Power ( Part 15 ) - The Power of Persuasive Capacity
Most of us, in our civilized society, rely too heavily on reasoning capacity to make things happen. We've been raised to believe that logic will prevail. Logic, in and of itself, will rarely influence people. Most often logic doesn't work.
If you want to persuade me to believe something, do something, or buy something, you must rely on 3 factors:
- I have to understand what you're saying. It's Imperative that you put your reasons into analogies that relate to my experiences, my particular imprinting. In order to do this, you must enter my world. ( That's why it's so hard for you to negotiate with someone who's stupid or who you think is a lunatic)
- Your evidence must be so overwhelming that I can't dispute it.
- My believing you must meet my existing needs and desires.
Of these 3 Factors, the 3rd ( Meeting my Needs and Desires) is, by far, the most Important. Why do I say that? Because even if you present me with overwhelming evidence that I understand, should the conclusion depress me, I will remain unconvinced. Your Facts and Logic may be unassailable, but their acceptance will not meet my existing Needs and Desires.
Parents of teenage children understand the Illogical Phenomenon better than most, but it's the basis of much Failure in Persuasion.
The advertising Industry, whose business it is to motivative behavior, uses this Concept to Influence Prospect Consumers. You've all seen a certain Deodorant Commercial on Television.
You put one Spray-psst ... psst- under each arm, and for 24 hrs. a day, an invisible shield forms around your body. The advertiser couldn't care less whether You or I understand the commercial, or whether there is evidence to support his claim. The advertiser simply wants to demonstrate how the spray meets your Needs and Desires to be socially acceptable.
I'll be honest with you: I don't understand that commercial. I know there's no evidence to support the Invisible Shield Theory. I've never seen an Invisible Shield, nor do I know anyone who has, and not only because it's invisible! But I like believing in an Invisible Shield that surrounds me.
Believing in the Shield makes me feel at Ease and Confident in any situation.
Let's say that we meet on a social occasion and I Lean Forward to tell you something Privately. You pull back slightly. Had I not sprayed 2 hours earlier, I might regard your movement as a cue that I have a personal-hygiene problem.
But since I have at least 20 more hours of the Invisible Shield enveloping me, I figure that the person beside you, whom you came with, is in trouble.
Speaking of Problems, for centuries everyone thought the sun revolved around the earth. People knew in their bones that the Earth was the center of the Universe. Along came a brilliant man named Copernicus, who tried to upset that applecart by propounding a New Theory about the Solar System.
He stated, Flat out, that the Earth Revolved around the Sun.
Influential People of his day Yawned and Nodded. they understood Copernicus in an Abstract, Intellectual sort of way. After all, his Logic was Overwhelming. Only a halfwit could Dispute the Evidence.
But no one Really accepted his Theory at the Gut Level, because his discovery made no difference in Anyone's Life. It was rather ho-hum. The Fact that the Earth revolves around the Sun Seemed no more Important than the Fact that Cats eat Mice.
One day someone Blunted, "Hey, wait a second! We can use all this in a New Science called Astronomy! Know what? We'll be able to Navigate out there on the Ocean! We'll be able to cut our unemployment by sending people to distant lands to encounter the heathen- to Conquer, Subjugate, and Exploit. We'll be able to Grab a lot of Gold and Silver and bring it back here! That'll meet our Existing Needs and Desires!"
The others stopped yawning. Someone else said, "Forget about the old stuff. We're going with that Polish kid Copernicus!" Once again, Science Marched on.
Moral: If you want to Persuade People, show the Immediate Relevance and Value of what you're saying in Terms of meeting their Needs and Desires.
So this is what we call " The Power of Persuasive Capacity"
Next, we will discuss about:
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