I was amused at one of the vox pops following one of Derren Brown‘s shows (on TV) this week. One woman says ‘I’m an NLP practitioner and I don’t know how he does it’. Well that’s not saying much is it? After one to three weeks training and given that there is actually no objective evidence to substantiate the wild claims made by the more zealous, almost cultish, NLP enthusiasts. Despite NLP being hailed as a wonderful ‘communication technology’, it’s quite telling that it’s alleged that its originators only speak to each other through their solicitors. I doubt that Derren Brown was sh*tting himself knowing there were a few NLPers in the audience, as he’s hardly complimentary about its practice.
Links:
Applied Psychology and Solution Focused Life Coaching with Dr Gary Wood 
True. In fact I remember seeing only one trick Derren made that can be explained at a NLP practitioner level. I read somewhere that most of the people invited on the show are pre-hypnotized. And – as he states himself – the most important ingredient in his show is.. showmanship.