From the author: Published for the first time “... people change for two reasons: firstly, if they really hurt enough to want to change something, and, secondly , most often smart adults do this when someone shows them another, more successful path, although it may not look very tempting and the effort may also hurt.” Betty Alice Erickson “New Lessons in Hypnosis” In June of this year (2012), I was lucky enough to attend Betty Alice Erickson’s seminar “Classics of Ericksonian Hypnosis,” which took place in Moscow at the Institute of Group and Family Psychology and Psychotherapy. I want to share my impressions of this event. Of course, everyone who attended this seminar took something different from it, but the overall atmosphere was very warm and trusting. Trust is what Betty Alice Erickson talked to us about first. Trust in yourself as a person and a specialist, trust in the client and trust in what you do together. Much has been said about joining as a special type of connection between people. Betty talked about the fact that there were times when a person could not even imagine that you could contact any person at any time of the day or night, no matter how far from you and almost anywhere in the world via a mobile phone. And now, for us, this is a common occurrence - we can even get annoyed if suddenly we were unable to contact the first time - “the subscriber is temporarily unavailable or is out of reach”... So joining is a natural or deep trance with the client. It’s like a special type of connection that we may not fully understand, but, nevertheless, it exists and those who attended this seminar were even able to join each other. This workshop included many demonstrations and often subsequent exercises so that those present could not only see and observe, but also practice and do. I can tell you the feeling is indescribable. Each exercise was performed with a different person, and we could be either the client or the therapist. And it was very exciting at the beginning - what if it didn’t work out, and then it was so fascinatingly interesting - it worked out! Trance joining and connecting with a client can be very pleasant, says Betty: “I like you, I relate to you very well on a soul level, I generally love people, but on a conceptual level I don’t care... I don’t need anything from you - the client has come and gone... It gives you freedom - you don't have to do anything for me... and that's why I'm probably one of the most trustworthy people you've ever met... I don't want anything from you , I want for you and together with you...” “What do people who cannot be trusted have in common?” says Betty, already explaining the intervention, and not inducing a trance, “they want something from you.” “That’s why inclusion and connection is what people crave, because human connection (when they don’t want anything from you) is very rare. All connections are very superficial...” And already about Father Milton Erickson: “I asked Dad, how do you manage to convince people (your clients) to do sometimes incredible, amazing things?” He thought for a while, and then told me: “They know that I know what I'm doing. And they know that I 100% want the best for them and because they know that - they know that it will help them." In general, Betty Alice is a very interesting and attentive person. I am glad that there was this meeting - a meeting with a wonderful Master. The hall is full – there’s nowhere for an apple to fall, but it seemed to me that she looked at everyone in such a way that everyone felt her attention. It’s amazing how much warmth and sincere interest in people comes from this woman - small and fragile on the outside, but very strong on the inside - I felt her that way. I would call her a person with a very big heart. During these three days, we also learned conversational trance - there was a lot=2479