210.02 - Sets, Pacing and Leading
Maybe surprisingly, yes sets seem plausible. While I need to scrape up some academic studies on yes sets, no sets, compliance sets, pacing and leading, they’re good enough for most hypnotists. It could go all the way from having a real effect, to just sounding like it fits in a hypnotic ritual. It may just even build some degree of expectancy. 🤷
FWIW, some of these things might work as simply as the game Simon Says. You can get a surprising amount done with just the stuff on this page, and topping it off with Utilization. MMHA calls this “heteroaction,” which sets up a predisposition to respond without question - like building momentum. It feels grounded in NLP but it sure feels effective.
Sets
- Yes set: “All right - you said your name was Joe, right? And you said you were curious about trying hypnosis?… Good. And you’re comfortable? And you said your phone is out of your pocket? And just to double check, you already checked your messengers?” (If you’re trying something hypnokinky, go ham with these. You may get surprising results, especially if you mix in some cold reading.)
- No set: Here’s the weird thing about no-sets. While you’re still guiding them to say no repeatedly, you’re using this to build rapport and agreement. A ham-fisted example would be “You wouldn’t want a boring session, would you?”
- Compliance set: “All right, what I’d like you to do is place your feet flat on the ground, place your hands on your knees, take in a deep breath, and as you exhale close your eyes and let that breath out relax you.”
Pacing and Leading
Pacing and leading is more about internal (nonverbal) agreement, and then using a leading statement. So for example… “And as you notice yourself settle into the chair, perhaps becoming aware of your breathing, or the sounds in the background, you can find your next breath relaxing you just a bit more.”
This technique is frankly OP. This can either work by building “heteroaction,” (just following along like a Simon Says game,) or by giving ample time for the subject to build their own response.
| Suggestion | Type | VAK |
|---|---|---|
| And as you notice the sound of your breath | Pacing | A |
| How comfortable you are in that chair | Pacing | K |
| and the blankness behind your closed eyes | Pacing | V |
| you may begin to notice yourself becoming more comfortable with listening to my voice. | Leading, Direct suggestion with permissive language | K |