Well, that is one fine set of observations and questions! I'll do what I can to answer it all. Haley is just brilliant and I love his work and him. He is keenly aware of Erickson's indirect approach and embraces it. His use of paradox is simply one angle of Erickson's in my opinion. His personality is very humorous and sarcastic (and me too) and his ability to get people to rebel is, therefore, good. So, he uses paradox in that manner. He studied with Erickson in the decades before Zeig and Gilligan and I did. So, Erickson's approach changed and i think Haley got the major gist of it. Others however, studied or at least met him much earlier. Here is an evolution of his thinking in that area taken from his writings.

In a 1957 transcript of induction, we find Dr. Erickson’s redundant use of words like “sleep” as in the following quote, "Now I want you to go deeper and deeper asleep" (Haley 1967). In addition his authoritative approach can be found in this same transcript represented with the statement "I can put you in any level of trance" (Haley 1967).. However, by 1976 Erickson believes indirection suggestion to be a “significant factor" in his work (Erickson, Rossi et al. 1976, p. 452). Furthermore, by 1981 Erickson clearly states that he "offers" ideas and suggestions (Erickson and Rossi 1981, pg. 1-2) and explicitly adds, "I don't like this matter of telling a patient I want you to get tired and sleepy" (Erickson and Rossi 1981, p. 4). With regard to his use of indirection, there is clear evidence that evolve in his practice to a point in the late 1970s when Erickson had abandoned his earlier techniques of redundancy and authoritarianism during induction.

That was from my forward to Dan Short, BA Erickson, and Roxie Erickson's new book HOPE AND RESILIANCE. (So...I hope the copyright permissions are all okay!!)

But, you can see that the "old timers" who know his work would walk away thinking he used direct suggestion, while the "new comers" would walk away saying he prefered indirect suggestion.

As for your comment on some strategic and solution focussed founders missing the point about retrieving resources.... I strongly agree. IT is all about having the resources we need in the context we need them. But there are various ways to help people get in contact with them (not just metaphor or talking, of course). From the same Foreword:

The one area in which Erickson never wavered was his view of “cure.” I suspect this was a result of his personal experience overcoming paralysis. He learned as a young adult that experiential resources created change. As early as 1948 Erickson recognizes that cure not the result of direct suggestion but from reassociation of experience (Erickson 1980). In the later years of his career we find this theme repeated again and again (Erickson and Rossi 1979; Erickson and Rossi 1980; Erickson and Rossi 1981),

Steve

Steve