It’s no secret that Milton Erickson was one of the most persuasive and effective “hypnotists” who ever lived.

I use the quotes above because he came up with a completely new way to hypnotize people that didn’t require them to know they were being hypnotized.

When we think of traditional hypnosis, we imagine a guy moving a clock and telling us how sleepy we are. But Erickson took this to a whole new level, which probably isn’t even described as hypnosis unless you know specifically what’s going on.

Why did you invent these patterns?

One would think that someone who comes to a hypnotist’s office to be cured of their fear of heights would be open to the idea of ​​being hypnotized in the traditional way.

Many times, this was not the case. Most of the time, people who came to see a “hypnotist” to cure a problem would be TERRIFIED of being hypnotized.

The funny thing about us humans is that we LOVE our control. We don’t like the idea of ​​giving up control of our brain to someone we just met. Even if they are world famous doctors who can cure people in a matter of minutes.

Which is why Erickson pretty much invented a whole new way of communicating with people on an unconscious level that didn’t rely on the usual “hypnosis” language like “you’re falling asleep…”

So what is it about these patterns that work so well?

One is that they are conversational. The sound is like a normal, everyday conversation back and forth. You can use them in a sales presentation, on a date, or even playing games with people you know in public.

Another reason is that they are incredibly respectful. They are cleverly vague, so the listener will have to “fill in the blanks” with their own ideas and their own experiences. This completely relaxes his critical factor, since you’re not trying to hijack his brain.

The third reason is that you don’t really need to know much about your listener or reader, just maybe they want something similar to what you’re talking about. Some of the “vagueness” mentioned above can easily be used for your criteria, so they’ll fill that in too.

Naturally, when they see someone like you come up and start talking in terms of what you want and how you want it, so that you can easily use your own ideas, experiences and images, you will perceive it in a special way.