The art of convincing people is a key ingredient to a successful life. Most successful people including politicians and business figures master this art during their early days. But to understand the art of convincing, you need to understand the process of ‘selling’.
At most instances it is about selling yourself or your idea. Whether you are trying to convince your boss for a raise, your co-workers on your idea or even your wife over the choice of holiday destination; good convincing skills will get you the upper hand.
Step 1: The ‘Item’
An attorney charged his client EUR 100,000 for a court trial. Sounds expensive for a court trial, but the court trial is not the actual item sold by the attorney. Now, equate the ‘EUR 100,000’ with ‘Freedom’; it may not sound expensive now. Similarly, consultants do not charge for a report or excel sheet but instead for the solution which will helps the client save or earn multiple folds of the fee.
First step; clearly identify and define the item under consideration.
Step 2: The ‘Leverage’
An attorney or consultant, leverage technical knowledge, experience and reputation to build trust. Whereas, in case of a personal situation leverage can be established by using previous experience as a benchmark. Ensure that the leverage accedes the item and does not contradict any of the facts.
Second step; leverage your reputation or previous experience to build upon.
Step 3: ‘Packaging’
Since humans have a short attention span, your entire message should hit within the short time-frame. To do so, the above two need to be packaged into an elevator speech lasting no more than thirty seconds. It should be picturesque and not provide an opportunity for a dialogue.
Third step; package your pitch properly for effective communication.
Example:
While convincing your boss for a raise or negotiating a higher salary, the item that you are offering is ‘efficiency and cost savings to company’ and you leverage your ‘previous performance’ which would enable you to deliver upon your offering.
“I spend two hours in the crammed subway to arrive at work. Despite being cheap, it costs me energy and deprives me of efficiency every morning. As my performance has always improved steadily; a little raise can help improve my commute to boost my efficiency and save the company in man hour costs.”
Although there are many psychological factors at play, this can help you get through most instances.
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Savvy Munshi 