Why Learn About Persuasion?

Persuasion and influence are key skills to master if you want to change your life for the better.  Maybe you want to convince someone that buying your product or service would help them accomplish a goal.  Or, you want to go for Chinese food instead of Italian, and you need to convince your spouse/boyfriend/girlfriend/best friend that it would be in their best interest to dine at the Imperial Palace tonight.  Whatever your reason being able to do so in such a way as to not appear pushy, sleazy or self-centered works the best.

What if you could get others to do what you wanted and they thought they were in control?  What if you could appear to be an innocent bystander, but really you were calling the shots? (Story Here)

Most of us are asleep and really walking through life like “The walking dead.” In Robert Cialdini’s famous book “Influence they Power of Persuasion” he talks in the first chapter about a buzz whirl effect. (Quote part of the book here) The reason that is important is that it’s what we do every day.  You probably go to work along the same route every day the same way.  Pack your bags the same way and brush your teeth the same way as you did the day before, and the day before that.  You’re for lack of a better term a creature of habit.  You do what you do because it feels right to you.  Because you’re used to doing things the same every morning.  Perhaps you drink coffee in the morning.  How does that happen exactly?  Do you brew your own or do you purchase it at a local shop?  Maybe lunch is your thing.  Do you pack a lunch for yourself?  Does someone pack it for you?  Do you go out to the same restaurant week after week, month after month?  If I were to follow you around for two weeks how many actions that you take would be considered repetitive?

Why is that even important and who cares?  Well if you’re doing it don’t you think others are doing it as well.  Perhaps, you are different, and you mix things up on a consistent basis that would make your very much the minority.  I would suspect 90% of the US population is walking around doing the same thing today as they did the day before, and they day before that like a zombie. It’s in your nature to do that.  Like it or not we all want to feel safe and secure.  Our brains focus heavily on keeping you safe and avoiding as much danger as possible each and every day.  Thus walking the same way to work. Driving the same route every day are all considered safe because you did them the day before and the day before that safely and securely.