, he began to aggressively promote
himself at the "foremost NLP practitioner in the world".

For a short time he was a business partner with John Grinder who helped invent
NLP.
He began going on television shows like Sally Jesse Raphael and cure people of
serious phobias right there on the spot. Soon he was asked to write a book and
put together a series of tapes based on the live seminars he was giving all
around
the United States. His infomercial soon followed, which made him very famous.
Tony is now involved in running at least 8 companies from financial planning to
a
Fijiian resort to his self-improvement seminar company. In recent years his
schedule
has reduced the number of live seminars he does around the country, but he
still does an average of 5-6 seminars a month.

Tony's programs vary tremendously and have a large scope. His material varies
from changing your values and beliefs to managing your emotional states.
One simple technique he teaches is called "Morning/Evening Questions".
The idea is that when you wake up in the morning, you ask yourself questions
that will put you into a peak state and focus you on the positive, exciting,
truly motivating aspects of your life. For example you might ask, "What am I
really excited about in my life?" or "What am I really grateful for in my
life?" or "What could I accomplish today that would really make life better
for myself and those around me?" Tony's philosophies focus on contribution
and creating value for others as an integral part of creating success for
yourself. If you create more value for those around you than anyone else and
do it with a sense of fun and enjoyment, how can you fail to be happy and
successful?

Does the Personal Power tape program (as seen on TV) really work? As anyone
who reads alt.self-improve for very long, you will find that there are many,
many Tony Robbins enthusiasts in the group. This question is one of the most
frequently asked. In general when this question is raised, a wide variety of
answers are naturally given ranging from "Personal Power totally turned my
life around" to "It's a good program and I got a lot out of it" to "it didn't
help me very much." I've heard very few really negative responses. The program
is fairly costly: ~$179. Success in this like anything depends very much
on one's commitment to follow through and apply what you learn.

Is attending a live seminar worth the money? Attending one of Tony Robbins
live seminars, as almost any who has been will tell you, is a fairly amazing
experience. Tony is a vibrant, energetic, and very entertaining speaker.
His shortest seminar lasts on the order of 10-12 hours (Strategic Influence,
cost ~$179) to the 9-Day Mastery Program (cost, ~$5000). His seminars are very
high energy and there can be anywhere from 250 - 3000 people attending a single
seminar. In spite of the large attendance Tony seems to make the seminars very
personal and interactive. Not everyone who goes feel that it changed their life
or that it was an amazing experience (especially those who shell out $,5000).
General comments are usually very positive and I seriously doubt that Tony
has lectured to any non-capacity crowds in the past few years. I have heard
several people say that the Mastery program was not worth $5000. Most people
seem to feel that seminars such as "Unlimited Power Weekend" and "Strategic
Influence" are fun experiences if not wonderful investments.

Tony's popular Personal Power tapes was updated as Personal Power II in 1996.
However, according several users of this group, most of the contents were the
same as the first version. Some said there was a 5% change.

For information on how to contact Tony Robbins' company see References and
Resources.

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5. Marshall Sylver

What is the general opinion of Marshall Sylver's Program "Power, Passion,

Profit"? Nearly all the comments recently have been quite negative about
this program, but the number of people who have actually listened and those
that have only seen the infomercial is hard to determine. Here are some
assorted comments from people who HAVE listened to the tapes:

-1- Joe Slattery <pp000586@interramp.com> writes:

"His tapes sound like you're listening to "Eight hours of cliches on how to
get off your butt." His examples reduce his discussion to incorporate the rare
ten-year old who wants Passion, Profit and Power."

His section on "Passion", although he says his comments apply to all

relationships, really apply 75-80% to troubled love lives.

If you've listened to Tony Robbins as much as I have, you can't help but
notice the virtual quotes. (Like "the quality of your life is the quality of
your communication", even though that isn't Tony's quote either.)

What I did like--he dares to discuss the possibility that being a nice guy
is part of life long success in all areas of life.

-2- ajop@aol.com (Ajop) writes:

"Yes there are some universal truths that Mr. Sylver covers that others do.
Why? because they are true and need to be said. Heck, a lot of Tony's book is
based on Bandler and Grinder, which is based on Erickson. Take all the good
things of the world and time transform them into an understandable straight
to the point program that gets to the subconscious of people's minds and
creates the change people want, and you have Passion, Profit & Power.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

D/ Reference and Resources

1. Resource List

The following listing of information has not been fully verified.

Please advise the editors if you know of any mistakes or updates.

Accelerated Learning Association

50 Aylesbury Road
Aston Clinton, Aylesbury
Bucks, England
Director: Colin Rose

Advanced Neurodynamics (Tad James) 1-800-800-MIND (6463) [Orders]

1-808-941-2021 [Information]
email: mind@aloha.com

Australian Institute of NLP

P.O. Box 1
University of Queensland
St. Lucia, QLD 406707 369 2821

Buzan Centre (USA)(407) 881-0188

Buzan Centre (UK)(0202) 534572

Church of Scientology, 1-800-334-LIFE

CoCo Systems Ltd., (UK) 0494 434464 (from the UK) +44 494 434464 (from
elsewhere)

Est, 1-415-882-6300 (San Francisco), 1-408-522-9600 (Sacramento)

Evelyn Wood Reading Dynamics, 1-800-447-READ, Fax: 939-1680

Franklin Quest, 1-800-654-1776, 1-800-977-1776

Guthy-Renker, 1-800-274-4910

IDHEA Seminars (Rex Sikes), 1-414-335-9700, 1-800-739-7453, (414) 355-4777 (FAX)

Jim Rohn International, 1-800-929-0434

Landmark Education, 1-415-882-6300, 1-916-648-1060, 1-408-522-9600

Life Long Learning Association, 1-519-725-2152

Marshall Sylver, 1-800-92-POWER

NLP Books Etc. 1-800-783-1184 (Colorado)

NLP Comprehensive, 1-800-233-1657
NLP Meta Publications, 1-415-464-0254, Fax: 664-8044
New Jersey NLP Institute, 1-800-35-NLPNJ, 1-201-770-1084
New York Training Institute for NLP, 1-212-473-2852
New York Milton H. Erickson Society, 1-212-628-0287, 505-6141 (Mailing list)
Nightingale-Conant, 1-800-323-5552
Option Institute, 1-413-229-2100

People's Network, The, 1-800-799-2713, 004-422-2122 x590 (FAX)

Robbins Research International (US), 1-800-445-8183

Robbins Research International (UK), 0044 71 376 0808

Seminar Software, 1-214-361-4227

Theta Technologies, 1-800-395-9148 (order), 1-206-222-6962 (customer service)

Timeworks, 1-708-558-1300, 1-800-323-7744 (order)

Zygon Inc (206) 885-9200

* Internet Web Sites

Advanced Neuro Dynamics Web Page (Tad James), http://www.aloha.com/~mind/

Altered States of Consciousness (Hypnosis FAQ),
http://www.utu.fi/~jounsmed/asc/asc.html
American Society of Training and Development, http://www.astd.org
Big Dreams (hypertext personal/business success newsletter),
http://www.wimsey.com/~duncans/
Cooper, Dr. Morton, http://www.voice-doctor.com
Covey Leadership Center, http://www2.pcy.mci.net/marketplace/covey/
http://www.ozemail.com.au/~covey/
Creativity Web Page, http://www.ozemail.com.au/~caveman/Creative/
Forum Graduate Association, http://lute.qnet.com/~fgainc
Huna, http://www.hypnosis.com/nlp/hunach1.htm
Hypnosis Information, http://www.hypnosis.com/
IDHEA seminars, http://www.rain.org/~da5e/idhea.html
Institute of HeartMath, http://www.webcom.com/~hrtmath
Leading Edge Communications, http://www.cadivision.com/

Home_Pages/accounts/leadedge/home.html
Marketing for Success & TPN, http://infoweb.magi.com/~jbsmith/
Mind Gear, http://www.netcreations.com/mindgear/
Mind Media, http://www.mindmedia.com/
Mind Tools, http://www.gasou.edu/psychweb/mtsite/index.html
NLP and DHE, http://www.nlp.com/nlp
NLP Seminars Group, http://www.purenlp.com
Option Institue, The (Happiness is a Choice), http://www.option.org
Psychology Self-Help Resources, www.gasou.edu/psychweb/resource/selfhelp.htm
Richard Bandler, The First Institute of NLP and DHE,
http://www.dnai.com/~1st_isnt/
Stanford University News & Information Services, http://www.reference.com
SelfGrowth Homepage, http://www.selfgrowth.com
Stellar Business, http://corp.tig.com/stellar/global/index.html
SuccessQuest (Magazine for Entrepreneurs), free, email to "MAALLEN@DELPHI.COM"
Self Esteem Mailing list, self-esteem-self-help@netcom.com.
The People Network, http://www.ns.net/~sjmoore/tpn.html
Time-Line Therapy, http://www.hypnosis.com/nlp/tltbop.htm
Tony Robbin (free book info), http://www.cvt.co.uk/success/jim.html
Thought of the Day Mailing List, galvin@tam2000.tamu.edu
Trance-Action Consultants, http://www.trance-action.com
TranceNeet, http://www.trancenet.com

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
2. Software Packages

(1) (From a reader)

"One of the best selling software packages of all time was Mind Prober, by
Human Edge Software. I was quite surprised not to see it mentioned in your
list of self-improvement aids. Human Edge is now out of business, but there
are a few amazing software packages currently out there that cover each of
the areas you have mentioned: learning and intelligence, motivation, and sales
and negotiation.

The best of these are grounded heavily in strongly validated research in social
and behavioral science. I know that Neuralytic Systems of Redwood City has put
out a brain-builder called IQ smarts that assesses one's strengths in areas of
Analytical (Abstract/Symbolic), Creative (Lateral/Associative), and Practical
(Problem Solving/Memory) Intelligence. It then selects a series of exercises
that bring stronger areas to bear on weaker ones.

I believe that Human Edge had also put out products called Negotiation Advisor,
Sales Advisor, and Motivation Advisor. Whoever bought them out may still own
the rights to these packages. Those products generate a frightfully accurate
assessment of the personalities of both individuals involved in a negotiation
and generate a report with incredibly specific strategies for dealing with the
other person.

I have all of these on my shelves. Being interactive and adaptive, I have found
software to be much more effective than broad global strategies. Software can
provide very individualized solutions that a book or a set of tapes can not.

(2) (From roberts108@aol.com, RobertS108)

Dr. Delgado has released a 3 hour audio CD covering many of his health
strategies (Tony Robbins quotes from Delgado extensively in his Living
Health audio program). The CD covers: exercise, nutrition, life extension,
and disease elimination. This is available from Seminar Software.

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3. Reader Ratings of Books/Audiotapes/Seminars

The question frequently comes up about "What do people think of product X?"
This appendix will try to create a fast way of viewing the general opinion.
Obviously no product can be summarized with a single number and hopefully this
won't discourage questions and discussion, just provide a more concise way of
capturing the general view. You can vote for a book, audiotape, seminar that
you have experience with by sending me a list with your vote. The easiest way
is to just cut out the list below and put your vote out to the side. If you
are posting a book review, including a rating on a scale of 1-10 and they'be
added to this list automatically.

Books Average/Voters
----- --------------
As a Man Thinketh (Allen) 9.25/2
Three Magic Words (Anderson) 4.0/1
Frogs into Princes (Bandler, Grinder) 9.5/1
Structure of Magic (vol. 1) (Bandler, Grinder) 8.75/2
Structure of Magic (vol. 2) (Bandler, Grinder) 4.0/1
Use Your Brain For a Change (Bandler, Grinder) 9.0/1
The Magic of Rapport (Michael Brooks) 8.5/1
Procrastination (Burka, Yuen) 5.0/1
Genius (Buzan) 5.5/1
Make The Most of Your Mind (Buzan) 7.25/2
Speed Reading (Buzan) 6.25/2
Use Both Sides of Your Brain (Buzan) 6.5/1
Use Your Perfect Memory (Buzan) 7.0/1
The Artist's Way (Cameron and Bryan) 10.0/1
How to Win Friends and Influence People (Carnegie) 6.8/7
Wealthy Barber, The (Chilton)
Creating Affluence (Chopra) 9.5/1
Perfect Health (Chopra) 6.0/2
Quantum Healing (Chopra) 7.5/2
Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion (Cialdini) 10.0/1
Richest Man in Babylon (Clason) 9.0/1
You Can Negotiate Anything (Cohen)
First Things First (Covey, Merill, Merill) 9.47/3
7 Habits of Highly Effective People (Covey) 8.57/7
Principle Centered Leadership (Covey) 7.5/1
DeBono's Thinking Course (de Bono) 9.5/1
I Am Right You are Wrong (de Bono) 7.5/1
Lateral Thinking (deBono) 7.83/3
Use of Lateral Thinking (deBono) 7.0/1
Fit for Life (Diamond, Diamond) 6.75/2
Fit for Life II: Living Health (Diamond, Diamond) 6.75/2
Your Money or Your Life (Dominguez and Robin) 8.0/2
Gifts From Eykis (Dyer)
No More Holiday Blues (Dyer)
Pulling Your Own Strings (Dyer) 6.0/1
Real Magic (Dyer)
Sky's The Limit (Dyer)
Your Erroneous Zones (Dyer) 6.0/2
You'll See It When You Believe It (Dyer) 6.0/1
Overcoming Procrastination (Ellis)
The Evelyn Wood 7 Day Speed Reading and Learning Program (Frank)
Man's Search For Meaning (Frankl) 8.33/4
Creative Visualization (Gawain) 6.5/2
Financial Self Defense (Givens)
Super Self: Doubling Your Personal Effectivenss (Givens) 10.0/1
Wealth Without Risk (Givens) 7.0/1
How to Audition for Film and TV (Renee Harmon) 8.0/1
You Can Heal Your Life (Hay) 5.0/1
Choices (Helmstetter) 8.5/1
Master Keys to Riches (N. Hill) 9.5/1
Think and Grow Rich (N. Hill) 8.2/6
Time Power (Hobbs)
Dianetics (Hubbard) 4.0/3
Mega Brain (Michael Hutchinson) 6.0/1
Mega Brain Power (Michael Hutchinson) 8.0/1
The Lost Secrets of Ancient Hawaiian Huna (Tad James)
Secret of Creating Your Future (Tad James) 4.0/1
Time Line Therapy and the Basis of Personality (Tad James)
Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway (Jeffers) 8.5/1
Survival: A Manual on Manipulating (William Jones) 8.0/1
Happiness is a Choice (Barry Neil Kaufman) 10.0/2
To Love is to Be Happy With (Barry Neil Kaufman) 10.0/2
Breakthrough Rapid Reading (Kump)
How to Take Control of Your Time and Your Life (Lakein) 8.75/2
Profiles of Genuis (Jean Landrum)
Mastery (Leonard) 8.0/1
Thinking Better (Lewis, Greene)
Psycho-Cybernetics (Maltz) 7.88/4
Greatest Salesman in the World (Mandino) 6.33/4
Greatest Reaches of Human Nature (Maslow) 9.0/1
Mastering the Information Age (McCarthy) 9.0/1
Always at Ease (McCullough) 2.0/1
Time Management for Unmanageable People (McGee-Cooper,Trammel)
Life 101 (Peter McWilliams) 9.0/1
The Way of the Peaceful Warrior (Dan Millman) 8.5/1
Unlimited Selling Power (Donald Moine and Kenneth Lloyd) 9.0/1
The Power of Positive Thinking (Peale) 8.0/1
The Road Less Traveled (Peck) 8.75/2
Age of Propaganda (Pratkanis and Aronson) 7.0/1
Outrageous Betrayal: Werner Erhand's Dark Journey from est
to Exile (Stephen Pressman)
Don't Shoot the Dog (Pryor) 7.0/1
Executive Time Management (Reynolds, Trammel)
Magic of Rapport (Jerry Richardson) 9.0/1
Awaken the Giant Within (A. Robbins) 8.13/4
Giant Steps (A. Robbins) 7.5/1
Unlimited Power (A. Robbins) 9.0/5
Do You Really Need Eyeglasses (Rosanes-Berrett)
Overcoming Indecisiveness (Rubin) 8.5/1
Wishcraft (Sher)
I Could Do Anything if I Only Knew What It Was (Sher) 5.0/1
10 Natural Laws of Time and Life Management (Hyrum Smith)
Accelerating (R. Sterling)
Maximum Achievement (Brian Tracy)
Hope and Help for Your Nerves (Claire Weeks)
Getting Organized (Winston)
Secrets of Closing the Sale (Ziglar)
See You At the Top (Ziglar) 8.0/1
Don't Just Do Something, Sit There! 8.0/1

Audio Tape Programs Average/Voters

------------------- --------------
Succeeding Through Inner Strength (Nathaniel Branden)
Power of Persuasion (Roger Dawson)
Basic NLP Practioner Training (Tad James) 9.5/1
Personal Power (Anthony Robbins) 9.0/2
PowerTalk (Anthony Robbins) 10.0/1
Unlimited Power (Anthony Robbins) 9.0/1
Power, Passion, Profit (Marshall Sylver)
Action Strategies for Personal Achievement (Brian Tracy)
Psychology of Achievement (Brian Tracy) 6.0/1
Psychology of Winning (Dennis Waitley) 6.5/2

Seminars Average/Voters
-------- --------------
The Forum 8.0/2
Lifespring Basic 9.0/1
Lifespring Advanced 8.0/1
Photoreading
Breakthrough to Inner and Outer Influence (Tad James)
Huna Introduction: The Lost Secrets of the Ancient Hawaii (Tad James)
Secret of Creating Your Future (Tad James)
Time Line Therapy Training (Tad James)
Mastery (A. Robbins)
Date With Destiny (A. Robbins)
Strategic Influence (A. Robbins) 9.5/1
Unlimited Power Weekend (A. Robbins) 10.0/1

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4. Who's Who Listing of Professionals in alt.self-improve

Listed here is a guide of professionals in alt.self-improve who offer various

information, services, and products. You may correspond with them directly.
Please use your judgment when using these professionals. You shall not hold
the editors responsible for your actions.

If you want to be included in this listing, please submit the following

information to <tom@transcore.com>:
- Your name.
- Your e-mail address.
- Your expertise (limited to 25 words).
- What you want to offer (either free or for a fee, limited to 50 words).

(1) Kelly Baquet (bultpruf@popd.ix.netcom.com)

* My background is primarily the entertainment industry, but my true
love has always been personal development. I heard the most amazing tape
called "Dead Doctors Don't Lie." Entertaining. Informative. Provocative.
When I realized that tons of other people will reactive EXACTLY like I did when
THEY hear the tape....the next step was easy. A home-based business,
using this tape to do the "hard" part. E-mail for a free copy of the tape &
details.

(2) Paul Stephen Boudreau, Jr. (boudreau@niia.net).

* Purdue University degree in Physics and Psychology. Several years of
experience in industry and social work. Several years of experience in
Multilevel Marketing or Network Marketing. Currently working towards NLP
certification. * To the readers of alt.self-improve, I would say:
"Consider being a part of the home-seminar revolution." Think of getting
all the value of the top minds in your home. No more travel, no more
complex schedules, etc. TPN brings 240+ hours per month of self/professional
development programing for 50 cents/hour. In addition TPN can open up new
profit centers for you as a home-based business.

(3) Robert-Michael Kaplan (Beyond_20/20@Sunshine.net).

* O.D. and M.Ed. Author of "Seeing Beyond 20/20" and "The Power Behind Your
Eyes." * I educate and assist individuals in eye sight improvement training.
My Vision Fitness programs utilize "natural vision" methods and they are
available as workshops, private consultations, and retreats. Email me for
details. Phone: (604) 885-7118, Fax: (604) 885-0608.

(4) Aaron Lewis (ASL2@ukc.ac.uk).

* Memory, memory techniques and learning; language learning; and occasionally
my physics degree. * I have written an article on memory which is as good as
any commercial product and is freely distributable (i.e. FREE!). Email me,
and I'll send you a copy. I hope to find a space for it and various other
memory-related materials on the WWW before long; in the mean time, I welcome
your inquiry about the above subjects!
(5) Paul "the soarING" Siegel (soarsegl@ix.netcom.com).
* Writer, seminar leader and counselor on developing a grand personal vision.
Author of DESIGN YOUR FUTURE: Live Your Vision in the Ever-Changing Learning
Society. * I'm offering: (a) FREE - a Vision Palette, a questionnaire to help
you define yourself so you could paint a true vision. (b) FREE - a chance to
be a part of a learning community on self-development. Just tune into:
< http://www.tricky.com/design-your-future.html >. (c)HALF-PRICE - My book,
DESIGN YOUR FUTURE. Phone: 1-800-706-8474.

(6) David Riklan and Michelle Weintraub (usd38778@interramp.com).

* Self Inprovement Online is the most complete guide to information about
personal growth, self-improvement, self-help, human enhancement, self-
actualization, self-awareness, and personal power on the Internet. It has
links to companies, organizations, magazines, and other resources. Visit
< http:// www.selfgrowth.com >.

(7) Rex Steven Sikes (rssikes@execpc.com).

* We are a full service NLP and DHE training institute. We run the full gamet
training programs and carry audio, video and book product. We also teach my
developments in the fields of DHE and NLP, as well as my developments with
accelerated learning known as Mind Design(tm). Email: cksikes@execpc.com to
receive a free product catalog and training guide.
Homepage: < http://www.rain.org/~da5e/idhea.html >.

(8) David Smith (bladex@bga.com).

* I moderate a closed mailing list for graduates of the Landmark Forum. Those
interested should e-mail me for an application. Thanks.

(9) Thomas Wong (tom@transcore.com).

* Self-help approaches, communication skills for foreign-born, NLP, Eric
Morris System of Acting, and metallurgical engineering. * I can discuss
and provide reference sources on self-improvement subjects and communication
trainings. My book, American Communication Training ($9.95), can be
purchased at (800) 507-BOOK. Visit < http://www.transcore.com >.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

E/ Sample Hot Topics for 1996

Memorizing Body Movements

Speed Seduction Retards
Landmark Brainwashing
Speed Reading
Time-Line Therapy
Self-Help Methods & Strategies
Concentration Improvement Help?
Public Speaking
The 7 Habits
Happiness from an NLP Perspective
Goals Vs Principles
Feeling Guilty When Asking a Woman Out
Missing the Key
Hostile People Die Early
Power Talk
Weekly Word of Wisdom
Partner with Mark V. Hansen
Scientology and John Travolta
Seeking Suggested Books for Reading
Tony Robbins Info Sought
Religous Respect
Self-Improvement Newsgroups?
Kevin Hogan: "The Psychology of Persuasion"
73855 Perceptions from Only Your Name
Personal Power I Versus Personal Power II
Baby Boomers in Mid-Life Crisis
Speed Reading Books
What Pascal Forgot (NLP)
Howard Berg's Mega Reading
Scientific Proof (NLP)
Audio or Books
Jesus, CEO
Happiness = Mentally Ill?
Power Metaphors
Yoshiro Nakamats
Interviews with Grinder & Bandler
The Nature of Reality
Books on Family
Any Good Books on Confidence & Self-Esteem?
Concentration/Focus Exercises
Zygon's Supermind
Best & Worst Pickup Lines
Any Good Books on Confidence & Self-Esteem?
Carlton Sheets
EN Quotations #1
Advice on the Advice Given Here
Improve Growth Rate?
Personal Organizer
Conquering Cancer or Any Disease
Meaning of Life

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The End