How to Hypnotize People Quickly

Hypnosis shouldn't be a lark or used to make someone do something amusing. While most hypnotists agree you can't make someone do something under hypnosis they would not normally do, there are others who disagree. They believe some individuals have such a pliable will that it may be possible to force them to do virtually anything. Nonetheless, hypnotizing should be used only as a means of obtaining benign results.

Things You'll Need

• Couch or chair
• Pendulum

Instructions

1. Gain the individual's trust. This can be done by engaging in conversation, sharing information about yourself and seeking knowledge about the other person. Trust is crucial to the hypnosis process.

2. Outline what will happen during hypnosis. Part of the fear and resistance that hypnotists encounter has to do with the subject not understanding what is about to happen. By sharing that information with them, that barrier is removed. Take time to answer all of the subject's questions before beginning hypnosis. This will remove any remaining vestiges of uncertainty that could block the process.

3. Determine the type of hypnosis to be applied. Most people are familiar with standard or "conscious" hypnosis, during which the individual is fully aware of what is happening. Another method known as "covert" hypnosis may leave the subject less able to resist hypnotic commands because he is unaware that he is being hypnotized. Covert hypnosis is not recognized or recommended by experts in the field for anything more than eliciting feelings.

4. Decide on a word or phrase to use as a trigger for the hypnotic command. Choose something the individual will be familiar with and with which she will be comfortable. Also agree, along with the client, on a word or moment in the trance that will give the subject a way out of the hypnotic state. This is imperative to make the individual feel that she has final control over what will happen.

5. Pick a focal point. Use an item, an object in the room or a point of attention to help the subject focus. Some hypnotists use a swinging pendulum of some kind to get the individual to focus concentration. Others chose a vase, a picture or an area of wall space.

6. Make the subject comfortable. While lying down works best, some subjects will fight that position, fearing it leaves them too vulnerable. If that is the case, sitting or even standing is permitted as long as the subject can get comfortable in the position.

7. Employ standard relaxation techniques to make the subject more open to hypnosis. Whatever technique chosen should have a starting place with a progression into the hypnotic trance.

8. Give the hypnotized subject a hypnotic command and deliver the key word or phrase that activates it. Test the the command to see if it works. For example, if the purpose is to help someone stop eating chocolate, and the key word is "chocolate," then upon hearing or seeing that word, the desired response, like a bitter taste in the mouth, should occur, negating the individual's desire for the food.

9. Release the subject from the hypnotic state using the release word or moment from Step 4. Tell the subject he will feel relaxed, happy and confident once released from the trance.

Tips & Warnings

• * Get to know the subject. This will help to make him more comfortable with you and make the entire process easier. * Talk about hypnosis in general. Discuss how and why it is used and where and when it is most effective. Also reveal things that interfere with the process and that could negate a good response. * Pay attention to the subject--what he has to say and how he says it, since it could offer a clue to the best words or phrases to use for his hypnotic command. * Use a well modulated, soft, firm, and deliberate manner during hypnosis. * To relax a subject, ask him to call upon a happy memory or visualize a place that he finds relaxing. Another effective method is to ask him to count backwards from 25, suggesting that he will fall deeper into a trance as the numbers decrease. Still another is to tell him to walk down a flight of stairs in his mind, saying he will be totally comfortable once he reaches the bottom step.

• Covert hypnotists often use the process to make subjects more pliable. Some hypnotists believe that covert hypnosis can influence or force someone to do something unwillingly.