The Department of Psychology at IIS (Deemed to be) University organised an engaging and interactive seminar on October 15, 2024, led by Prof. Durgesh Batra, professor at Manipal University and a distinguished expert in Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP) Professor Durgesh Batra emphasizes on the importance of NLP as a Tool for Personal Development.illustrating his point with the analogy, “Our Happiness is in our own Hands and not in anyone else’s”.He effectively conveyed the value of not attributing one’s failures and successes to anyone else and taking responsibility. He further delved into the meaning and correlation between the terms ‘Neuro’‘Linguistic’, and ‘Programming’ while underscoring their relevance in developing positive attitudes.The session developed to be as interactive as it was informative. Through simple yet meaningful games and activities, Professor Batra imparted essential soft skills such as confidence building,establishing lasting relationships, effective communication, and self-reflection. He discussed how individuals perceive the world through their five senses and highlighted that everyone has predominant senses that can be leveraged to modify attitudes and perceptions toward various people, objects and situations.He introduced concepts like the ‘Learning ladder’ which illustrates the correlational development of attitude and competence and ‘Generalisation-Deletion-Distortion’, a technique to focus on optimism till the point negativity becomes negligible. He describes NLP as ‘the manual of our mind’ where every individual makes his/ her own ‘entry’,emphasizing the independence of individual will and choice. He encouraged the idea of training one’s mindset to apply strategies to attend personal and professional goals.The seminar concluded with a question-and-answer session, allowing students to engage further with the material presented.

Outcome:The students gained valuable insights into the novel concept of Neuro Linguistic Programming. They were enlightened by this meaningful session which was incredibly valuable to them. They learnt practical techniques for reducing negativity and fostering positivity even in challenging circumstances.Participants became more aware of their potential and received guidance on harnessing these gifts of human senses and cognitive processes sustainably. Overall, the seminar was highly informative, interactive, and engaging, leaving a lasting impact on all.