Powerful Self-Hypnotic Suggestion – Use it Wisely – Self-Hypnosis

by Author Cathal O Briain in Advice, July 16, 2010

Extract from "Powerful Mind through Self-Hypnosis" by International Bestselling Author Cathal O’Briain.

When receiving suggestions the subconscious has the IQ of an intelligent child, so avoid using long words or complicated phrases. Simple, positive and direct words have the greatest effect, so keep it basic! Make sure the suggestions you give yourself are not beyond your capabilities. Suggestions must coincide with your belief system and be achievable in reality. Repetition is what reinforces suggestion and helps make it become an instinctive part of your behavioral program. The more you repeat a suggestion, the deeper it takes root. For this reason we must choose our words wisely. Use words like I am instead of I will. If you give the subconscious a suggestion to be carried out at some vague point in the future, there’s a good
chance that when you get to the day in question, it will have forgotten what you asked of it. Keep suggestions in the present tense and say them as if they are an already accomplished fact. The same goes for commands to be carried out in the future, for example, “It’s June the 10th, the day of my speech. I am confident and relaxed, and I am delivering an excellent speech to all assembled.” If the mind is told I am confident, it registers this suggestion as something that is already true and accomplished, and not as something that is vague and distant like I will be confident. Here are some examples of present tense suggestions:

Present Tense
I am
It is
I feel

Future Tense
I will
It will
I will feel

When implanting suggestions or important goals you wish to achieve, make sure to work on one goal at a time. If you give your subconscious too many goals at once, it only gets confused. For example, if you want to give up smoking, stay focused on that goal and don’t overload your mind with a list of other things you want to give up as well. It’s best to deal with one area of improvement at a time. Keep all suggestions focused positively on the desired result and avoid using negative suggestions. This is called the law of reversed effect. People often give themselves negative suggestions even when their intentions are good, for example, “I won’t eat chocolate cake or sweets.” This type of suggestion only spurs the imagination to render an image of chocolate cake and sweets. Once this image has taken root in the subconscious, it must be carried out in reality. What the mind perceives, the mind achieves. So what you should be saying is “I enjoy eating healthy food,” instead of “I won’t eat chocolate cake or sweets.” Now a picture of healthy food is being imagined in the mind and the subconscious can clearly understand what foods are desirable for you to eat.

Remember to keep the most important suggestions till last. The subconscious remembers all suggestions it is given, but it can more readily carry out ones given towards the end of the self-hypnotic session. Make sure to use words that have emotion and feeling behind them such as wonderful, great, beautiful, powerful, successful, proud, etc. When you say them in your mind, say them with conviction.

Cathal O'Briain