By Martin Goodyer (United Kingdom)
“NLP is not a religion. There are no high priests of NLP and I am not a God” is how I recall being introduced to NLP by its co-originator Dr Richard Bandler. I had completed a previous programme organised by a firm of London PR agents way back in 1987, but this was at the first ‘Master Practitioner’ training I attended in 1998 with the man himself. Yet, it was years before any of that, that the concepts behind NLP first captured my interest. I’m a business coach and psychologist now, but in my teens I’d wanted to be a performer. I wanted to sing professionally. I’d already started on that path by the time I was 16 and was a cabaret and club singer working hotels, pubs and wherever else would have me. Back then I had dreams of becoming the next Neil Diamond, Tony Christie or Tom Jones – it was a long time ago!
Technically I was not even allowed in a bar in the 1970’s, but if you looked old enough to be there then nobody really asked any questions. So midway through my sixteenth year I found myself ‘resident’ in a big pub singing to crowds of day trippers stopping off for their ‘chicken-in-a-basket’ on the way home from an outing. It wasnot hard to be a hit with middle aged ladies having a tipple, a velvet jacket, frilly shirt and silver ingot was pretty much all it took. Even so, I was always amazed by how emotional some could become. While singing, some would smile, some would just keep on eating and others would well up and cry. Not because it was bad, but because it stimulated an emotion. I was fascinated as to why it was that some people could be unaffected, yet others were brought to floods of tears by the same song, sung at the same time, performed in the same way. It didn’t take long to figure out that it wasn’t actually the song or even the singer, it had to be something to do with interpretation and meaning. The interpretation of each individual and the meanings each one of them was giving to what they’d heard.
Source: iCN Issue 4 (NLP in Coaching); pages 19-21
About Martin Goodyer
Martin Goodyer (MBPsS MAC) has been a full time coach for 15 years with more than 10000 hours of one to one coaching experience. With qualifications in business administration and psychology it is no surprise that the majority of Martins work now is with senior executives and business owners, however he is also a veteran of personal life changing coaching interventions. He is passionate about coaching and teaches coaching skills at the highest level; as an accredited ILM (Institute of Leadership & Management) in the UK, and with a university accredited iABCt (International Academy for Business Coaching & Training) programme in Europe. He is also often invited to work with the media both on air, on screen and behind the scenes. His credits include Channel 4’s ‘Fit Farm’, ITV’s ‘Jack Osbourne Adrenalin Junkie’, Discovery Channels ‘Diet Busters’, and he appears regularly as the on-air coach and psychologist for BBC CWR. He is co-author of audio programmes ‘Business Success Strategies’ and ‘Maintaining Coaching Excellence’ and his new book ‘Brilliant Coaching Conversations’ will be published later in 2013.
