I often do interviews talking about The Tapping Solution App and Tapping in general, and one of the ideas I share is how Tapping takes 5 minutes to learn and a lifetime to master. (This principle can be applied to most things in life!)
Tapping is surprisingly simple to learn. Even kids can pick it up quickly. But to get the best results, to be able to use it effectively for yourself and the ones you love, you have to keep studying, exploring, and using it.
That being said, here are the top 5 mistakes I see people make regarding Tapping.
Ok, ok, I know this seems a little obvious… haha. But it’s a serious issue and one I’m sure you’ve faced. How often have you looked back on an event, or a day, or a physical problem you had for a while and thought, “Why didn’t I tap on that?”
I know I’ve spent half a day with a sore neck from sleeping wrong before I thought, “Duh! Tap on it!” And I’m supposed to be The Tapping Guy – how could I forget? 🙂
If you are unsure about what Tapping can help with, here’s a short list.
The reality is that this Tapping thing is relatively new for all of us. I’ve been using it, studying it, teaching about it for the past 10 years or so. But for the previous 25 years, I didn’t know about it, didn’t use it, had no experience of it. That’s A LOT of years of conditioning without having this tool, especially in the most formative years of childhood.
We simply haven’t had it as part of our lives, so we’ve developed habits that don’t include it. If you were taught how to tap as a child and were instructed that it was just as important (or more!) as brushing your teeth, you’d have a different experience now.
So the most basic reason most of us don’t use it is that we simply forget. Now, there can also be deeper issues for not using it, such as self-sabotage, reversals, fear of change, and so forth. I’ll be covering those separately in future posts. But for now, it’s important to just recognize that when you don’t use it, it’s often simply because you don’t think of it – and to gently, and kindly remind yourself to USE IT! 🙂
Here’s a little Tapping script to clear some of that resistance and those old habits. Try it now and see how it affects your week.
Karate Chop: Even though I haven’t been using Tapping as much as I could, I deeply and completely accept myself.
Karate Chop: Even though I could have made my life easier by using Tapping on (fill in the blank of a recent time when you might have used it), I choose to relax and forgive myself now.
Karate Chop: Even though I’m not used to turning to Tapping to solve my problems, I choose to start using it. I choose to become more resourceful, and to remember to use this powerful tool!
Eyebrow: I haven’t been tapping
Side of the Eye: Why not?
Under the Eye: Am I sabotaging myself?
Under the Nose: Maybe…
Under the Mouth: Or maybe I just forgot
Collarbone: Maybe I’m just not used to doing this
Under the Arm: But I can start using it now
Top of the Head: I’m tapping now!
Eyebrow: And that’s great
Side of the Eye: I choose to remember
Under the Eye: To tap!
Under the Nose: I choose to develop this positive habit
Under the Mouth: That can help me so much
Collarbone: It will make my life easier
Under the Arm: And that’s a choice I want to make
Top of the Head: I choose to tap when I most need it
Take a deep breath…
And let it go… Repeat a few times, or focus in on anything that came up while doing those short rounds.
Ok, now on to…
I always encourage people to start with global statements because it’s usually the easiest language to start with, and it can get things going in the right direction. What do I mean by a global statement? Something general like:
“Even though I’m not happy right now… I deeply and completely accept myself.”
That statement is global because it’s broad, and doesn’t focus on specifics.
From there, though, after a round or two of the global statement, it’s important to hone in on the specifics.
So in this case, you might go from, “Even though I’m not happy right now…” as the first statement, to “Even though I’m not happy right now because my boss was such a jerk today…”
Now you’ve focused on a specific event, which will get you better results. The more specific you can get, the better. Which leads us to Mistake #3…
Gary Craig, the founder of EFT, was a genius at identifying the importance of “aspects” to getting great results. What’s meant by aspects? An aspect is a specific “part” of the issue.
So in the case above, “Not being happy” – we go from the general to the specific, “I’m not happy because my boss was such a jerk”, to even more specific “aspects”.
So here are some potential aspects in this example:
“I’m not happy because my boss yelled at me.” (This is an “audible” aspect of the event)
“I don’t like the way he looked at me.” (This is an aspect of the experience, the “visual cue”)
“I felt his words hit me in the pit of my stomach.” (Here’s a “body sensation” to address)
“I’m worried he’s going to fire me.” (A “future fear” to address)
“It reminds me of the way my father used to talk to me.” (A “childhood trauma” to address)
“I never have good relationships with my bosses.” (A “limiting belief/past experience” to address)
And we could go on and on!
Now, sometimes issues can be handled with global tapping, but the great thing about working through aspects is that you’ll likely uncover so much more stuff that’s going on in your life. And clearing this particular experience with your boss can have massive repercussions on a bunch of other things!
For example, you start with the experience with your boss. But then you tap on how your father used to talk to you, and you heal that relationship problem and have a better (and less reactive) experience with your boss.
If you take the time to do it right, it can have profound effects that last a lifetime.
Which leads perfectly into Mistake #4…
This is a mistake I see A LOT of people make. They’ll say, “Yeah, I tried tapping on that, didn’t work.” And when I ask them how long they tapped on the issue, they say a couple of minutes, or a round or two! That’s rarely enough.
I see this in particular with physical pain. “Oh, my neck hurt so I tapped on it but it didn’t go away…”
“How long did you tap?”
“Two or three minutes.”
🙂
The 1-minute miracles DO happen, but more often than not, it takes some more sustained tapping.
I’m not saying that you have to spend hours doing it, but you really want to give it at least 15 minutes of sustained tapping to work through an issue properly.
My trick when I go to tap on something is to set a timer or some sort of alarm, and I promise myself I won’t stop until the 15 minutes are up. This prevents me from giving up quickly, being distracted, and so forth.
Or can also download The Tapping Solution App and explore the many guided meditations in there. Then you won’t have to time yourself at all – simply listen and tap along!
And finally…
If you’re working by yourself, I find it really helpful to have a pen and paper (or the computer) handy to take notes on what you want to work on, or to write down your progress on the 1-10 scale, or to record other things that come up while tapping.
The last item might be the most important – writing down other things that come up.
So here’s what this might look like. You write down:
“I’m frustrated with all the bills I got in the mail today. It’s a 7 on the 0-10 scale.”
You start tapping, the frustration goes down. But all of a sudden, some anger comes up. You write that down.
“I’m angry at myself for not working harder this month. It’s an 8.”
You tap on that. That eases and turns to sadness.
“I’m sad that this keeps happening. It’s a 5.”
You tap on that.
You check back in on the frustration you wrote about above. That’s a 1, you barely feel it.
The anger moved to a 4. There’s still something there, you tap on that further.
While doing that tapping, you think of two events from your childhood.
“That time that my father said I’d never amount to anything.”
“My mother crying because we didn’t have enough money.”
You write down both events because you know that you want to address each separately.
And so forth…
It is truly like peeling an onion. And while it might seem complicated at first, once you get the hang of it, it’s easy. And it becomes even easier when you write stuff down and stay on track.
The other nice thing about writing things down is that if you’re not ready to tackle something right then, or don’t have the time to, you have it written down to go back to later.
Well, there you have it! The top 5 mistakes I see people make with EFT – and how to solve them!
Until next time…
Keep Tapping!
Nick Ortner
Copyright © 2024 The Tapping Solution, LLC
Hi Nick,
my first expierience of tapping was at a breakout session at a qugong conference. The pit of my stomache was filled with anxiety from my drive to the conference. I tapped on that. It brought up memmories of being raped in a car, tears flooded down my cheeks. It had so much connection to my driving anxiety it was unbelievable. Weeks later I could see and feel the difference in my driving, I knew it had worked. I decided to try it on a dairy allergy that I have. I wrote down my statement “Even though I have this allergic reaction to dairy I deeply and completely accept myself.” I actually tapped on my forearm the first three times stating the statement and then three more times from the top of my head down to my armpit. I thought oh I’m going to have to do this when I have more time to focus, it probably didn’t work. To my surprize it did, the bumps on my back went away. I would occasionally sneek some dairy into my diet and the week of my birthday my daughter made me salad with chunks of real cheese and I went out for ice cream twice. This is amasing, Thank You for what you are doing.
I was doing some tapping on line with negative statements and positive statements along with Mary Lynch. If the negative statements are getting rid of the negative are we getting rid of the positive by stating those as well are we suppose to feel positive when we say them or are we feeling negative when we say them with the hopes of feeling positive????? Jane
Nick,
great list of the big 5! Even though I am tapping for a few years now, I am guilty of these mistakes. Thanks for bringing that to my attention. I needed that.
Go well, Mariette
In mistake #2, it is really important to USE YOUR OWN WORDS! They don’t have to be grammatical. You can even swear or just grunt or yell, but it has to come from the heart. When you tap what you think you should say or when someone else tells you how to say it you won’t get the rapid result and the AHA feeling of understanding and peace.
Hi Nick, Thank you very much for this tips all five mistakes applied to me thanks for the reminder.
Thank you for sharing! Yes I am guilty of both forgetting to tap and to not tap long enough:) But now You have reminded me to do it:)
EXCELLENT NICK! Thanks so much–powerful article–Love, Linda
Hello Nick,
Thanks for reminding us all again about this stuff, very important I agree and all too easy
to skip over,the aspect ,the timing, and writing it down are all on my to do list.
many thanks,
Cheers,
Well, clearly I did not tap long enough. So now I know. Thanks, Nick!
An excellent post, with some ‘on the button’ observations and reminders! Very good for me, especially as I start to introduce it to more clients as another tool to use for well-being, and so much more!
Hi Nick, Well went thru your list of five mistakes, am not making any of these. Achieve great success in anything to do with physical problems but am unable to do so with my financial problems. Any suggestions???????
Bharati Chandigarh India
I like it and you are right on about the mistakes. I love EFT. I love the results.
Thanks for the timely reminder. I used to time my own kind of ‘Ritual'( prayer, meditation and tapping ) which I usually do 2X a day, as of late each time I hit my pillows as if I am already sleepy so the tendency is to reduce my tapping rounds. I am glad you share this post on time, tca, regards and God bless !
Don’t do tapping often enough… always thinking should have tapped on that.
I really appreciate EFT, its simple, its something that you can do in the moment and you do get results. The 5 common mistakes is a bit of an eye opener and good to know. I will now tap longer and have great success. One of the most profound things that I have noticed is that when I tap on a regular biases, I get green lights when I’m driving, I know that sounds odd, but that what I notice the most. Then when I hit red lights, while waiting I tap and then the green lights start to flow again. I am going through a learning right now, curve taking my business to the next level, and oh yeah, there is stuff coming up, so I will tap 15 minutes to alleviate the chatter in my mind. thanks Nic for always doing what you can to help others
A timely reminder about trying to shortcut the process too much. Having used tapping for several years, I still amke the mistake of tapping for just a couple of minutes and think I’ve actuallydealt with an issue.
Another mistake you could add is not giving 100% attention to the tapping process whilst doing it. How many times do you tap and your mind wanders …..’I wonder what time Jay’s getting home today?’ ‘oh, I should remember to clean out the back of the sofa’ or something equally weird.
My own tip, is if there isn’t a specific area of your body that requires your attention, then focus on the brow chakra – on the forehead, between the eyebrows as you tap.
Hi Nick, I just started tapped a few months ago and I feel so much more relaxed about life and something comes up that bothers me I just tap on it. I am very guilty of not writing things down and I know that is very important because I tent to forget what blocks are coming up while I’m tapping on something else. Since I started tapping I have mostly good days. Thanks Nick & Jessica you have helped me so much.
There are spiritual “practices” , (I’ll call them ) that speak to the fact that when you work on things that you want to change in your life, those are the things that come up.
Work on money issues and there you are with a money issue right in your face.
I have found that sometimes when I do tapping, as in other practices, that things sometimes “get worse” before they getting better. Like I’ll get MORE anxiety before I get less.
Does this happen to anyone else??
How should we handle that? Professional help along with tapping?
I am thinking that perhaps it depends on how deep the issues are that trouble us.
Hi Nick,
A big thank you for all your tapping tips. I have got into a nice routine when I first wake up
in the morning. If Im feeling negative I tap that out first, then tap in a positive statement
and I do this till I feel cheerful. if something else arises and I haven’t the time a leave myself
a Post-it note and tap when I have more time later that day.
Comments by Jennifer England August 10th 16.15pm
I love this tapping solution – thanks for sharing this marvellous technique with everyone. I hv painful osteo-arthiritis of the knees and tapping does give me relief but the relief is only for a short while. I woud like to know how to permanently remove the pain. Is it possile? As you say, may be I am not tapping long enough or may be I have to repeat a few times in one sitting. I tap on each point to the count of 12-15. Kindly advise – Meena
HI Nick,
I love the way you express your message on paper. I can feel the simplicity, the sincerity, the truth, honesty and your warm sense of giving. Thank you!
Several months ago I bought and watched your video “The Tapping Solution” and now I am sharing it with friends. However, as much as I know this works… I’m simply not doing it???
Thank you for the reminders (the self-sabotage) especially.
Love Lea ♥ xo
Nick,
Thank you so much. I am ready to start tapping again. I am def guilty of all 5 but thanks to these tips the remedy is in sight! I am so glad to have this tool in my life for myself and my 5 yr old daughter. I wish I had tapping as a kid…how much easier life would have been. I am so happy to be able to give this tool and ease to my daughter.
God Bless!
thank u so much u r sweet keep u good job
lidia
Thanks for the tips and reminders. Is it important to speak out loud during the tapping or can you just say it to yourself?
Nick, I really appreciate all the information you have provided. Out of the 5 mistakes, I am guilty of 4. I am pretty new at tapping, but my plan is to use it every day. So far, it has helped me with a few issues. Thanks again.
Thanks so much Nick, I’m looking for some advice, Ive been struggling with Bulimia, and done a lot of healing around it, I think whats left is pure habit, I have a food plan , and I know what to do, but keep procrastinating and putting off really going for recovery, as all it will take from me is commitment to food plan, commitment to interrupt cravings by talking or calling someone, but there is some strange believe or block around letting it go, bulimia is an old crutch and is like an old worn out battered escape that doesn’t work anymore or is not even needed,and I just need that push, I have all the support, all the tools, and the insight , its just reluctance to do the action…and I’m frustrated…because I have so much to gain by just doing the suggested things…anyway thank you , Milly Dublin Ireland
Good article. I plead guilty to #1 but I’m sure if i get past that one I would be guilty of most or all of the others! thank you for the reminder.
Thanks Nick for a great post,
I have been aware of EFT and tapping since the days when Gary Craig was heavily involved and the fact that you have mentioned him already shows your integrity to me.
Secondly despite having used tapping on and off for years, your article really filled in some blanks for me and has given me a new lease of life on how to use tapping effectively. All of your points are very good and numbers four and five in particular are points that I will keep in mind from now on.
This is such a good article on EFT, in the way that it addresses the missing things that are rarely addressed that I am rating this a ten!!!
Kind regards,
Paul
JUST WHAT I NEEDED TODAY!
I had given up tapping after I felt slightly better. I thought, maybe, it wouldn’t work any further. I was mistaken: as Nick had warned me to keep on tapping to see the results which is something I neglected. Eventually I stopped completely, something I regret having done. Now I am tapping again and I am seeing positive results, emotionally and physically. It was so simple after all. My mistake was that I didn’t tap enough and neither did I follow the instructions, so to speak. Thanks for your encouragement Nick. GBY
Yep, totally agree
Didn’t tap at all between levels 1 and 2. Following 2 I tap every day (or just release – I tap so much I don’t always do the physical tapping anymore).
Not writing things down is my biggest area for improvement. Time and time again I come back to stuff because I’ve been distracted. I think my mind has me chasing all over the place with bogus stuff sometimes because the real core issues are hiding safely – such as not being allowed to forgive myself. This has been crucial to me.
my thoughts – keep talking, sharing, creating and allowing. it just gets easier and better. xxx
I appreciate Ms. Sheldon’s program. Your info. on the tapping techniques was quite refreshing.
Great post Nick – valuable for us all – James
Good information.
I’ve decided to incorporate tapping into my A.M. practices, in order to banish any blocks to a good day. I have already established a P.M. practice of tapping for restful sleep, thanks to Jessica and Ruth. If any of you are from Houston, Texas, just let me know and we can share our experiences. Tapping my animals, and old sick cat, and a puppy has been so successful. I swear they understand tapping better than humans, really. Thanks Nick & Jessica, love you both.
Hi Nick, thank you taking the time to write, I do tap regularly, onions to be sure! and it iz amazing that there are times just dont think of tapping on stuff, thanks for the reminder!
Dear Nick: I am am new at tapping since the EFT Summit. I don’t know how I got included in an invitation to the Summit, but maybe you put out a large net.
The basic tapping is so simple to learn and I am suprised at things that get uncovered. Sometimes I tap while walking in the woods. Thank you for your generous giving. I was amazed that the ebook turned out to be 75 pages. Lots to work on in it. I am a cloistered nun without a penny to my name, but a dear friend got me the DVD Tapping Solution. And now these newsletters you have begun, and the five mistakes, o my! So gratitude surges up once again. I am 75 and I feel hope and changes. Thanks, Sr. Catherine
Hello from BREAM in England
Thank you Nick.
It always makes me smile how easy and simple life really is .We are born with every thing we need in this life.
We just need to remember that and forget about looking for a solution because we already have it in our HANDS & FINGERS.
I found out about you and others ….. through my fantastic E.F.T. teacher ANNE Tocknol 2 years ago she shares her knowledge so generously to her students.So could you say hi to her ,she lives in LYDNEY in the forest of dean glos.
That would make her smile…..
keep up your great work the master gary craig would approve im sure.
Hey Nick, Although this is the first time I have commented I have been absorbing this information for many months. I have not been using it, however. I had never even heard of such a thing before a few months ago and felt I needed more study to understand what and why I might be doing this… I think I will read the book one more time and begin. Your “5 biggest mistakes” article has given me the “final straw” of confidence I need… Thanks, Belinda
Hi Nick, Thanks so much for your reminders- If I could pick one of the five I would say that I get hung up on the script the most. I have been a devoted student of yours for 2 years now and tapping has absolutely changed my life for the better. Plus all the other good stuff you present to us on your website. My toolbox is getting very heavy!!!
Great tips, Nick – both for me and my clients :o)
And by the way, I have never expressed anything to you nor to your sister, Jessica, about your work, but I truly think that both of you are doing an absolutely great and heartfelt work, – and Jessica has got such a positive, lovely appearing (and voice). Love and light from denmark
Hi Nick, Thankyou so much. Your joy and love of life and people and Tapping is so beautiful, I find it infectious and very inspiring. I see you looking out for all of us and are so generous. Thankyou for living your passion and purpose. Love and light to you, Janet
Thank you for all the time and help that you give to others; to make this world a better place. Love and Gratitude 🙂
Hello Nick,
That was very Informative and helpful, I have beeen tapping on a few issues since I listened to the Tapping World summit its a fantastic healing system thank you very much for sharing it with so many people.
May Love Light and Peace
Be with You
Many thanks Nick,
for all your help and assistance. However, I find that I don’t seem to be able to get to the root of the medical issues I have, I ‘ve been tapping for three years and am training to become a practitioner (Level 3 at the moment) and whilst I am happier, calmer, contented, financially better off …. wooppeeee all these wonderful things, The medical issues have gotten worse, not better ……. I’ve been to ‘qualified’ practitioners but still no break through, I have tapped on everything I can remember, without success (yet) ….. I have just noticed Gloria’s comment above regarding Judy Byrne, I will give it a try, thank you Gloria.
Keep up the good work Nick, Jessica, Alex and everyone else involved .. thank you PS I couldn’t log into Chrissies Registration Site …
It i s so true. I’ve started tapping during the EFT Summit this year and use it ever since.
I’ve tried a lot of things in attempt to shift my energy and EFT is the tool that gives the best results at the shortest time. I have 6 kids, husband :)) and I work, which leaves me very little time to work on me.I need these blogs to keep me up. Thanks for it. EFT worked on those around me – friend in Europe (I explained to him, over the phone how to tap on back pain the very next day when I listened to that topic on the Summit) got rid of 4 weeks long back pain
within a day!! He did it 3 times that day, and spent about 10 minutes each time (3-4 minutes of tapping in each round, and then three in a row each time). What made him do it that many times? He said “on a scale 0-10 I felt better after every round, so I just continued doing it until it was all gone”!! Very simple, isn’t it? And I still forget to check where I am after my tapping.
My 10 years old son stopped being angry at school after we tapped on anger for thre nights in a row – about 2 minutes each time. His teacher can confirm this. My 16 years old son opened up and got more confident in about 20 days of tapping every other day (it is not easy to get a teenager to do it, so I was happy to get him to sit with me, listen to me i tap on the points!!)
He wasn’t even saying anything and I tought OK let’s try, it won’t hurt and who knows … It worked suprisingly fast and helped him more then anything before. We spent $4,500 for one year at Sylvan and it did absolutely nothing to his selfconfidence! Couple of hours of talking to him fallowed by couple of minutes of tapping did wonders!And it cost me $0.
Since I somehow always find time to work with others and have very little time to work on my own issues this is how I incorporate tapping in my schedule -I don’t get annoyed when I am in a traffic rush anymore, for I use that time to tap (with fingertips on the stirring weel), I tap right before I fall asleep, or before getting out of the bed, in the line up at supermarket, on the toilet,…. I use Jessica’s Integration tapalong whenever I don’t have time to chat with myself and look for issues to clear. EFT is the most powerfull energy tool I came across so far.
Do not give up, find your tapping baddy and be there for each other, for it works. All the best!Slavitsa
thanks Nick
that was great
namaste
sheryl bishop
Hi Nick,Thank you so much for pointing all of the important things which we might forget or missed it.
I have been lo tapping on “something” most everyday since I started on traumas, which really wasn’t very long ago. Currently, I am tapping every night on sleep with Ruth Stern and finding it very helpful. Hope you keep her on the blog for quite awhile. My mistake has been not going back far enough in my life to dig out the real blocks to success. The Inner Child tapping with Judy Byrne was enlightening, to say the least, and I recommend it to everyone to try. You will be surprised all the “stuff” that will come up. All in all, you are doing a wonderful service to mankind and womankind, and I am so thankful and grateful to you and Jessica for being so generous with your help.
Hi Nick,
Speaking of not tapping long enough, what fascinates me is when people with a life-long problem don’t want to spend an hour – or several hours – tapping because it takes too long. Huh? Longer than everything else they’ve tried?
On another note, maybe the sixth mistake people make with tapping is forgetting how amazing it is and not trying it on absolutely everything possible. I have found very few things that tapping does not have at least SOME effect on. (Thank you, Gary.)
Hai Nick, I am from Malaysia. Thank you so much for briefing us . I have purchased your items sometime back. How do I tap My thoughts keep wondering and not letting me be happy.