Rapid Induction Hypnosis Training

Hypnosis trainers are often asked, ‘what is a hypnotic induction?’

The hypnotic induction is the beginning of the hypnosis process, where a hypnotist or hypnotherapist takes a client into a state of hypnosis. There are many different types of hypnotic induction techniques that can be employed in order to hypnotise a subject or client.

Some hypnotic inductions are known as ‘progressive inductions’, as they progress through various stages and often take between five minutes and twenty minutes to complete (sometimes even longer). Other types of hypnotic induction rely on different processes, such as ‘rapid inductions’, and often take much less time to generate the state of hypnosis.

Interestingly, regardless of the choice of hypnotic induction, whether a progressive induction or a rapid induction, the same ‘state’ of hypnosis is generated. As you may have already read in our hypnosis myths blog, all hypnosis is actually a self-generated state. This means that a hypnotist will use hypnotic inductions to guide people into hypnosis, but the hypnotic state itself is created by the person being hypnotised.

For more information about what a hypnotic induction is, check out our blog on the topic.

Rapid induction hypnosis techniques are used by hypnotists and hypnotherapists in order to hypnotise people fast, usually in less than one minute, and often in just a couple of seconds! This is a far cry from the five to twenty minutes needed to hypnotise with ‘standard’ hypnotic inductions.

Unlike standard progressive hypnotic inductions, where a subject just will sit with their eyes closed and listen to the hypnotist or hypnotherapist talk to them, the majority of rapid induction techniques are physical in nature. The subject has to physically move and follow instructions in order to engage with the rapid induction hypnosis process. Many rapid inductions also require that the hypnotist physically interacts with the client, such as gently tugging their arm during the ‘butterfly fingers’ rapid induction, or shaking their hand, with the ‘handshake interrupt’ rapid induction.

Rapid induction hypnosis techniques can be known by many different names, such as;

• Rapid inductions
• Instant inductions
• Rapid hypnosis
• Instant hypnosis
• Speed inductions
• Speed hypnosis
• Quick inductions
• Fast inductions

However, regardless of the label, all instant and rapid hypnotic inductions are designed to hypnotise people FAST, in seconds, not minutes!

To learn more about rapid inductions before joining our rapid induction training course, check out Rory’s popular ‘Instant Hypnosis and Rapid Inductions Guidebook‘ available in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.

All rapid inductions fit into three different categories. You have:

• Shock rapid inductions
• Confusion rapid inductions
• Pattern-interrupt rapid inductions

With shock inductions the hypnotist aims to create a state of shock or surprise in their subject. A confusion induction ‘does what it says’, confusing the subject, and a pattern-interrupt induction creates a similar state of shock or confusion by interrupting a subconsciously accepted pattern, such as a handshake. These momentary shocked or confused states can then be ‘hijacked’ by the hypnotist or hypnotherapist in order to quickly create a state of hypnosis.

After performing the shock and confusion elements of a rapid induction, the hypnotist will then give quick and direct suggestions for the subject to enter the hypnotic state. As the subject is consciously preoccupied (by feeling surprised or confused), they easily accept the suggestion to instantly drop into a deep state of hypnosis.

The main purpose of a rapid induction in hypnosis is to hypnotise people quickly, in just a few seconds. Not only can this save time during a hypnotherapy session, hypnosis show or street hypnosis demonstration, but it also works to meet expectations. Some people expect to be hypnotised fast, and for the hypnotist or hypnotherapist to tell them to “sleep”. Because of this, it’s integral that any hypnotist or hypnotherapist has a good knowledge of rapid inductions, so that these expectations can be met. 

Also, for the stage or street hypnotist, rapid inductions add entertainment and ‘theatre’ to what could be a dull process. It is much more visually interesting to use a rapid induction in front of an audience, than to use a long-winded progressive induction! So, not only are rapid inductions really effective, they’re also fun to watch!

Many people we’ve hypnotised say that rapid inductions feel different to standard progressive hypnotic inductions. Rapid inductions are often reported as feeling more profound, or feeling as though you’re entering a deeper state of hypnosis more quickly. With shock rapid inductions especially, people report a feeling of exhilaration and excitement (due to the natural ‘shock response’), before quickly moving into a deeply relaxed hypnotic state.

Interestingly, some people find that being hypnotised with a rapid induction feels very similar to being hypnotised in the more traditional manner. This is often true where people are less ‘suggestible’ or have a lower natural level of ‘hypnotisability’.

If you haven’t been hypnotised before and you’d like to experience hypnosis for yourself, check out this free experiential hypnosis video.

As with any hypnosis process, rapid inductions work better the more suggestible somebody is, and the more engaged they are in the hypnosis or hypnotherapy process. Expectation is also a huge factor, and if someone expects a rapid induction to work, it’s much more likely to do so!

Unfortunately, rapid inductions are not ‘magical methods’ that can make anyone go into hypnosis, in fact, professional hypnotists and hypnotherapists skilled in rapid inductions will frequently revert back to using slower, more progressive inductions with people who are low-suggestibility and low-hypnotisability. This is because a slower, more gradual hypnotic induction will often work much better for a person who is not easily able to go into a medium, deep or somnambulistic hypnotic state. Those people with naturally lower suggestibility can learn to become more responsive hypnotic subjects over time with repeated practice and hypnotic suggestion.

However, with that said, the vast majority of people respond really well to rapid induction hypnosis methods – probably over 95% of people, in fact. It’s only a small fraction of the population who are better served with more traditional hypnotic induction methods. One of the most reliable ways to check whether somebody is a good candidate for a rapid induction is to use a hypnotic suggestibility test. That’s why Rory teaches suggestibility testing on all of our rapid induction training courses. For more information about suggestibility tests, check out our blog on the importance of hypnotic suggestibility testing.

When performed correctly, rapid inductions are perfectly safe and comfortable to experience. However, if performed incorrectly, there is the potential for injury. This is why it is vitally important to get the best possible rapid induction training before you begin using rapid hypnosis techniques.

Rapid inductions can appear very dramatic, and, in some cases, they can even look ‘violent’. However, the physical engagement employed by the skilled rapid hypnotist with the person being hypnotised, though quick, is actually surprisingly gentle. What makes many rapid inductions appear dramatic and violent is the reaction of the person being hypnotised. People will often quickly slump forwards after a rapid induction has been performed, and it is this ‘quick physical relaxation’ that gives the feeling of drama. However, when performed safely and correctly, a rapid induction is just as comfortable for the subject as more traditional methods of hypnotising – if not more!

As mentioned above, when someone is not taught how to perform rapid inductions safely, there can be a heightened risk of injury. We have heard of many poorly-trained hypnotists and hypnotherapists who have hurt their subjects and clients during badly-executed rapid inductions. This is why, at the Rory Z Hypnosis Academy, we teach the safety element before you learn any rapid induction methods, and each rapid induction that you will learn on our course is preceded with induction-specific safety instructions too!

There are many different types of rapid induction, as you will have learned if you’ve already read the Instant Hypnosis and Rapid Inductions Guidebook, which contains over 17+ different types of rapid induction. In practice, only a couple of rapid inductions are needed, so it can be good to do a little research, practice a range of rapid inductions, then choose three or four that you like, and are comfortable integrating into your own hypnosis process. 

Four of the most popularly used rapid inductions are;

• The magnetic hands rapid induction
• The hand drop (8-word) rapid induction
• The butterfly fingers (confusion arm pull) rapid induction
• The handshake interrupt rapid induction

These four inductions are taught on our rapid induction training courses, as they are the ‘go-to’ rapid induction choices for the majority of hypnotists and hypnotherapists around the world, and are a fantastic addition to any hypnotic toolbox!

One of the simplest rapid inductions to learn is the ‘arm pull’ or ‘arm tug’ induction. Before you use this induction, you must check that the person you’re hypnotising doesn’t have any arm, shoulder, back or neck issues. If they do have one of these issues, do not proceed.

To hypnotise someone using the arm pull induction, firstly, get consent to hypnotise them. Next, you simply take their arm, above the wrist (on their forearm, not their hand), and move their arm around a little, suggesting they can relax it. At this stage, you can give them something to look at, such as looking into your eyes. Finally, you gently but quickly tug their arm whilst suggesting that they “sleep”. 

With the ‘arm tug’ portion of the induction, do not yank their arm, you only need to pull it a couple of centimetres/inches, and gently. This will create enough of a shock so that when you give the sleep suggestion, they will follow it and go into hypnosis. After which, you can immediately deepen the state of hypnosis and continue with your session.

That is all you need to know in order to perform the arm pull rapid induction – hey, we said it was simple! If you’d like to learn about the other types of rapid induction, you can join Rory on an upcoming rapid induction training course, or check out his rapid induction book on Amazon.

Anyone can learn to use rapid inductions and you don’t need any previous hypnosis or hypnotherapy experience to do so. The most important thing to develop whilst learning rapid inductions, alongside the practical skills and theory you will learn, is the confidence and belief that rapid inductions will work when you use them. When you are confident in your abilities to hypnotise people using rapid inductions, this confidence will be conveyed to the people you’re hypnotising, and they will go into hypnosis.

Rory Z has taught rapid inductions to people from all walks of life, all with varying levels of experience, from professional hypnotherapists and international stage hypnotists through to absolute beginners with zero hypnosis experience. Something that everyone shares during our rapid induction courses, is a huge boost in confidence whilst learning and practicing rapid inductions. Rory not only teaches you how to hypnotise fast, but how to believe in your abilities as a confident hypnotist!

Some hypnotists and hypnotherapists don’t use rapid inductions (or haven’t started to yet), and this is usually because rapid inductions weren’t taught during their training. Not all hypnosis and hypnotherapy trainers have the ability to use rapid inductions successfully, let alone teach them. Unfortunately, students on those courses suffer because they are not taught to use a range of inductions, and often have to stick to long-winded progressive inductions, or worse, rely on ‘hypnosis scripts’ to hypnotise people!

Some stage hypnotists choose to use quick progressive inductions (usually with rapid deepening elements), instead of rapid inductions. This choice of induction often relates to the logistics of performing a hypnosis show, and managing a group of volunteers going into hypnosis. It is much easier to hypnotise 12 people at the same time, than to use 12 separate rapid inductions, one after another. However, in contrast, some stage hypnotists do use rapid inductions with all of their volunteers. It really comes down to volunteer-management and the preference of the stage hypnotist!

There are some hypnotherapy trainers and schools who choose not to teach rapid inductions on their courses, simply because rapid inductions are associated with stage and street hypnosis. These individuals often have an (outdated) belief that hypnosis should only be used for therapy purposes, and that entertainment hypnosis “gives hypnotherapy a bad name”. In reality, as hypnotherapy training is not particularly well-regulated worldwide, it’s likely that poorly trained hypnotherapists give hypnotherapy a much worse “name” than any influence stage hypnosis or rapid inductions have on the public perception of hypnotherapists.

At the Rory Z Hypnosis Academy, we believe that whether you’re a hypnotist or a hypnotherapist, you should be provided with all the tools that you need in order to perform hypnosis and hypnotherapy effectively, regardless of whether those tools and techniques are used elsewhere. Our focus is on teaching practical skills, supportive theory, and delivering a high quality of training, and by teaching hypnotherapists and stage hypnotists to work both safely and effectively, the entire hypnosis industry benefits as a result! So, if you’re a hypnotherapist and you’re not sure about learning rapid inductions, feel free to contact Rory for a chat, he’d be more than happy to help point you in the right direction so that you can move forwards with the hypnotic induction skills you need to succeed!

Rapid induction therapy is quite simply the use of rapid hypnotic inductions alongside standard hypnotherapy and NLP techniques. In fact, any hypnotherapy session could be called a rapid induction therapy session if you chose to hypnotise your client with a rapid induction – though most hypnotherapists trained in rapid inductions would just call it a hypnotherapy session! If you’d like to learn rapid inductions and hypnotherapy in order to deliver your own rapid induction therapy sessions, check out our hypnotherapy training options for more information. Otherwise, if you’d like to start learning rapid inductions right away, check out Rory’s hypnotherapy guidebook on Amazon or join us on an upcoming rapid induction course!

‘Instant hypnosis’ is most certainly real. However, it is just another name given to the ‘rapid hypnosis’ process. Many different terms are used to describe these techniques, with rapid hypnosis being the most popular choice, and instant hypnosis coming a close second. In fact, this is why Rory’s book is called ‘The Instant Hypnosis and Rapid Inductions Guidebook.

If you’re looking for the fastest possible way to hypnotise someone, instant and rapid inductions are the answer, regardless of how you label them. For example, we call our ‘arm pull’ induction a rapid induction, when, in practice, it can generate a state of hypnosis in just a couple of seconds. There aren’t many inductions out there that are faster. So, at the end of the day, don’t worry too much about the semantics. If you’d like to learn how to hypnotise fast, even instantly, then you’re in the right place!

As mentioned in the FAQ above, instant hypnosis and rapid inductions are much the same. However, if you truly wish to hypnotise somebody in ‘an instant’ (depending on how you definte the term ‘instant’), then the hypnotic induction process needs to be refined to be as fast as it can possibly be, whilst still being effective. To call this process an instant induction, we think, would require it to be two seconds or less!

On our courses, Rory will frequently hypnotise people in two-seconds, using various rapid inductions, such as the arm pull induction, the hand drop induction and the handshake interrupt induction. All of these inductions can be performed quickly (instantly), or can be padded out and made longer, depending on the situation and the person being hypnotised. Other rapid inductions don’t lend themselves as well to a sub-two-second induction time, such as the magnetic hands induction, where a subject’s hands come together at their own pace. However, regardless of whether a rapid induction takes two seconds or ten, fast is fast!

If you’d like to practice using instant and rapid inductions, join us at the next rapid induction training course, where you’ll get the opportunity to see just how quickly you can hypnotise!