But I may not be giving you the answer you might expect. Just as all car mechanics are not equally talented and all physicians are not equally talented, not all hypnotists are equally talented. And the world is full of very talented hypnotists. Those of us who are talented learn from each other.



There are two necessary ingredients for hypnosis to work:

>rapport

>charisma

Without either, no hypnosis will occur. It's that simple. For instance, we could transcribe a session conducted by a proficient hypnotist and give it to someone who has little or no experience, have him/her read or memorize the script, and end up with different results.

Rapport has to do with trust. If what is said is unbelievable, then rapport is lost. If one's voice is unbelievable, then rapport is lost. What makes one's voice unbelievable? Answer: hesitation, quivering, or if the voice sounds canned--anything that suggests doubt. That's why you can have two different results with two different people using the same script.

When looking at which hypnosis program to purchase there are two basic questions:

1. Does the description of the approach in the program make sense to you? Rule of thumb, just don't rely on a description that says, "Listen to this program and you'll notice dramatic improvement!" Make sure that it describes the essence of the program and that it makes sense to you.

2. Experience: Look for someone with at least ten years clinical or professional experience in private practice. Experience makes a huge difference between the theoretical and the practical.

For instance, if I told you that you could have painless dentistry done without any analgesic such as Novocain, you'd probably find that a stretch. Yet if I told you how it's done, then even though you'd still be doubtful, it would make enough sense to the point you'd give it a shot.

This same power resides in all of us. Not that I'm suggesting you run off to the dentist to test it, but then, that's how I discovered it would work. No one ever hypnotized me or even gave me those suggestions--I did it from what I know about the

power of the mind, self hypnosis, and utilization of stress management techniques--deep breathing and letting go of muscular tension (this is called centering).

That repetitive experience enables me to deliver a realistic effective program to others. Likewise years of experience in empowering others to build self esteem, stop smoking, shed weight, over come life crisis... provides the believability to create and maintain rapport that comes through with charisma.

In choosing a program, make sure it comes with a money back guarantee. Usually it's a thirty-day guarantee--use the program for thirty days and if you experience no change return the program after 30 days and before 45 days (they give you a 15-to-30 day window). This is quite reasonable as change often requires up to 21 days to break an old habit. Unfortunately, you may find that the voice on the audio tape lacks charisma and there's no believability (rapport) and you're stuck with holding onto the cd until the thirty days has passed. Now I'm not talking about diction--even the great Tony Robins makes mistakes in diction. I'm talking about the heart of the voice. Even though most or all of what you hear may be from a well thought out script, the ingredients of rapport and charisma must still be present in order to have results.

If after that thirty days you forget to return self help audio tape in the 15-to-30 day window you're stuck with the program.

I found that the 15-to-30 day window created anxiety, i.e., "what if after 45 days I like the program but am afraid I won't be far enough along the path after 30 days?" This anxiety stood in the way of success which is why all audio tape (actually cds) come with a four month window--plenty time to work with the program as often times it's useful to use a program such as building self esteem for several weeks, then put it away for a few weeks, and then use it again. Each time this is done, the program takes on more value and means something different. And of course without rapport and charisma the programs would be useless.