The 7 effect who I have mentioned in my previous blogs (check out my blog, “I want it like air!!”) introduced me to a model called The 7 Neurological Levels, one of the most effective models for creating change at an unconscious level. This model was created by a Robert Dilts a Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) master.
Before we go into and unpack the model and understand how to apply it. I would like to make a distinction between the conscious and the unconscious mind.
What is the conscious mind?
The conscious mind is the part of your mind that is responsible for logic and reasoning. The conscious mind also controls all the actions that you do on intention while being conscious. For example, When you decide to move your hand or leg it is done by the conscious mind.
So whenever you are aware of the thing you’re doing you can be confident that you are doing it by your conscious mind. If currently there is a glass of water beside you and you decided to take a sip then all of this process will be done by your conscious mind because you were 100% conscious while doing it.
What is the unconscious mind?
The unconscious mind is the part of your mind responsible for all of your involuntary actions. Your breathing rate and heart beats are controlled by your unconscious mind. You don’t have to tell your body to breathe.
Your emotions are also controlled by your unconscious mind. That’s why sometimes you might feel afraid, anxious without wanting to experience such a feeling.
Your unconscious mind is also the place where your beliefs and memories are stored.
The 7 Neurological Levels – Robert Dilts
An important point to note, is that we need to understand that it doesn’t matter what you do in the conscious mind until you become very clear on what’s going on in the unconscious mind, and re-program that.
The levels in the model provide a useful structure for trying to make sense of what is happening and understand ourselves. The model reflects, that for sustainable change to be made, it needs to occur / be supported by changes in more than one level. When we are seeking to create change we often spend too much energy in the wrong places. When changes occur at a lower level only (environment, behaviour, skills), it is unlikely that the desired changes will be sustained. We then revert back to our old habits. Most of us spend too much time, energy and money in the bottom 3 layers. Not to say these are not important, but maybe we should be putting more emphasis on the top half of the model being, beliefs, value, identity and purpose.
Let’s work through the layers of the model.
Environment (where, when and with whom you do things)
“This level is about the external environment – including where you are, i.e. your physical environment, the people you interact with, the society and culture of which you are a part.” It brings to mind the below popular quote by Jim Rohan….
Behaviour (what you do or say)
“The behaviour level is concerned with what people do in the environment. Including: thinking, speaking, listening, reacting and taking conscious action with the intention of achieving something.”
Skills (how you do it)
“This level relates to the skills, abilities, strategies, talents and resources that guide our behaviour and enable us to take action. It’s about how we do things and the skills and processes that let us know we can carry out a task or act in a certain way. “
Beliefs and values (what’s important to you)
“What we value and the beliefs we hold about life influence the way we think and act. Beliefs and values generally operate ‘behind the scenes’, out of conscious awareness, which is how people come to have strongly held views that influence everything they do and say.”
Identity (who you are)
“The identity level involves your sense of who you are – your role(s) in life – and also about who you are not. It is about your higher purpose and what you have to offer society and the world at large. “
I love the way Jodie from The 7 effect has given us the following example by applying the model above to explain how important our beliefs, values, purpose and identity are. As she explains, when most people want to create lasting change, the first thing they do is look at their environment. They change the people they hang around or the house they live in or their job. Everything may work for a while but then we may slip back into our old ways. So we then think the problem must be ourselves. So we will look to change our behaviours, maybe we should start to do things differently. Set that alarm, wake up early. Once again we stick at it for a while and then we may slip back into our old habits. But we haven’t given up yet, so we decide to seek the help of a professional and learn new skills and get training. This is where I can say from experience that the coach will work with you to look at your beliefs/values, purpose and identity. To get to know and understand yourself. Once you know these then you can work on your environment etc. to make lasting change.
As a recommendation you may want to document under each of the 7 Neurological levels your desired outcome for each.
For example for “Environment” – where do you want to work, is it in a home studio with lots of light and clean and tidy, or in coffee shops, or business hubs etc. How many days a week do you work, for how long.
Once you have this documented what an excellent resource to read daily and break down into smaller goals to work towards the person who want to be every day…….