Maximize Your Influence

Sales professionals use words carefully. They know that one wrong word can send their prospect's mind somewhere else and lose them the sale.  Some examples of language that salespeople use to help diffuse a potentially tense situation. Words also have a strong bearing on how we remember certain details. In one study, subjects were asked if they had headaches "frequently" or "occasionally." Those i...

Having courage (or being brave) does not mean you don't feel fear.  It means you have the heart and emotional stability to face the fear and do what's needed anyway.  This is a process of learning about yourself—who you are and what you are able to do.  Identifying your weaknesses, changing your habits, and fixing your attitude all require personal bravery. Courage is about helping yourself and he...

Trust is critical in persuasion. Unfortunately, we live in a day and age when people are more skeptical and mistrustful than ever.  Twenty years ago, the mindset was: "I trust you; give me a reason not to."  Now the mindset is: "I don't trust you; give me a reason why I should." Trust is at an all-time low and still falling. Global Trustworthiness Index 2022. The Most And Least Trusted Professions...

These skills are essential in persuasion and leadership.  What about managers and politicians?  Are they leaders?  Do people trust them?  Probably not.  What needs to change?  Join me for this week's podcast on Why Politicians Are Not Leaders And Have Low Trust.  Why Democracy Produces Incompetent Leaders – And How to Fix it Discover how to adjust your influence/leadership style.  Find out if you...

We were taught through the years that closing skills were all you needed to persuade and sell. You had to learn more closing skills if you did not sell enough people.  Nowadays, sure, it's nice to have a few closing skills in your persuasion toolbox, but shouldn't you spend more time opening up your audience before you even think about closing a deal with them?   24 Sales Mistakes to Avoid in 2022...

"Door-in-the-face" is one of the most common techniques for implementing the Law of Contrast. An initially large and almost unreasonable request is made, likely to be declined—hence the "door slammed-in-the-face" as the prospect rejects the proposal.  Then a second smaller and more reasonable request is made.  People accept the second request more readily than if they'd just been asked outright be...

During each persuasive encounter, you must be careful with what gestures you use and don't use.  Your gestures can attract your prospect and build trust or repel them and trigger distrust.  When you are aware of your body language, you can synchronize your nonverbals to create instant likeability and rapport.  You can create positive subconscious triggers.  If you don't have to understand these no...

What dirty mind games do people play during negotiation and persuasion?  What do they use to intimidate or change your perception of reality?  They tactics are not to use but help you be aware of when someone is trying to use these dark tricks to get their way. Psychological Power is people's ability to influence you while disguising their true intentions. People who are adept at using Psychologic...

What does it take to persuade with power in any encounter? Think about it. When was the last time you didn't get something you wanted?  What happened? Did you fail to get your point across? Were you persuaded by someone else? Our understanding of persuasion and influence has changed dramatically.  In the past, we did not know or care how consumers thought or what prompted them to buy or take actio...

The mental trigger of potential loss causes such great anxiety in people that they act to prevent the loss—even though they might not be completely interested in the product itself. Imagine making a decision where you have all week to make up your mind, and you have the reassurance that when you return tomorrow, the item will still be available at the same good price. You could take days, weeks, o...

Humor can be a powerful tool to create rapport. Humor makes the persuader seem more friendly and accepting. Humor helps gain attention, enables you to create rapport, and makes your message more memorable. It can relieve tension, enhance relationships, and motivate people.  Appropriate use of humor increases trust in your audience. Another aspect of humor is the smile.  A smile is free, generates...

The Law of Verbal Packaging states that the more skillful a person is in the use of language, the more persuasive they will be. People are persuaded by us based on the words we use. Words affect our perceptions, attitudes, beliefs, and emotions. The words we use in persuasion make all the difference in the world. Language misused will trigger the wrong response and decrease your ability to persuad...

Have you heard about foot-in-the-door" (FITD),  or the "sequential request theory? Basically, it is a means of using a person's self-perception to motivate them to take a desired action  When an individual complies the first time, they perceive themselves to be helpful.  If they are asked to comply a second time in an even greater way, they are more likely to consent.  The key to using FITD is get...

You could have the greatest product in the world, but if there is no trust, there is no sale. Trust can be ambiguous, but certain things are pretty clear: 1) You can't get others to trust you unless you first trust yourself; and 2) your message will not be convincing to others unless it's convincing to you. Whenever someone tries to influence us, in our minds, we ask ourselves, "Can I trust this p...

Not only do charismatics use your gestures in the right way, they also have the ability to read and interpret nonverbal gestures.  You can read people like a book and obtain the knowledge you need to adjust yourself and your presentation based on what body language you are reading.  When you can read and be aware of your body language, you can synchronize your nonverbals to create instant likeabil...

What makes someone successful? Why do some people achieve wealth while others don't? How can we predict who will make it big, who will barely make ends meet, and who will fail? How do we quantify the characteristics of highly successful people? Emotional Intelligence Has 12 Elements. Which Do You Need to Work On? Given that increasing your EQ is critical for your success, you need to master this s...

Imagine that there is a giant rubber band inside of you. When dissonance is present, the rubber band begins to stretch. As long as the dissonance exists, the band stretches tighter and tighter. You've got to take action before it reaches a breaking point and snaps. The motivation to reduce the tension is what causes us to change; we will do everything in our power to get back in mental balance. Sl...

Let's talk about where negotiation fits into the world of persuasion and the difference between the two.  Persuasion occurs when your ideas are so convincing that the other party adopts your point of view.  With persuasion, there is no compromising as there is in negotiation. While persuasion is the ultimate ideal, anytime any one of us presents our ideas, the other party is often equally committe...

Moods affect our thinking, judgment, and willingness to say yes. When the person you are trying to persuade is in a good mood, they are more likely to accept your offer. The opposite is also true. If they're not in a good mood, chances are much higher they won't bite. This is a massive advantage to you when it comes to persuasion. Great persuaders create the right mood. Leading with Humor Using hu...

Do you know how long waiting times affect persuasion? Do they bave a negative or positive influence? Listen now to see how waiting is either helping or hurting your persuasion. Psychology of Waiting Lines Starbucks still has a problem with long lines Long Waiting Times Cost You Sales

Many times, when we are trying to be persuasive, we want to highlight all the perks and plusses. It's only natural. Wouldn't helping someone see the potential gains of your product or service be a good thing? Yes, but here is the issue: Your audience will buy for their own reasons and only their reasons. How managers can spark, not squelch, our motivation They don't care about why you like the pro...

Do you think people are trying to flatter you into submission?  Are they using manipulation tactics and want to know how to resist.  Are you seeing signs of gaslighting and feel like they want to take advantage of you?   Let me give you the answers.  How to Spot Manipulation Tactics, gaslighting, coercion Join me for this week's podcast on Resisting Manipulation And GasLighting – The Dark Side of...

A poll with your prospects found that Trust is at an all-time low.  Their default setting is not to trust you.  In fact, only 12 percent of the prospects trusted their persuaders, while 88 percent of the persuaders felt they had established trust with their audience.  Wow, what a disconnect. It's harder to gain credibility nowadays than in the past. Are you good at what you do? Bragging about it c...

Our task is not only to realize humor's profound influence but also to develop the necessary skills to use it powerfully and ethically. As you become more and more skilled at incorporating humor into your presentations, you will discover that humor almost always has a place. Humor puts your audience in a good frame of mind. Your audience is in a good disposition and less likely to disagree with yo...

Most people don't address why it is taking so long to achieve their goals or find their success.  The first step is always self-discipline. When we hear the word self-discipline or willpower, we tend to get a little tense, tune out or think about something else.  We think of all our bad habits, things we don't want to do, or all the times we tried to exercise willpower and failed.  It is something...