By Judy Rees, for The Model magazine, Christmas 2006

And what would you like to have happen this New Year? Are you thinking of making that big change – stopping smoking, cutting down on booze, getting regular exercise and eating well – yet again?

It’s like Samuel Johnson said of second marriages: a triumph of hope over experience.

And when it’s like that, as it often is, what would you like to have happen?

Personally, I’d like there to be something completely different out there which would really help. Another way of approaching big changes; a way which honoured my personal beliefs and my way of thinking; a way which helped make changes which stayed changed and which, in my ‘other life’ as a coach, worked for pretty much any client.

Fortunately, there is. It’s called Clean Language.

Other articles in this edition will tell you more about what Clean is and where it comes from. I’ve been challenged to offer you a way to experience it, here and now. Clean is more usually used in a situation with a facilitator asking the questions, but can be used by yourself. 

And assuming you’re reading this alone, and have a few minutes to spare, let’s experiment...

Step 1: Build the (metaphorical) dream

So, do you have a New Year’s resolution? Take a moment to write it down, on a blank piece of paper.

If it’s anything like my standard resolutions, it’ll be all about giving something up. Which is wonderful. And, this process, like so many, often works better when you can say what you'd like more of, rather than less of.

One way of helping your mind to make that shift is to read back to yourself the words you’ve written and then ask yourself, “And when all of that, what would I like to have happen?”

Using another blank piece of paper, write down the first words that come into your head, even if they're exactly the same as before, or if they don’t make much sense. Because the magic of Clean Language is that it can work whether the words “make sense” or not, because it uses the metaphors inherent in the words we choose.

Let’s say I answered: “I’d like hope to triumph over experience.” That’s fine – it represents something I want more of (triumph of hope) rather than something I want less of (eating junk food). In the NLP jargon, it’s a ‘desired outcome’.

Now, we’ve got some Clean questions to use to explore and develop that outcome, where ‘X’ is one of the words or phrases you’ve used.

“What kind of X?” and

“Is there anything else about X?”

So, we might ask: “What kind of triumph is that triumph?” or “Is there anything else about hope?”

Ask yourself these questions, several times, about various words in your desired outcome. What new ideas come to mind? What new connections seem to form?

Then ask:

“And when all of that, that’s like what?”

This question invites you to come up with a metaphor linking some of the ideas you’ve come up with. For me, ‘triumph’ might be like the end of a Star Wars battle scene, featuring an exotic victory parade into a gigantic stadium, or it might be like the joy of placing a perfectly-baked, cinnamon-scented apple cake on the table. For you, it will be something different. In this process there really are no right or wrong answers.

You might enjoy developing this metaphor. Think about it. Ask yourself again and again:

“What kind of X?” and

“Is there anything else about X?”

Feel free to make a few notes if you would like to. Or just allow your mind to wander, exploring the amazing landscape of thoughts. Occasionally, particularly if you notice your thoughts drifting towards something you’d like less of, ask yourself again:

“And when all of that, what would I like to have happen?”

Stay with the metaphor. There’s no requirement to figure out how these 'fantasies' relate to the ‘resolution’ you first thought of. You may find that your ideas develop and change as you go through this process. That’s fine. Your own imagination holds a much wilder and more far-fetched idea of your potential than any Government-sponsored health campaign! These are your dreams, your hopes, your thoughts.

Spend all the time you need to develop your metaphorical desired outcome in exactly the way that is right for you. You might even find yourself curious about: "What kind of 'I' is the 'I' that would like that to happen?"

Finally, give your metaphor a name, a label, so that you can refer to it in the next part of the exercise.

Step 2: What needs to happen?

Ok, you’ve developed a big dream, a metaphor, for the thing you’d like to have happen, and you’ve given it a label. Now ask yourself:

“And what needs to happen for X?”

(where X is the label of your metaphor.)

Make a list. Ask yourself the question several times. And when you think you’re done, ask:

“And is there anything else that needs to happen?”

Your list may be metaphorical, or it may refer to real-world actions, or it may be a mixture of the two. It will work just as well either way – your other-than-conscious mind knows what it all means.

Step 3: Ready for action

Finally, once you have a complete list of what needs to happen, ask yourself first:

“And can I?” (do the actions that need to happen) 

And then:

“And will I?” (do the actions that need to happen)

If you can’t, or you won’t, just acknowledge this, give yourself a big hug for being so wonderfully honest with yourself, and return to Step 1 to adjust your desired outcome so that it takes account of your reservations.

“And when I can’t or I won’t, what would I like to have happen?”

And dream on!

How does this work? Well, that’s another story, which relates to the ways in which metaphor is the raw material of thought. The basics of Clean Language can be learned in a few hours, which you’ve already begun. And mastering the mysteries takes time.

• Want to try this with Wendy Sullivan and Judy Rees? Join our telephone seminars on 28 December 2006 and 11 January 2007. Click date to book.