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Paradox of Choice: Influencing through Selection Have you ever had so many choices that you simply could not make up your mind? It’s called ‘overchoice’. And we are less happy when we have more choices. Barry Schwarz called this ‘the Paradox of Choice’. The Paradox of Choice: https://geni.us/xRAd1Vs Watching this video is worth 2 Management
Read MoreMomentum: How to Make it Easy for them to Say ‘Yes’ An important part of influence is making it as easy as possible for someone to comply. And there are two great techniques from the world of time management to generate momentum and make it easy for them to say yes. Watching this video is
Read MoreThe Jiminy Cricket Effect: Cognitive Dissonance and the Urge for Consistency Conscience is an inner voice that tells us what is right and what is wrong. When we are about to do something that is inconsistent with our conscience, we feel uneasy about. That feeling of unease is what psychologists call “cognitive dissonance”. I call
Read MoreGetting Agreement by Slicing up the Pie It’s a thankless task trying to get an agreement from someone who disagrees with you. It is far easier to start from a base of agreement. It’s a bit like slicing up a pie. Watching this video is worth 1 Management Courses CPD Point*. 🔎 See below for
Read MoreUse the Power of Scarcity with Integrity Have you ever wondered why special offers have deadlines, and countdown timers have become ubiquitous on internet shops? This is what I call the ‘sale-must-end-on-Sunday’ principle, which works on our fear of missing out, due to perceived scarcity. But, it’s easy to use scarcity in a manipulative way.
Read MorePeer Pressure: The Awesome Power of Social Proof Humans feel a deep need to fit in, to conform. The harder the choice we face, the more we defer to others. I call this the ‘eight-out-of-ten-cat-owners’ effect. Psychologists call it Social Proof. Watching this video is worth 2 Management Courses CPD Points*. 🔎 See below for
Read MoreThe Power of the Word ‘Because’ in Influence and Persuasion Psychologist Ellen Langer and her colleagues did a simple experiment. In it, she showed the power of the word ‘because’ to trigger compliant behavior. Watching this video is worth 1 Management Courses CPD Point*. 🔎 See below for details Influencing and Persuading This video is
Read MoreWIIFM? How to Use Self-interest to Influence and Persuade Self-interest is a given and goes without saying. It is obvious that people do what they see as being in their best interests. So, why am I bothering with it? Because appealing to self-interest works. It is the ‘What’s in it for me?’ principle – the
Read MoreForgiveness: How to Get Forgiven I have no better advice than: “When you’re wrong, ‘fess-up, say you’re sorry, and move on”. A good apology is a necessary precursor to forgiveness. So, let’s unpack this basic wisdom into the steps you can go through, to make getting forgiven more likely. Watching this video is worth 1
Read MoreHow to Change Someone’s Mind You really do need to bring all of your influencing and persuasion skills to bear if you want to change someone’s mind. So, in this video, I’ll share my top ten tips. Watching this video is worth 2 Management Courses CPD Points*. 🔎 See below for details Influencing and Persuading
Read MoreGet a Favor: How to Get Someone to Help you or Do You a Favor We often need other people to do something for us. But we don’t necessarily have the authority to tell them to do it, or to ask them and expect them to comply. This is where influence is at a premium.
Read MoreHow to Win an Argument Arguments are about persuading someone who disagrees with you, using language. An argument follows rules that are less structured than those of a formal debate. But, there are unwritten rules nonetheless. Let’s look at them. Watching this video is worth 2 Management Courses CPD Points*. 🔎 See below for details
Read MoreSocial Proof: Recruiting Support for Your Verbal Persuasion Everyone says that Management Courses is the best YouTube channel for management training videos. Isn’t that a persuasive reason to give the channel a try? When you invoke the support of one or more other people to justify your argument, you are using what psychologists call ‘Social
Read MorePersuasive Language: How to Influence with the Words You Choose Words have power. And some have a lot more power than others. Indeed, some have so little that they diminish the impact of the words around them. Knowing what words do and do not have power is important, if you want to use your language
Read MoreRhetoric: The Golden Key to Verbal Persuasion People have been persuading one another with their speech for as long as we have records. In many different cultures, aspiring lawyers, administrators, and politicians would have learned the science of rhetoric, of using language effectively. Watching this video is worth 4 Management Courses CPD Points*. 🔎 See
Read MoreKISS: Keep It Short & Simple when You Want to Influence & Persuade Aren’t people impressed by expertise, jargon, science, and technical detail? Well, yes. And no. Let me explain why it pays to keep it short and simple when you want to influence or persuade. Watching this video is worth 1 Management Courses CPD
Read MoreMatching & Mirroring: How to Influence by Building Rapport In a way, Rapport is an example of Reciprocation – which we looked at in the last video. However, it is about the reciprocation of movement and posture, gesture and expression, and words and speech. And, it will introduce us to the key concepts of matching
Read MoreTit-for-Tat: How to Influence with Reciprocation Human beings are wired for fairness. If I do something for you, you will likely feel some obligation to return the favor. This tit for tat behavior is what psychologists call reciprocation. And it is a powerful way to influence people. Watching this video is worth 2 Management Courses
Read MoreHow to Influence People by Appealing to their Emotion Nobody ever makes a decision on the facts alone. We make our choices based on emotions, and then use the facts to justify our decision… to others and to ourselves. So, how can you influence people by appealing to emotion? Watching this video is worth 2
Read MoreHow to Use Reason and Logic in Influence & Persuasion It may be that nobody ever makes a decision based solely on the facts. But they do need the facts and the reasons to justify their decision. Maybe to the people around them. Or perhaps just for themselves. As a result, we need to use
Read MoreHow to Build Trust. And Why it Matters in Influence & Persuasion There is no way you can persuade someone who does not trust you. Trust is a vital part of Influence and persuasion. So, let’s look at how to build Trust. We already have a very popular video about trust, that discusses Maister, Green,
Read MoreHow to Use Your Authority to Influence and Persuade I am not sure if it’s mostly society or psychology, but most of us feel a sense of duty to authority. When we perceive someone has a higher status in hierarchy, social standing, or intellect, we tend to defer to them. To do otherwise is a
Read MoreHow to Influence by Making People Feel Good People are far more likely to do what you ask, to accept your point of view, or help you out if they like you and you make them feel good. So, liking is one of the keys to influence and persuasion. So, how can you get people
Read MoreAppearance Matters in Influence & Persuasion First impressions matter. My father said: ‘you only get one chance to make a first impression’. And we judge each other when we first meet. So, let’s look at why appearance matter and how to optimize your appearance for persuasion. Watching this video is worth 1 Management Courses CPD
Read MoreEthos: the Importance of Character in Influence & Persuasion Before anyone will listen to your efforts to persuade them, they will first ask: ‘why should I listen to you?’ What they care about here is your ethos: your character. Watching this video is worth 4 Management Courses CPD Points* 🔎 See below for details Influencing
Read MoreThe Core of Influence & Persuasion: Ethos, Logos, and Pathos – Character, Reason, and Emotion The earliest thinker in the Western tradition whose ideas about influence and persuasion come down to us was Aristotle. He asserted that we need three things to build a persuasive argument: ethos, logos, and pathos. In English, these character, reason,
Read MoreThe Good, The Bad, and The Ugly: the Ethics of Influence and Persuasion Before we get into the detail of techniques for Influencing and persuading, it’s important to acknowledge that they can be used for good or for ill. And that there is an ethical dimension to the methods you choose. So, lets look at
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