‘On the count of three, Neville,’ said Professor Lupin, who was pointing his own wand at the handle of the wardrobe. ‘One – two – three – now!’
A jet of sparks shot from the end of Professor Lupin’s wand and hit the doorknob. The wardrobe burst open. Hook-nosed and menacing, Professor Snape stepped out, his eyes flashing at Neville.
Neville backed away, his wand up, mouthing wordlessly. Snape was bearing down upon him, reaching inside his robes.
‘R-r-riddikulus!’ squeaked Neville.
There was a noise like a whip-crack. Snape stumbled; he was wearing a long, lace-trimmed dress and a towering hat topped with a moth-eaten vulture, and swinging a huge crimson handbag from his hand.
There was a roar of laughter
…
‘Forward, Neville, and finish him off!’ said Lupin, as the Boggart landed on the floor as a cockroach. Crack! Snape was back. This time Neville charged forward looking determined.
‘Riddikulus!’ he shouted, and they had a split second’s view of Snape in his lacy dress before Neville let out a great ‘Ha!’ of laughter, and the Boggart exploded, burst into a thousand tiny wisps of smoke, and was gone.
This scene, from Harry Potter and The Prisoner of Azkaban, is one of my favourite bits of J.K. Rowling’s acclaimed series. In it, accident-prone Neville Longbottom finds his courage and vanquishes a Boggart, a creature which takes on the shape of its perceiver’s greatest fear. In beating the Boggart Neville overcomes his fear of Snape, and is empowered. If only we could do that in real life, eh?
Well, actually, we can. Because the power of thought is just that – immensely powerful. With the thoughts that we run through our heads, we are creating our own experience – which is why, with the right set of tools, anybody can conquer their fears and find more resourceful states of being.
Neuro-Linguistic Programming, or NLP, is an approach which provides access to that toolset, enabling those who practice it to change their experience by changing their thoughts. With its emphasis on how we process our experience both consciously and unconsciously, NLP allows us to let go of what we’re thinking by focussing on how we’re thinking. And this approach gives us a great amount of freedom – freedom to let go of fears and create new possibilities in our lives.
Just like magic. So like magic, in fact, that together with the fabulous team at Health and Life Transitions, I will be presenting a Harry Potter themed introduction to NLP.
This one day workshop is running in Lincoln on April 10th, and will cover the following –
Transfiguration: Wouldn’t it be great to be able to turn into anybody you want to be? From fantastic friend to able adventurer, NLP can help you to step into state when you need to be there.
Patronus: A brand new application combining NLP with energy to equip you with your internal safety net and power source.
Imperio: The unconscious mind is our ‘autopilot’, and gets us through the day by making decisions for us from moment to moment. Learn to programme your autopilot and check you’re on the right route!
Cruciatus: Living with chronic pain affects everything else in life. Learn how to listen to what it’s really telling you, and teach it to be quiet!
And of course, popping the Boggart, releasing fears and realising a confident and courageous future!
You can find out more about the workshop here, or by contacting keziah@vibrantselfhealing.com or askus@healthandlifetransitions.com
Keziah Gibbons is an integrated coach and Master Practitioner of NLP. She runs Vibrant Self Healing, to support those who are on a path of healing and/or personal development in getting to where they want to be.
Dr. Janice Russell Dexter and Dr. Graham Dexter are certified NLP trainers, and create and deliver ethical NLP courses in various settings. They set up Health and Life Transitions to make coaching and training accessible to those in need of it.
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