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Paul Mckenna is here to help

Paul McKenna tells us about his journey from underachieving schoolboy to self-help icon

With Seven Million self-help books sold and celebrity clients from Ellen DeGeneres to David Bowie, Paul McKenna can stake a claim as the world’s foremost self-help guru.

During his early career in radio, McKenna developed a fascination with the fields of hypnosis and neuro-linguistic programming.

Having honed his skills, the Londoner made the leap into television in 1993 with The Hypnotic World of Paul McKenna – in which hypnotised guests would eat raw onions believing they were apples and other such feats.

McKenna graduated from the light entertainment sphere to release a series of best-selling books, promising readers the chance to drastically improve their lives.

Titles geared around weight loss and stopping smoking continue to sell like hotcakes, while other books tackle subjects such as mending a broken heart, lack of confidence and sleeping problems.

The 50-year-old is set to host two events in Hall 3 of the Dubai World Trade Centre: ‘Change Your Life in 2 Days’ on October 31 and November 1, followed by ‘Persuasion, Influence and Presentation Skills’ on November 3.

We phoned Paul to chat about his stellar career helping people tackle their issues.

If you had to compare the human brain to one thing, what would it be?

The one we all use is a computer, but it’s way more complex – more like a holographic computer. Yes the brain is mysterious, but it’s also actually very mechanical. Science and psychology can’t explain everything, but at the same time we know a lot about how human behaviour can be controlled and directed, and that’s what I intend to do with people through my life.

What are the basic premises of your two Dubai events?

‘Change Your Life in 2 Days’ is based on the premise that success and happiness aren’t accidents that randomly happen to some people and not others. They’re actually created by certain ways of thinking and acting. I show people how to get very clear about what they truly want, and how to get over blocks, self-sabotage and that sort of thing. ‘Persuasion, Influence and Presentation Skills’ is about being a good communicator. It’s not about manipulating other people, it’s about creating rapport and being precise.

What made you step away from light entertainment towards more serious work in human development?

Simon Cowell told me he thought I needed to choose between making people do daft things in stage shows, or being a self-help and motivational expert. I agreed that they didn’t really mix, and I enjoyed helping people more than the stage shows, which had peaked. Getting people to bounce around like a kangaroo probably isn’t consistent with being a behavioural scientist.

Will your Dubai events involve hypnosis?

Yes, but the way I do hypnosis at these events is very gentle, and you don’t have to be hypnotised if you don’t want to. I’m not slamming people into deep trances where they feel out of control, it’s more like what Einstein used to call “thought experiments”.

You recently launched your own American talk show McKenna on Hulu. Can you tell us about it?

The ethos is to interview the “most interesting people in the world”. It’s not journalistic, it’s more like Inside the Actor’s Studio – a deconstruction of how brilliant these people are. I’ve interviewed people like Simon Cowell, Ryan Seacrest, Roger Moore and Heston Blumenthal.

How did you develop your techniques in self-help and hypnotism?

I learned a lot from Richard Bandler, who’s one of the greatest behavioural scientists in the world, and from Dr. Ronald Ruden who has developed a series of psycho-sensory therapies. I learned meditation from Genpo Merzel Roshi and thought field therapy from Professor Roger Callahan. I’m standing on the shoulders of giants to some extent – these are heavy academics, I’ve taken elements of what they do and made them mainstream.

What feeling do you get helping others to this day?

Doing some act of kindness and seeing the joy in someone’s face – that’s the gift back to you. But I’m also an egomaniac, so the fact that I could do something that psychiatrists couldn’t makes me feel good. It’s my own inadequacies from childhood, I suppose.

Were you in any way precocious as a youngster?

My academic development came later in life. At school, I didn’t do particularly well. Actually one school report of mine said I’d never amount to anything. When I had my first bestseller, I wrote “F*** you” in it and sent it to my old English teacher!

Did you hear back?

Funnily enough, no! It was a very childish thing to do but immensely gratifying.

For more info on Paul’s Dubai World Trade Centre shows, and to book your place, visit www.paulmckennadubai.com.