NLP Technique - Timeline

Timeline is a way of exploring challenges and opportunities from different perspectives of time. It can be easier to come up with a plan to meet a challenge or opportunity from a perspective in the future when it has already been solved. It can be easier to resolve an issue which happened in the past from the perspective of going back to that time.

Timeline can be done visually, auditory and kinaesthetically. Different clients will tend to have a preference for using a particular modality.

Timeline - What's important

Taking a client into their past can cause the release of a tremendous amount of emotion. This is normally good - however its important that the practitioner has the experience to support the client through the experience.

Taking a client to explore and rehearse his or her future is almost always beneficial. It is important that the practitioner always moves the client forward in any challenges or issue, so that the client is left in a positive state.

Kinesthetic timeline - The technique

Ask your partner if he/she has something they would like to investigate in future.

Ask your partner where their future and past is, imagined as a line which maybe forward and behind or side to side.

Ask your partner to walk to a position in time when the issue is completely solved, and then to a position a little further in the future when the client can feel really good about it.

Ask your partner how that feels.

Ask your partner to walk slowly back to the present day, collecting up all the useful experience and learning, bringing it all back and integrating it into the present day.

Visual timeline - The technique

As for the kinesthetic timeline, but instead of walking, just ask your partner to imagine seeing their timeline and to see a goal somewhere in future.

Ask your partner to imagine floating up above their timeline to the first milestone in achieving the goal. Your partner floats down into milestone and takes a moment to fully experience it. You can use bimodalities to help your partner fully associate with the milestone.

Continue to guide your partner through all milestones until the goal is reached.

Ask your partner to float slowly back to the present day, collecting up all the useful experience and learning, bringing it all back and integrating it into the present day.