NLP Strategies for Shopaholics and Other Impulsive Behaviours

Why do some people shop til they drop? Because they use the wrong strategies. When you understand your strategies, you will discover the key factor(s) driving (some of) your behavior. Then you will be able to choose whether to make changes to your strategy.

The Four Major Categories of Strategies:

Decision

Learning

Motivation

Belief

A Well Formed Strategy:

has a clear definition of the goal you wish to achieve

has both internal and external forms of achieving your goal

uses 3 senses (seeing, hearing, feeling) or more to achieve the goal

has a logical sequence and no missing steps

has the least number of steps to achieve the goal

produces action after a set number of steps / specific length of time

has a natural test - operate - test - exit progression.

1 TEST = compare where you are now with where you wish to be

2 OPERATE = do what you need to do to close the gap left by the comparison

3 TEST again from where you are now

4 EXIT

5 Ways to Install a Strategy:

Role play

Mental rehearsal

Anchoring - associating one thing with another

Reframing - giving a situation a different meaning

Metaphor

3 Ways to Change a Strategy:

Sequence: change the sequence / order of activities that make up the strategy

State: change your physiological state of being

Content: change the content of your strategy

The Value of Strategies in Daily Life:

When you understand your strategies, you will discover the key factor(s) driving (some of) your behavior. And then you will be able to choose whether to make changes to your strategy.

Shopoholics, if you have a buying strategy that when you see something you like, you buy it on impulse, this doesn't work, because it's

1. you see it - 2. you feel you want it - 3. you buy it

and so it's missing some steps. Insert some TEST step into the sequence, such as talk to yourself about whether you need / can afford it, think about the consequences, or make several comparisons before you buy it. For example:

1. see it - 2. feel you want it - 3. ask yourself whether you need and can afford it - 4. compare it with more items - 5. feel you still want it - 6. buy it

I used the example of shopoholic, but you can use this approach for any other impulsive behaviour.

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