ABSTRACT
This chapter addresses the foundations of a change leader's role which involves caretaking and guiding change participants' experience of the change work that is to unfold. Guiding involves directing change subjects along a journey of generative change from one state to another, whilst caretaking involves providing a safe and supportive environment for this process to emerge successfully. The main reason that neuro-linguistic programming (NLP) can help build an atmosphere of psychological safety in a group or between two people is that its originators modelled the work and practices of leading psychotherapists. As an essential element of both caretaking and guiding, the NLP trainer is taught to acutely respect rapport-building processes. When building a climate of trust, a significant challenge for change leaders is managing the corrosive influence of toxic symbolism generated by meta-messages gone wrong. Another key element of building a coaching container is thinking through the spatial content of the venue being used. Robert Dilts calls this process 'psychogeography'.
