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hypnotists" because they couldn't hypnotize them. After all, they ask,
hadn't they been willing subjects? My usual answer is that the fault, if
there is one, is not with the hypnotists and really not with the
subjects. It is a matter of exploring what has happened and then
deciding on a course of action to insure success.

I am firmly convinced that the subject responds when he is positively,
without equivocation, ready to do so. He keeps testing the response to
make sure he is in control. He fears a reduction in his voluntary level
of reality attachment and control. Unresponsiveness proves to him that
he has this control. As long as he does this, which is a natural
response, he never lets go sufficiently to attain hypnosis. Hypnosis,
as we know, is a very sensitive state. It requires complete faith and
trust in the hypnotist. If it is lacking, the subject never does
respond. The phenomenon of hypnosis is entirely subjective in nature,
and its success lies within the total personality structure of the
subject. If there is resistance to hypnosis itself or to deepening the
state, the subject by his own honest evaluation and verbalization of his
resistance can do much to become a better subject. Hypnosis must begin
with the acceptance by the subject of certain basic fundamentals that we
have already discussed rather than of the forcefulness of the hypnotist.
The deepening of the hypnotic state lies in the intensification of the
conditioned response mechanism once it has been initiated.

You should not expect to achieve immediate results although sometimes
this does happen. As you continue to work with perseverance,
intelligence and enthusiasm, you will definitely achieve the goals that
you have set for yourself. It is well to remember that you guide
yourself toward the somnambulistic state, depending upon your belief and
acceptance of those principles that have been outlined for you.

I have attempted to point out some of the salient points and theories to
keep in mind in your attempt to develop into an excellent hypnotic
subject. Some of these only pertain to the situations where the
hypnotist works with the subject. Many of the problems inherent in this
setting are not applicable to the situation where the subject is
hypnotizing himself. Both settings have their advantages and
disadvantages. As long as you proceed to follow the instructions given
you, you can feel assured that you will finally achieve self-hypnosis