So you want to become a confident hypnotist?
Confidence plays a huge part in the success of any hypnosis demonstration or hypnotherapy session. Why? Well, because all hypnosis is fundamentally self-hypnosis (check out this blog on how hypnosis works, if you want more info about that)!
Because all hypnosis is self-hypnosis, this means that the people you hypnotise are actually putting themselves into the state of hypnosis, but they are trusting you to guide them into their own hypnotic state. This means, if you are not confident when hypnotising them, they may not trust you as their hypnotic guide. If that happens, and they lose faith in you as a hypnotist or hypnotherapist, then they are much less likely to go into hypnosis. This is why your confidence as a hypnotist or hypnotherapist is paramount to the success of your hypnosis process!
(Note: I’m just going to say ‘hypnotist’ from now on, but this refers to all kinds of hypnotists, including hypnotherapists, stage hypnotists, street hypnotists, and even hypno-hobbyists).
The first step to being a confident hypnotist
The first thing that you need to do (or have done) in order to be a confident hypnotist, is to learn how hypnosis works, and learn correctly. If you’ve decided you’ll just do a tiny bit of research and study before ‘having a go’, then my advice to you is to expand that knowledge as soon as you can, and get as broad an understanding of hypnosis as possible, early on. That’s not to say that only spending a little time studying hypnosis means you won’t be able to hypnotise people, because it’s likely you will be able to. But will you feel confident in your hypnosis knowledge and abilities at that point, after only a small amount of learning? Probably not.
Gaining a deep theoretical understanding of any topic is part of what helps us develop confidence on that topic. However, and especially for practical topics, like hypnosis, your theory learning needs to be supported by practical learning and experience. Now, that doesn’t mean you need to set up your hypnotherapy practice on day one of study, in order to get practice. Similarly, you don’t need to start performing full, paid stage hypnosis shows from the get-go, because that’s likely to knock your confidence rather than build it, when things don’t go as well as you’d like. No, it simply means that you need to practice the skills and theory that you will be using when you transition into doing hypnosis as a career (or even as a fun hobby). But how do you do that?
Become confident in your knowledge of hypnosis
Firstly, I’ll talk about learning the theory of hypnosis. As mentioned above, that’s important. To draw on an analogy I use frequently, you can learn all the practical skills of driving a car; how to steer, when and how to check your mirrors, how the gears work (if you drive a manual that is), and all of the ‘practical driving skills’ you need to drive safely. But if you don’t know the ‘theory’ of driving; what to do at traffic lights, what road signs mean, how to notice and safely avoid hazards, how to recognise speed limits and other important factors, then you’d likely be an absolute menace on the roads! So, just like driving, where you learn your ‘driving theory’ alongside your practical skills in the car, the same goes for hypnosis. Aim for an equal balance as you develop your practical skills and theoretical knowledge of hypnosis.
Contrary to what many hypnosis trainers (and, more specifically, hypnotherapy trainers) might tell you, you don’t need to do courses in order to learn and get good at doing hypnosis. In fact, you can build your confidence as a hypnotist without ever setting foot into a formal hypnosis or hypnotherapy course! Now, that’s not to say courses are pointless, because they are a very useful tool. What I’m saying is, if you can’t afford or otherwise commit to a course yet, don’t let that stop you from learning and becoming a confident hypnotist right away!
To learn the theory of hypnosis, you have many options, some are more expensive expensive (like in-person courses), others lower cost (such as affordable hypnosis books and online training), and also there are free options, like my range of hypnosis blogs and free videos on my YouTube channel! All of these options are a fantastic way to learn the theory of hypnosis.
Personally, I started out learning hypnosis from books (and practicing too, obviously – more on that in a moment). So, I can’t recommend books enough. In fact, that’s why I have written a range of easy-to-understand hypnosis books that deliver all the theory you need in order to then start practicing and building your confidence in whatever field of hypnosis interests you. Here are some links to my hypnosis books which will get you on the right path to becoming a confident hypnotist:
- The Instant Hypnosis & Rapid Inductions Guidebook – Learn the fundamentals of hypnosis and how to hypnotise with rapid inductions
- The Beginner’s Guide to Hypnotherapy – Learn how to hypnotise, and help people using hypnotherapy
- The Stage & Street Hypnosis Handbook – Learn how to hypnotise and have fun with hypnosis
How to build your confidence doing hypnosis
As you are developing your knowledge of hypnosis theory, so that you can hypnotise effectively and safely, you need to start practicing. Practice makes perfect, as they say. But practice also makes confidence! The more hands-on practice you get using your hypnosis skills, the more confident you will become. People who only learn the theory of hypnosis and then expect to be master hypnotists based on knowledge alone, will often lose a lot of confidence. Going back to the driving analogy again, imagine only learning the theory of driving a car. Would you then be able to step into a car and drive a perfect journey right away? No. In fact, you’d likely not be able to get your car off the driveway! For any practical skill, gradually building your practical experience as you learn is integral.
As mentioned above, it’s unlikely that you’ll be amazing the first time you practice, or even the first ten times! It is said that to master any complex skill takes thousands of hours of practice. And by mastering, I mean being ‘unconsciously competent’, so that you can perform hypnosis without even consciously needing to think about what you’re doing. As humans, we are unable to go from not being able to do something to mastering that same thing without a learning journey. This journey always consists of four stages:
Learning stage three (conscious competence) is where you will begin to feel confident, and stage four (unconscious competence) is where you will be super confident in your abilities as a hypnotist. It’s likely, as you are reading this blog, that you are already in either stage two or three, so well done! Now it’s time to practice…
Getting confident by practicing hypnosis
There are a number of ways that you can begin practicing hypnosis, and initially, the best way is by practicing in ‘chunks’. Rather than setting yourself the task of practicing a full hypnosis session, first break down the elements and practice them individually.
To start learning your practical hypnosis skills, it can be a good idea to practice using the following format:
- Read, learn and understand the theory of the technique/process that you’re practicing.
- Use or create a script for the process to start practicing whilst reading from your script.
- Bullet point the elements of the script, and refine it to as small a list as possible, whilst still helping you remember all integral elements of the process, then practice whilst using bullet points only.
- In your imagination, talk yourself through the process without using your bullet points, only referring back to your bullet points to clarify any sticking points.
- Practice saying the process out loud (to yourself) with no script/bullets.
- Record yourself saying the process with no script/bullets and use the recording to evaluate and optimise your suggestions and delivery.
- Practice delivering this process with a willing volunteer, out of hypnosis, and get feedback.
- Add this element into your overall hypnosis process, and repeat your practice with a volunteer in hypnosis. If appropriate, get feedback afterwards.
By following the above practice format, you will be able to learn and remember each individual element of your hypnosis process. This format also allows you to reflect on how you are delivering and performing your hypnosis techniques and processes, meaning you will become more confident with each practical experience.
Your confident hypnotist persona
A final point to wrap up this blog, is your hypnotist persona. A ‘persona’ is a combination of mindset, attitude, and communication. When hypnotising, it is beneficial to have a ‘confident hypnotist persona’ that you can employ, which will automatically convey confidence to the people you are hypnotising. This, again, is something that you can create, practice and develop.
Consider how a confident hypnotist would appear. What would they be thinking, feeling, doing and saying? How does their voice sound? What is their confident posture? How do they present themselves overall? Then, once you have considered these elements, have a go at behaving in that way, using your confident hypnotist’s persona. You can use steps four to eight from the the eight-step plan listed above in order to practice this.
Once you have practiced stepping into this confident persona, and you are confident that you are conveying the right message, ensure that you step into that persona each time before you start your hypnosis process. With repetition, ‘turning on’ your confident hypnotist persona will begin to come naturally, and eventually it will happen unconsciously, as you develop mastery of your new confident hypnotist persona!
Need more help gaining confidence as a hypnotist or hypnotherapist?
Please, if you are struggling with your confidence as a hypnotist, follow the advice above. It is a sure-fire way to develop not only your confidence, but also your knowledge and practical hypnosis skills. If you feel that you need more help becoming a confident hypnotist, whether you have trained with me previously or not, I am available for 1-to-1 training sessions, both in person and online. These training sessions are a fantastic way to boost your confidence, and to work on any sticking points that are holding you back.
Otherwise, if you’d like to join me on a 1-day rapid induction course, these are also a fantastic way to develop your confidence, and get a whole lot of hands-on practice hypnotising various people from all round the world. I have rapid induction course dates and locations all over the UK, and would love to see you there!
