“Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius — and a lot of courage — to move in the opposite direction.”Earlier On this site I first mentioned hypnosis in an article called ‘Hypnosis, Roses and Names!‘ where I revealed studies regarding suggestibility and actually telling subjects that what they were under-going was actually hypnosis as opposed to relaxation and how that affected suggestibility. Not surprisingly, simply calling it hypnosis had greater suggestibility.
That was, in general, quite a good study in which one question needs to be answered first.
What is Hypnosis?
There are many definitions out there that exist regarding what exactly is hypnosis, here are a few citations:
Hypnosis is a state that resembles sleep but that is induced by suggestion
Hypnosis is a mental state (state theory) or set of attitudes and beliefs (non-state theory) usually induced by a procedure known as a hypnotic induction, which is commonly composed of a series of preliminary instructions and suggestions. …
and According to the Wiktionary:
A trancelike state, artificially induced, in which a person has a heightened suggestibility, and in which suppressed memories may be experienced; the art or skill of hypnotism
All these definitions may be good and well and based on scientific accuracy (hopefully), but none of them seem to capture the true essence of what hypnosis is.
Here is the definition of hypnosis that I have created to which I feel best defines hypnosis:
“Hypnosis is the alteration of a person’s subjective reality with the establishment of acceptable selective thinking through communication”
This understanding, as I have mentioned down at the International Association for Youth Hypnotists [IAYH] (Formerly IATH), encompasses all theories of hypnosis that may be, such as those from the state, non-state theorists, direct and covert, conversational hypnotists and so fourth.
Understanding Fully that Hypnosis is all about communication, whether verbal or non-verbal is one of the greatest shifts in the reality of a hypnotist into becoming a better hypnotist.
Let us Over-Complicate it for fun…
One of the greatest drawbacks for anyone interested in mastering hypnosis, learning the art, or simply understanding what it is and how to do it is the over-complication of theories and idea’s regarding hypnotism.
Hypnosis is simple for the simple.
Just because something is simple, does not mean it can not be mastered. When we over-complicate something it does not show we understand it better, it means we do not. As Albert Einstein, an all time renowned genius, once said:
“Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius — and a lot of courage — to move in the opposite direction [and make things simpler].”
This holds true for hypnosis as well. Let us put it simply:
Communication is the foundation of everything, hypnosis then is about communication, refined communication which gets people to move in the direction of our thinking is persuasion, hypnosis then is persuasion at a much deeper, subsconscious level. Hypnosis is refined communication! 
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