The Human Mind: Rapport

The conscious versus unconscious mind has always been a great interest to me and I believe the so often overlooked organic computer between our ears capacity is much greater then we are led to believe.  Because we have these extreme levels of consciousness, we do not really know just how much we absorb and how fast our brains consume information.  Most advertising techniques are based off just that!  Tapping on to a familiar or intense memory in most people’s minds to spark an emotion; so when you come across their products you are drawn to the unconscious familiarity with it. What about when other people do it to each other?

Which brings me to the question “How easy is it to change some one’s mind?”  How many times have you actually walked into a car dealership, just to browse?  Then after talking to a sales person for a couple minutes find yourself behind the driver seat of a new car, imagining how it would be for you to ride around in it.  You may even get to the point of budgeting in your mind how you can make it possible to afford it. Was it the car that was calling to you or was it a sales person on top of his game? 

Many great sales people as well as other occupations that are daily subjected to human interaction acquire a very unique tool whether they know it or not. But through their sales experience, trial and error or whatever the case maybe, they stumbled on NLP.  NLP or Neuro-Linguistic Programming is the study of the structure of our subjective experience in other words what makes us tick.  “The first thing to understand is that NLP is about four things, known as the pillars of NLP…  Rapport, Sensory awareness, Outcome thinking and Behavioral flexibility.”  (Ready & Burton, 2004, p. 12)

Rapport is one of the most important parts of NLP “With rapport anything is possible and without it nothing is possible.”  (Ellis, 2006, p. 195)  Rapport is the verbal or nonverbal connection and or mutual respect between people. (Normally rapport is based on 55% facial expression, gestures, and body posture; 38% tone of voice; and 7% words (Ready & Burton, p. 107,Figure 7-1))  Ever see those old cop movies when they play good cop/ bad cop during the interrogation process.  Well there are a lot more of aspects of mind control and NLP exercised in that process, but overall the good cop try’s to build positive rapport.  The officer offers the suspect a glass of water, cigarette, expresses how much they relate to the suspect, even taking it to the point of speaking bad about their own partner.