5 Ways To Enhance Learning

Learning is a very personal process and it is different for everyone.  Unfortunately, most of our formal learning systems are very rigid in the way they are expressed and funnel everyone into the same method of learning.  Many of us have been squeezed into a system of education that requires us to learn how the system wants us to learn, rather than how our brain wants to learn.  Some people adapt successfully to imposed learning processes, whilst others find it challenging to connect with information which is presented in a format which falls outside of their preferred learning strategy.  At best, the non-adapted learner assimilates only a percentage of the presented information, at worst, they are labelled as having learning difficulties and channelled into remedial tuition or they get disheartened and just give up the learning process.

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When you teach, or are taught by a teacher or trainer, are preferred learning styles taken into consideration before the lesson begins?  If the answer is no, a great deal of potential learning is probably being lost in the delivery of the lesson.  A great teacher is one who is able to translate ideas, both simple and complex, into a language that the learner can understand and process in a natural and unconscious way.

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So how can you elicit someone’s preferred learning style?  Firstly, you listen.  The language used by the learner will give you a great deal of information about how they learn naturally, how their brain wants to learn. So this is the first of 5 key ways that learning NLP can assist you to assist the learners in their endeavour to learn.

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Representational systems are how you encode your thinking, so that the information you receive makes sense to you.  Most of us have one preferred representational system.  The most prevalent systems are:

 Visual - Pictures

 Auditory - Sounds

 Kinesthetic - Feelings

 Auditory Digital – Self Talk (Operates alongside one of the above systems)

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Visual learners will need to see something in order to learn efficiently.  They may need to see someone performing the exercise before they can fully understand the detail of what they are required to produce.  They may need to study pictures or watch DVDs/videos of others performing the exercise.  Explaining just with language will not be compelling learning for these people.

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Auditory learners will want to hear the sound of your voice.  They will respond to rhythm and sound, they may even enjoy a little music whilst they learn.  They will be easily distracted by the sounds around them, so quiet lesson times with only purposeful auditory input will be the most effective.  Asking these people to get a feel for the learning will not give as much clarity as asking them to listen to the resonance of the teaching.

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Kinesthetic learners are those people who need to physically get on and do something in order to make sense of it.  They will feel the learning emotionally and physically.  They want to know how the exercise should feel.  Spending time talking to these types of learners will most probably just lead to frustration, they want to get on and try it out. Those ‘wriggle bottoms’ who just won’t sit still through a learning session are most probably kinaesthetic learners, they just want to get up and feel how success feels.

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Learners whose preferred representational system is Auditory Digital require a detailed and logical explanation of the task in hand.  They will want step by step instructions in the greatest of detail.  Examples and statistics will help them to learn and they will need everything before they are asked to demonstrate an exercise themselves.  Just get on and try it, or let me show you how, are not going to work for this type of learner.

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What is your preferred representational system?  Think about when you teach something.  You will probably discover that you deliver the information in your own preferred system of thinking, rather than that of your learners.  Imagine the results you could be getting if you taught people in the way they learn best!

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In addition to your preferred representational systems, you also have strategies for learning.  This is our second key element to enhanced learning. Eliciting a learning strategy is a more advanced form of NLP and all our delegates learn how to discover learning strategies when they attend our Enhanced NLP Coach Practitioner Certification Training. One of the most impactful pieces of learning about learning that we offer our NLP Coaches is the Spelling Strategy. This very simple method of enhancing spelling capability to a point way beyond their current level is one of the most incredible gifts that people who feel challenged in this area of learning can take away.

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The process of creating a new spelling strategy is very easy and can be done for 5 minutes each evening.  The thinking that makes the spelling strategy work is that people who can’t spell are usually attempting in vain to feel how to spell the word. The only way to spell with consistent accuracy is to spell in the visual modality.  Within a few weeks you will be spelling words both forward and backwards in a very natural way.

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When you learn, it is important that you can keep your attention and emotional content in a position conducive to enhanced learning and recall. This is our third key. In NLP we have a wonderful condition called the ‘learning state’. The learning state is the perfect internal state to facilitate deep learning and absorption of information, whilst making the recall of that information really easy and accurate. The learning state is one of calm, relaxed focus and is ideal for those who find it difficult to sit and listen quietly. When adult learners sit comfortably in our training room, they learn this magical state and spend the whole eight-day training calm, relaxed and open.  

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Moving into the fourth area of enhanced learning, all learning happens in the part of your mind known in NLP terms as the unconscious mind. All your learning is stored at the unconscious level and then recalled consciously when you require it for utilisation. For example, think of your phone number. Now, where was that number before I asked you to think of it. You weren’t conscious of that number until you were asked to become conscious of it, therefore it follows nicely that the number was stored in your unconscious mind until you needed it. All your learning happens this way.

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Finally, and most importantly, effective learning can only be realised if you have a belief system that supports that learning. Any limiting beliefs around school and learning can set a very bright person back considerably. During your Enhanced NLP Coach Practitioner Certification, you will learn Time Line Therapy® techniques. Using these simple techniques you can ensure that you can be free of any deep seated beliefs that limit you and hold you back from achieving your dreams. Imagine having the confidence, self-belief and motivation to shoot for the stars.

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You can learn all these techniques for yourself in just 8 days and apply them all immediately and be delighted by the results that you will achieve. It’s time to take action and learn about learning. You’ll be amazed by how much more you will learn for yourself.

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