This book describes an entirely new way of conducting hypnotherapeutic interventions - Stephen Gilligan's generative trance. The first generation of trance work, the traditional hypnosis that still holds sway in most places, considers that both the conscious mind and the unconscious mind of the client are, to put it bluntly, idiots. So trance work involves first 'knocking out' the conscious mind and then talking to the unconscious mind like a 2-year old that needs to be told how to behave. Milton Erickson created the second generation of trance work. He approached the unconscious as having creative wisdom and each person as extraordinarily unique. Thus, rather than trying to programme the unconscious with new instructions, Erickson saw trance as an experiential learning state where a person's own creative unconscious could generate healing and transformation. At the same time Erickson, for the most part, carried the same low opinion of the conscious mind. Thus, Ericksonian hypnosis looks to bypass the conscious mind with indirect suggestions and dissociation and depotentiate it with confusion techniques.

Generative Coaching Volume I The Journey of Creative and Sustainable Change There are times in the life of every individual, every marriage, every family, every culture and every business, where what has been done in the past will not help you to successfully go forward into the future. In these situations you have to do something completely new that has not been done before. To be generative means to create something new. That is what this book is about. How do we creatively support ourselves and others to find new solutions and develop new possibilities? Situations calling for generative change also frequently involve a lot of uncertainty, risk, and potential danger. This can bring out inner obstacles and resistances which block creativity and that need to be identified and transformed. To effectively do so requires the ability to engage multiple intelligences and use "out-of-the-box" thinking. In this book, internationally renowned coaches and authors Robert Dilts and Stephen Gilligan present a simple yet powerful six-step approach to navigating the complex path to a more meaningful and fulfilling future. Drawn from transcripts of live seminars, and brilliantly illustrated by Antonio Meza, this first volume provides a clear, practical and lively introduction to the magic of Generative Coaching. Whether you are an experienced coach or someone interested in learning about how to support others to reach more of their potential, this book will provide you with a useful and inspiring road map for navigating the journey of creative and sustainable change.

Stephen Gilligan and Robert Dilts truly take you on a voyage of self-discovery. The Hero's Journey examines the questions: How can you live a meaningful life? What is the deepest life you are called to, and how can you respond to that call? It is about how to discover your calling and how to embark on the path of learning and transformation that will reconnect you with your spirit,change negative beliefs and habits, heal emotional wounds and physical symptoms, deepen intimacy, and improve self-image and self-love. Along this path we inevitably meet challenges and confronting these challenges forces us to develop and think in new ways and push us outside our comfort zone. The book takes the form of a transcript of a four day workshop conducted by Stephen and Robert. It is a powerful way of learning as you are so absorbed by the experiences of the participants that you feel you are actually there. A wonderful voyage of discovery for everyone who thinks that, "there must be more to life than this".

Yoruba peoples of southwestern Nigeria conceive of rituals as journeys -- sometimes actual, sometimes virtual. Performed as a parade or a procession, a pilgrimage, a masking display, or possession trance, the journey evokes the reflexive, progressive, transformative experience of ritual participation. Yoruba Ritual is an original and provocative study of these practices. Using a performance paradigm, Margaret Thompson Drewal forges a new theoretical and methodological approach to the study of ritual that is thoroughly grounded in close analysis of the thoughts and actions of the participants. Challenging traditional notions of ritual as rigid, stereotypic, and invariant, Drewal reveals ritual to be progressive, transformative, generative, and reflexive and replete with simultaneity, multifocality, contingency, indeterminacy, and intertextuality. Throughout the book prominence is given to the intentionality of actors as knowledgeable agents who transform ritual itself through play and improvisation. Integral to the narrative are interpolations about performances and their meanings by Kolawole Ositola, a scholar of Yoruba oral tradition, ritual practitioner, diviner, and master performer. Rich descriptions of rituals relating to birth, death, reincarnation, divination, and constructions of gender are rendered all the more vivid by a generous selection of field photos of actual performances.

This book is a collection of selected writings by Dr. Sidney Rosen that aim to demystify the work of the leading clinical psychiatrist, Dr. Milton Erickson, and illustrate Erickson’s unconventional and life-changing hypnotic techniques and strategic therapy. An essential reading for those who seek to learn essential elements of psychotherapy, this collection elucidates fundamental aspects of Erickson's approaches and outlines factors effective in all forms of psychotherapy. It contains core teachings of many central elements in psychotherapy and stresses the importance of techniques such as therapeutic trance and hypnosis. As a student and close friend of Dr. Erickson, Dr. Rosen shares his own personal insights about Erickson’s teaching methods in a direct and straightforward manner that allows readers easy access to Ericksonian philosophy and techniques. Many therapists, both psychoanalytic and others, will find both Rosen’s and Erickson’s approaches compatible with their own and far removed from their preconceptions about hypnosis. Providing guidelines for providers of individual and group therapy, this book is an excellent guide to Ericksonian hypnotherapy.

Therapeutic Trances is a manifesto of the fundamental principles and techniques of Ericksonian hypnotherapy. This innovative volume lays out the principles and practice of developing relationships with patients and creating a hypnotic environment in which true healing can take place. The book offers therapists specific questions to ask and practical ideas to pursue, thereby illustrating how therapists may cooperate with clients to translate problems into solutions. Stephen Gilligan synthesizes the approaches of Erickson, Bandler & Grinder, and Bateson to bring a new perspective to the field.