Will you make me cluck like a chicken? The CEO’s Guide to Hypnosis
- ran074
- May 19
- 2 min read
When I mention I’m studying hypnotherapy, one reaction is often a joke about stage hypnosis of losing control, being under someone’s spell from being in a trance. The short answer is no, I can’t make you bark like a dog or cluck like a chicken… Unless you want to 🙂
To clear the air, because it’s important and I’m a scientist at heart: There’s no evidence that people go into a trance. All hypnosis is self-hypnosis, so being in hypnosis is actually a normal state of being (for example, like when you watch a movie and are totally engaged).
From clinical, evidence-based research, hypnosis does not put people in a trance. You are not a passive observer with the hypnotist controlling your mind. Instead, being in hypnosis is about being in a state of focused attention and active imagination. It’s a collaborative mental rehearsal, where I suggest a scene that you imagine, and that visualization is used to a maximum beneficial effect.
Put another way, you probably don’t enter into contracts or agreements with a vendor without clear terms, a schedule, a strategy, or a defined endpoint. Or, would you deliver a high-stakes presentation or meeting without some mental rehearsal? Chances are that in order to make the best use of your time and to get the best results, you would practice or prepare to be at your best.
Similarly, hypnotherapy and being in hypnosis involve mental practice to get the best results you can. As for the Hypno-CBT approach, it lets us:
Identify any cognitive barriers (this is the CBT part).
Focus our attention to ensure we have the behaviours and responses we feel are best for that situation (this is the hypnosis part).
When I first went into hypnosis, I kept asking myself, " Is this what it’s like to be in hypnosis? Is this actually working? Am I going to be in a trance and could even be made to cluck like a chicken?"
In the end, it was a lot less mysterious. Being in hypnosis is just being focused on whatever idea or behaviour that needs to be changed, and we always remain in total control. Arguably, we get more control over our nervous system and how we react to things. Which can feel magical.
There’s a lot of woo-woo and many myths around what hypnosis is, and my next life stage is to help people understand and use the best of who they are… Using hypnosis and CBT.
Let me know your thoughts! Have you ever tried it? Have you ever been made to cluck like a chicken?
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