Techniques do matter, and so does doing them correctly. Switch the desired state and problem state around for techniques such as Change Personal History or a Swish Pattern and you can have problems and be in a far worse state than when you were before you tried the technique. There have been more than a few people who messed themselves up doing changework incorrectly, and there have been others who use various techniques such as "pain patterns" or "suicide patterns" to mess up other people. Techniques work, they are not simply tricks and should be used carefully.
One of Tony's techniques, the Dickens Pattern, can backfire by installing negative states into your future timeline. It is ok for doing something immediate, like doing a term paper due in the next few days or studying for a test, but I wouldn't use it for long-term goals. It also will really only motivate someone with a strong away from motivation strategy.
When doing serious changework it is best, IMO, to work on integration and then move in a direction. If you are using paraliminals, this is what the New Behavior Generator does.
