Blueprint of the Dave Elman Induction by H. Larry Elman

Title: Blueprint of the Dave Elman Induction

Author: H. Larry Elman

Format:  Book

Source: http://shop.daveelmanhypnosisinstitute.com/BLUEPRINT-of-the-Dave-Elman-Induction-by-H-Larry-Elman-Blprt-BK.htm

Price:  $13.95 (I received a review copy.)

Rating: Excellent

Well, I've been very busy with my studies at the Hypnosis Practitioner Training Institute, which means that even though I've been reading quite a bit, I haven't had time to post many reviews. Today, I decided to take a little break from studying and jot down my thoughts about a few of the books that have crossed my desk in the last eight months.

Last week, I attended a hypnosis practice meetup where the topic was the Dave Elman Induction, a piece of hypnotic work that may be, after progressive muscle relaxation, the most popular specific induction in modern hypnosis. I know many hypnotists who swear by it, using it with the majority of their clients. So before I went to the meetup, I took Larry Elman's Blueprint of the Dave Elman Induction off my shelf to review the process.

Please note—I said "process." The main reason Larry Elman wrote a book about his father's famous induction is that it is too often presented as a script rather than a process. Even when instructors explain that you may have to alter the wording or repeat steps, they still, almost universally, present it as a series of arbitrary actions with no discussion of why the induction calls for these actions. Indeed, some instructors I admire greatly refuse to teach the Elman Induction because they object to certain details in it—the touching or the eye catalepsy, for instance.

The Blueprint does an amazing job of addressing these misconceptions held by advocates and critics alike. Though brief, this work thoroughly explains the hows and the whys of every step in the process, even suggesting alternate details to use when necessary. (So that Elman Inductions without eye catalepsy, touching, or even "losing the numbers" can be invented.)  In short, this work is for anyone who wants to understand what they are doing rather than merely parrot back steps an instructor has taught.

The historian in me loves the insight into the creation and development of the Elman Induction provided in this work—straight from someone who was there as it happened. Reading Larry Elman's writing is perhaps the closest we'll get to stepping back in time and getting to hear Dave Elman himself provide further wisdom.

Though the book itself is small—a pamphlet really, unlikely to look impressive when other hypnotists glance at your shelf—the content is huge and the value incalculable. Anyone who learns and uses the Dave Elman Induction really ought to take the time to read this book and review it from time-to-time. After all, being a hypnotist is not about repeating the right magical incantations; it is about understanding the processes that have worked in the past so that we can develop and adapt in the future.