

This article is an excerpt from the Shortform book guide to "NLP: The Essential Guide to Neuro-Linguistic Programming" by Tom Hoobyar, Tom Dotz, and Susan Sanders. Shortform has the world's best summaries and analyses of books you should be reading.
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What does success mean to you? How can you turn your definition of success into achievable goals?
NLP: The Essential Guide to Neuro-Linguistic Programming offers powerful tools to help you clarify your vision and create a path toward your goals. These methods combine mental imagery, sensory awareness, and past experiences to boost your confidence and motivation.
Let’s explore three proven NLP techniques for success that will transform how you approach and achieve your dreams.
NLP Techniques for Success
Success means different things to different people—it may involve adopting new habits, communicating more effectively, achieving career goals, or reaching financial milestones. In NLP: The Essential Guide to Neuro-Linguistic Programming, authors Hoobyar, Dotz, and Sanders suggest that, to achieve success, you first need to be clear about what success means to you.
They explain that a lack of clarity about what you want to achieve creates vague or conflicting sensory representations that prevent you from taking decisive action. And, without a clear target to aim for, you’re more likely to focus on obstacles in your way, creating negative mental associations that hold you back. For example, with a vague goal like “get in shape,” you might hold conflicting images of how you want to look, feel uncertain about which exercises to do, and focus on obstacles like lack of time or energy. Hoobyar, Dotz, and Sanders suggest three NLP techniques for success that will help you clarify and move toward what you want:
- Set clearly defined goals that align with your values and desires.
- Create vivid, detailed mental images of what you want to achieve.
- Recall previous achievements, linking the sensory details to your current goal.
(Shortform note: Tony Robbins (Awaken the Giant Within) echoes the authors’ advice to be clear about what you want. He adds that the more specific you are, the easier it is to imagine the benefits of achieving it—these positive expectations increase your motivation to take proactive steps. Additionally, this clarity helps you devise a detailed plan to prepare for and overcome potential obstacles—allowing you to maintain momentum toward what you want.)
Technique 1: Set Clearly Defined Goals That Align With Your Values & Desires
The authors explain that setting clear goals that align with your values and desires ensures that achieving them will be genuinely fulfilling, increasing your motivation and commitment. For example, if you value your health and enjoy challenges, you might refine the goal to “get in shape” as follows: Run a 5K race in under 30 minutes within the next six months.
(Shortform note: In The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, Stephen Covey suggests a method for aligning your goals with your values and desires: Picture yourself at the end of your life, looking back at your proudest moments—focus on what you want to achieve in your various roles (parent, spouse, friend, colleague, and so on). This process helps clearly define who you want to be and what you want to achieve in each area of your life, and it encourages you to imagine how life would look after successfully achieving all your goals.)

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- How your thoughts form and impact you
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