While I appreciated Sue Knight’s NLP At Work, I find this book is much more detailed and practical. I’ve been able to find and apply NLP successfully in nearly every interaction I have.

Examples of how we process information (submodalities), what perspectives we apply (framing), and how we apply them (metaprograms) are throughout and form a handy reference. I felt able to observe these in myself and others the moment after I read about them.

As far as decision making and conflict resolution goes, the authors explain how to view an issue from multiple positions in order to make more ecologically sound decisions; it’s certainly a nice compliment to Getting to Yes when it comes to negotiating. These skills are extend into identifying different levels of conflict using the Neuro-Logical Levels.

In addition, this book contains a very clear description of two language models: the Meta Model and Milton Model. For those seeking clarity in a verbal argument, the Meta Model helps uncover those submodalities, frames, and metaprograms for external reference. In contrast, the Milton model describes patterns one can apply to take advantage of internal references, which can be used to open one’s mind up to additional options.

Overall, I love this book as an introduction to the skills. Those who’d like a specific handbook on these patterns and some additional exercises could probably read NLP Handbook by the same authors, but Introduction to NLP is still an essential read.