How to Persuade Others by using Simple Mind Trick Questions (June 2020)

How to Persuade Others by using Simple Mind Trick Questions (June 2020) How to Persuade Others by using Simple Mind Trick Questions in 2020 Image Source: iStockHave you ever devised a solution for a professional problem, but failed to have it approved by colleagues or superiors. Are you having difficulty closing a reluctant prospect in a sale? Do you have a neighbour who doesn’t listen to your complaints about parking in front of your house, or playing music too loudly? Frustrating scenarios, all. But resolving them is easier than you think, with some basic study of the art of persuasion, mind trick questions and other psychological strategies. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); 1. Persuasion is not about you, it’s about them…One of the biggest mistakes people make about persuasion is that it’s something that one person does to another. Nothing could be further from the truth. If that were the case, then the art of persuasion would have been discredited long ago.There is a rush in people when they hear phrases such as ‘the art of persuasion’ that it is something that can be wielded like a too l. And yes, there are simple mind trick questions that can help you with persuasion, but these  are tools, and tools that will be useless unless they are properly understood.Failure to understand persuasion, means that you will usually end up doing a succession of things that people do to other people, including cajoling; bullying; rational explanation; exhortation; pleading.  None of these is  guaranteed to work, and  they most often don’t. This  is because none of them are empathic and truly consider the other person.Understanding persuasion is to come to grips that it may be your idea, but convincing  others to do it is all about the other person.2. Persuasion is empathyThe effectiveness of mind trick questions, reverse psychology and counterintuitive thinking are well established in principles of persuasion and motivation that were established at least as long ago as 1935, by Dale Carnegie, in his iconic text  How to Win Friends and Influence People. Eight decades on, Carnegie ’s principles remain true and rock solid.Check Price  Some commentators might totally reject Carnegie’s work because of its apparent simplicity. But that’s a mistake. It works. Think about the one single foundation on which Carnegie’s theories  are builtâ€"the only why to bring people around to your way of thinking is, first, to get them to like you. Think about  how this rings true.So, if you are in the networking arena, this is an opportunity for you to use simple mind tricks such as making sure to remember  the other person’s name and use  it in the conversation; encouraging them to talk about themselves and their interests; and generally, being pleasant and smiling. These are all things that are symptomatic of someone who listens and takes an interest in other people and their views. They mark you out as a person of empathy, and this paves the pathway to trust. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); 3. Let them talkWhen a person is talking, they are either declaring  their own thoughts and feelings, or verbally expressing those thoughts and feelings in response to a question. Giving the other person an ‘audience’ is simple. How do you get people talking? Ask questions. Specifically the kinds of strategic mind trick questions that facilitate, not direct. What you’re going for is to get the other person to surface their own reasons for doing the thing that you would like them to do. Carnegie again: the only way to get anybody to do anything is “by making the other person want to do it”.4. Don’t dictate!Another key tenet of Carnegie’s is that  in your  dealings with people  it’s important to remember  â€œyou are not dealing with creatures of logic, but creatures of emotion”. This is why, when attempting to persuade a person to do something, it’s best not to dictate but to question, and not always rationally. Award-winning business author Daniel Pink refers to this as the puzzle of motivation.Pink uses the analogy of a parent with a daughter, Maria, who is unwilling to tidy her room. Rather than directing or cajoling the daughter, the mind trick questions approach will work better. Pink encourages the parent to subtly frame the desired outcome within a question, such as: “Maria, on a scale of 1-10, 1 being I’m not ready, and 10 being I’m ready to do it now, how ready are you to tidy your room?”The child will likely respond that they are 2 or a 3. Countering the parental instinct to demand why the child is not higher on the scale, Pink recommends asking Maria why she is not lower. Once Maria begins to explain why she is not a lower number, she is already persuading herself that she needs to clean her room at some point. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); 5. Share the burdenImage Source: PixabayReturning to the empathy factor in persuasion, sometimes you will encounter an impasse. But it will often be a mistake to walk away. As long as there is a dialogue, you should alway s seek opportunities to keep the communication going. If someone is reluctant to do something, or has failed to do it, it will usually be down to some form of external obstacle that makes them feel they cannot do it right now. One great mind trick question to keep the other person talking is to ask them what you can do together to help the outcome occur. Again, it must be a question that facilitates the other person articulating what could be done to work towards the outcome.