The 9 Primary Tactics Used to Influence Others
The number one thing to understand about influence is that people make decisions for their reasons, not yours. "When you try to influence others," Sebastian Bailey and Octavius Black write in their book Mind Gym Achieve More by Thinking Differently, "it is essential that you understand the other person's reasons so you can use tactics that will work to persuade them, as opposed to tactics that would work on you.", Okay, with that said, here are the nine primary tactics to influence others. 1. Reasoning, 2. Inspiring, For all the skeptic's heckling, this speech helped mobilize a nation. The magic about inspirational appeal is that it touches our hearts by appealing to our values and our identity. Like falling in love, when the inspiring tactic works, nothing can beat it certainly not a cynic. When Is It Useful? This tactic is especially useful when your rational argument is weak or unclear and you want a high level of emotional commitment. The inspiring tactic doesn't tend to be used much in daily life, especially in the workplace, which is a shame because it's a powerful way to persuade and excite. Most of us have been seduced by this tactic as children e.g. "It'll make you big and strong when you grow up", when watching TV e.g. advertisements with young, sexy people having wild times drinking a particular brand of soda, or when we're with friends who are hooked on a new craze e.g. "You have to check out dune bashing the surge, the speed, the heat, the views". Warning It is not just what you say but also how you say it the inspiring tactic demands conviction, energy, and passion. When deploying this tactic, a dreary demeanor will leave you floundering. Deliver inspiration like it matters more than life itself and you'll be pretty much invincible. 3. Asking Questions, 4. Cozying Up, 5. Deal Making, 6. Favor Asking, 7. Using Silent Allies, 8. Invoking Authority, 9. Forcing, Remember people change their mind for their reasons not yours. If you're not effective, it's probably because you're looking at things through your lens and not theirs. Continuing to give the same arguments in the same way only solidifies resistance even more. So the next time you're trying to convince someone of something you've already tried to change their mind on, trying picking a different approach. Better yet, pick three or four and use them in combination. Tactics work better when employed together. Mind Gym Achieve More by Thinking Differently is full of interesting and insightful stuff you can use every day.