How to Identify Strategies

There are times when you want to understand the strategy another person is using—either to model it yourself because it’s effective, or to change it because it’s not producing the desired results. What steps should you take to do this?

1. Associate the person with the strategy. Either identify a context where they can demonstrate the strategy right now (for example, if it’s a decision-making strategy, ask them to make a simple decision in front of you), or have them recall a past moment when they used this strategy. Whatever you do, the person should associate themselves with the strategy, using present-tense language. This helps you understand the memory components of the strategy they use when thinking about past experiences. When the person is associated with a specific strategy, the available cues are linked to the strategy itself, not just memories of it.
2. Ask the person to walk you through their strategy step by step. Use all available cues to map out their strategy—eye movements, posture, gestures, body language, verbal responses, and predicates.
3. Distinguish between sequential and simultaneous steps. Sequential steps are indicated by words like “then,” while simultaneous steps use “and.”
4. Focus on the process of the strategy. Don’t think about what the strategy is used for—that’s content, not the strategy itself. A strategy is like a train—the cars can carry anything.
5. Use the TOTE model questions to uncover strategy details—outcome, actions, analysis, and exit. Identify the critical submodalities used.
   • First, ask about the outcome: “What are you trying to achieve?”
   • Then, ask about the key that starts the strategy: “What’s your first step?”
   • Ask about subsequent steps: “And what do you do next?”
   • Ask how the person transitions from one step to the next: “What do you pay attention to in order to move to the next step?”
   • Ask about the exit point: “How will you know you’ve achieved the result?”

   The exit point is usually determined by a critical submodality reaching a threshold. When a mental image becomes vivid enough or feelings become strong enough, the person knows they’ve achieved the desired result.

6. Help the person continually return to the past. Go through the steps of the strategy together and prompt them by asking, “And then?”
7. After identifying the strategy, try it yourself. Does it seem reasonable to you?
8. Walk the person through the entire strategy. Does it seem reasonable to them? Are they congruent with their own actions?

Identifying strategies is one of the core skills in NLP. You need rapport, the ability to ask precise questions, keen observation to notice access cues, and a clear sense of where the process is happening. This requires the skill and focus of legendary detectives like Sherlock Holmes or Columbo. (Develop your own style—a pipe and a trench coat might help!)

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