In NLP we have this concept called anchoring which, like Pavlov’s Dogs, allow you to attach a signal to a feeling. Pavlov rang a bell and made his dogs salivate.
But a lot of people know that story.
Natural anchors are sprinkled throughout your life. A special perfume aroma brings back a memory, smells work well and my favourite is gasoline which reminds me of cutting grass when I was 16 for some very rich people who owned a mansion and had Aupairs sun bathing in the garden. Now that memory makes me feel good.
Sounds do the same, a tune reminds you of a holiday, an event. The Olympic logo helps people have positive feelings about GB and the country we live in.
I help salespeople create anchors to relive experiences where they had a particularly good state of mind which they would like again. These are often physical anchors such as a touch of the ear lobe or pressing a knuckle or pushing the oyster on the back of the head. If you don’t know where that is ask a sniper.
Sorry about that pattern interrupt, caught you though.
Today I’d like to share with you how you can use anchors with a customer that’s so subtle yet impressively powerful.
Let me explain.
Touch is an incredibly powerful signal and touching people creates an electric current that literally zips through people. So here’s the drill.
When you meet someone, a customer, a coachee, a stranger and you want to know their name, ask them and at the same time, smile broadly with locked-on eye contact and lean across and touch them between the elbow and shoulder of their right arm. This touch has now begun to be anchored and there’s a connection between the two of you. The anchor you’ve created has good resonance, their name, you, big smile, eye contact – good feelings.
Now use this touch again when you want to recreate that good experience and positive state. Perhaps when you’ve presented your solution or idea you could lean across, touch their arm and say “can you feel how good this could be for you?”
Or you might want them to make a decision, lean across and touch their anchored point and say “take your time with this important decision, it does feel right though, don’t you think?”
Rather hypnotic and dead cool. It does work, try it.
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