Erickson wrote the following in the preface to Bandler and Grinder's book The Patterns of the Hypnotic Techniques of Milton H. Erickson, M.D.:

"Although this book by Richard Bandler and John Grinder, to which I am contributing this Preface, is far from being a complete description of my methodologies, as they so clearly state it is a much better explanation of how I work than I, myself, can give. I know what I do, but to explain how I do it is much too difficult for me."

In addition to modelling the behaviour of "wizards" such as Milton Erickson, Grinder and Bandler have added their own wide array of effective communication skills to the body of knowledge that they teach others. It is unusual to find two people like Bandler and Grinder who are such powerful and effective communicators. It is even more unusual to find two people who are so capable of teaching others to do what they do so exquisitely.

The material presented in this book is detailed and specific and carefully sequenced, beginning with simple concepts and exercises, and proceeding step–by–step to more advanced procedures. This book has been created from verbatim transcripts of10 different seminars on hypnosis, edited together so that it appears as a single workshop. No distinction is made between when Richard is speaking and when John is speaking, and the names of most participants have been changed.

As you read this book, keep in mind that Bandler and Grinder are usually doing what they're talking about. Sometimes they're explicit about this, and sometimes they're not. The astute reader will find much more in the text than is overtly commented upon.