Tips to Persuade People (who don’t want to listen)

8:34am Wednesday
Saint Paul

Someone asked:

> What are some strategies for persuading someone
> with differing opinions who is not open to listening
> to our perspective?

Before you can persuade someone, which should be to their benefit (otherwise it’s manipulation), he or she must have an open mind. If you can’t get there, nothing will work.

*|FNAME|*, persuading people is not easy. You have to set up a situation where they’re willing to question their own entrenched ideas, which means they may come to the conclusion that they’ve been wrong about this idea for however long.

And—as no one wants to be wrong, possibly shifting their entire world view—they’d rather fight than see the light.

So you can’t persuade them as much as you can give them the opportunity and ideas to persuade themselves.

Now, to open someone’s mind to a new way to see the world, you have a few options…

Continue reading “Tips to Persuade People (who don’t want to listen)”

10 Things You’ll Learn From The Secret of Selling Anything by Harry Browne

While the financial reward of being a good salesman has it’s

Harry Browne's "The Secret of Selling Anything"
Harry Browne’s “The Secret of Selling Anything”

appeal, I’ve not historically been good at selling things to people. (Or at least that’s the story I’ve told myself!)

The last time I was trying to “sell” (as a career) was during the down economy in the early 2000s.

No one was buying, and I wasn’t making any money trying.

I’m an introvert, mostly — again, one of the things that I tell myself. I’ve practiced becoming more extroverted. I’ve intentionally put myself into situations where I need to be more extroverted.

One reason I’m drawn to persuasion because I see it as a way to interact with people. It allows me to better understand their motivations and behaviors, and to better connect with them. It pushes me to do so.

Sales, on the other hand, is a whole different beast of persuasion. To be “salesy” meant Continue reading “10 Things You’ll Learn From The Secret of Selling Anything by Harry Browne”