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I agree with you! Agree about what? Ehh, you want to learn more about NLP Referential Index. This blog-post will tell you more about what Lack of Referential Index is, how to recognize it and you will read some examples about it. Also we have some exercise for you in store and to look where to find more information about the Meta Model in general and Deletion in specific. Have an awesome day!

What is NLP Lack of Referential Index?

Any unspecified noun, where it is impossible to identify the representative entity from the immediate context of its usage is called in NLP Lack of Referential Index. I.e., it is unclear as to whom or what the noun makes reference to. 

Unspecified nouns are nouns (the person/being or thing part) where you don’t know who or what they are specifically talking about. NLP calls this a lack of referential index. Don’t you love these terms? Not knowing who or what the person is talking about can result in misunderstanding. You (or they) tend to fill in the gaps with your (or their) own ideas and will walk into a mind read. In other words we have to guess and then act on that guess.

How to recognize NLP Lack of Referential Index?

We often talk about this mythical group of people called “they” or other groups. “They won’t like me”, “They are better than me”, “Employers don’t like too many jobs on a resume”, and “Men don’t like smart women”.

This kind of thinking can limit us when we respond to “them” rather than real specific people. Just start asking questions like: “Who specifically?” or, “Which employers specifically?” and bingo, you reveal the Lack of Referential Index. NLP Lack of Referential Index.

Some examples of Lack of Referential Index

We can also stereotype people when we don’t recognize that we are really talking about 2 actual people we know. “Those Dutch are greedy”, “Those kind of people are no good” and so on. Examples to scan for and questions you can ask to explore this pattern in more depth:
  • I agree with that – You agree with what do you agree, specifically?
  • Four of those are good – Which four are you referring to and from which group?
  • Ewww, throw that one out! – Throw which one out? NLP Lack of Referential Index.
  • I believe this goes with that – Which goes with which other one?
  • So they say! – Says whom, specifically? NLP Lack of Referential Index.

And some Exercise with NLP Lack of Referential Index

The exercise with Lack of Referential Index for you today is twofold: One, master your scanning mechanism for Lack of Referential Index. Two, reread the past two days and start to listen to conversations on the street, in the supermarket, on the radio, in stores, wherever you are, you start to listen to the learnings of the past few days. Remember that the world is your playground and look for what is not there! NLP Lack of Referential Index.

More information on Lack of Referential Index

In NLP Lack of Referential Index is part of the higher chunk called Deletion which is part of the Meta Model.

Last but not Least

Remember, to increase your efficiency as a NLP Practitioner, know your positive intention for the message you want to convey, build rapport and pay attention on what and how you use language. Leave people and business in a better place that where you found them, every day!

Mind Tools provides NLP Practitioner and NLP Master Practitioner Trainings and Certifications. We educate you according to the renowned, latest and highest standards set by the Society of NLP. We will train you thoroughly in all the corners of Neuro-Linguistic Programming and some extras we learned from Richard Bandler directly.

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