The Forgotten Art of Modeling: How to Think Like a High Performer

When neuro-linguistic programming (NLP) was first developed, it wasn’t about persuasion or sales tricks. It was about something far more valuable: modeling human excellence. The founders asked a simple but radical question: why do some people consistently achieve extraordinary results, while others—trained the same way—struggle?

Instead of guessing, they studied the best. Therapists like Virginia Satir and Milton Erickson, communicators like Fritz Perls. They looked at how these masters spoke, how they thought, what they noticed, how they used their voice, and even how they held themselves physically. The goal wasn’t to admire them—it was to decode what they did so others could replicate the results.

That’s what “modeling” means: breaking down excellence into repeatable patterns.

Somewhere along the way, that original mission got buried under persuasion hacks and wordplay games. Useful, yes—but shallow compared to the real treasure. Because when you understand modeling, you hold a key most people will never discover: the ability to shortcut learning by absorbing the strategies of top performers.

Think about it. What if you could:

• Learn how a world-class athlete manages focus under pressure, and apply it to your own presentations?

• Study how successful entrepreneurs set goals, and apply the same strategy to your business?

• Model how confident leaders carry themselves, so you naturally project authority without faking it?

  
  

This isn’t about copying surface details. It’s about identifying the internal blueprints—the mindset, beliefs, and strategies—that drive results. Once you map those out, you can practice them until they become natural.

Here’s the power: when you model excellence, persuasion isn’t even necessary. Your presence, your results, your skill set—they speak for you. Influence becomes a by-product of competence.

That’s why the original spirit of NLP deserves a revival. Not as a bag of tricks, but as a discipline of mastery. A way of asking: What do the best in the world know that I don’t? And how can I learn it, faster?

Return to modeling, and you stop chasing shortcuts. You start building real excellence. And in a world obsessed with surface tactics, that depth is rare—and magnetic.