Right from the beginning, it was our intention systematically to update this book. We want to keep it aligned with NLP, which is spreading and shifting its boundaries. By its very nature it will never stay static. So it is with great pleasure that we have worked on this new edition. The original edition realized a dream we had, and the feedback has indicated that we largely met our outcome: the book is now established as a useful introduction and overview of the field. This new edition continues that dream.
We have made a large number of small changes and a small number of large ones. The first we hope will make a overall difference and add to the quality. The large changes are the addition of new material and an updated resources section. There is a section now on metaprograms. These patterns are coming more to the fore, especially in a business context, so the book needs to reflect this. We have expanded the beliefs chapter, and the modeling section of the last chapter, and would like especially to thank Michael Neill for his contribution to these last two.
The NLP Organizations Worldwide section has been an obvious candidate for updating. It has been revised and expanded to bring in the many new NLP Institutes that have grown up all over the world in the last two years. Our listing is as comprehensive and accurate as we can make it at this time. NLP has grown so rapidly in Germany that a whole book has been published that is devoted to listing German NLP Institutes and trainers. Rather than duplicate this work, we have referred to this book in the listing.
NLP books continue to be published at a rapid rate, so this may be the last edition in which we will have space to make a list with brief comments as a guide.
Changing the main text of the book has been more difficult than we imagined. NLP is like a hologram. Every part connects to every other part. It is a systemic model. To the extent that this book mirrors the systemic nature, changing one part has meant others need to be changed too in sympathy as the reverberations echo down the pages and unwind the skein (to mix a metaphor).
However NLP spreads, there are two ideas that stay constant. NLP embodies the attitude of fascination with people. How do they do what they do? Secondly, the modeling skills: looking constantly for excellence in the world so you can model it and use it. Excellence is all around, sometimes so obvious that we miss it. NLP is about always increasing the choices you have, and we understand by acting and experimenting, not by thinking about it.
We would like also to thank Jay Erdmann and Michael Neill for their help. Also Michael Phillips of Anchor Point Magazine for his help in compiling the NLP organization listing for America. Also Liz Puttick, our editor at Thorsons. And finally all the many friends who gave us feedback and suggestions for this revised edition. Please write to us with your thoughts if you are so moved. Our address is at the end of the book.
Joseph O'Connor
John Seymour
London, January 1993