Conversational Persuasion With Presuppositions – Contrary To Expectation
Should You Not Realize Your Own Power, Allow Me to Explain
This is another article in a series on linguistic presuppositions, powerful language patterns that you can use to easily and conversationally influence others to your way of thinking.
Today’s pattern is quite simple, and if it were a magic trick, it would rely heavily on mental misdirection. The pattern is called “Contrary To Expectation” and basically involves use the word “should.”
They kind of put the listener or reader into a mental bind, and force them to implicitly agree with your message or idea, as they will be focusing on the logic of the statement. By themselves, these aren’t all the powerful, but can be peppered throughout your message here and there to drop your idea, or variations of it several times throughout the conversation.
For example, with the idea of “exercise is the best way to lose weight,” there are several ways to use this.
Should you not understand why exercise is the best way to lose weight, I’d be happy to explain it to you.
If you say the above, and they don’t respond, they’ve tacitly agreed with the idea. If they actually ask for an explanation, the implication is that once you explain why, they will accept the idea.
If you should decide you’d like to lose weight in the easiest way possible, then I’ll show you a simple exercise program.
This one mentally binds them up so they have no real choice but to accept the idea.
Idea = dollar cost averaging is the best way to make money in the stock market.
If you should not understand why dollar cost averaging is so incredibly lucrative, then I can explain it to you if you’d like to make an appointment.
If you should decide you’d like to find the easiest, safest, and simplest way to make money in the stock market, I can explain dollar cost averaging to you.
If you should wonder why so many people have found it so easy to grow wealth consistently, and with no real effort, I’d be happy to explain the concept of dollar cost averaging to you.
Idea = presuppositions are the easiest way to conversationally influence others
If you should wonder how useful these patterns can be, just imagine a future where you could easily persuade others with only a few minutes of conversation.
If you should think that linguistic presuppositions are only for easy and effective conversational persuasion, just think of how well you’ll be able to deflect manipulation once you learn these powerful strategies.
If you should think that these presuppositions are only useful one at a time, wait until you read further blog posts where I’ll show you how to combine them in ways that will make virtually any message or idea you have irresistibly attractive to your listeners.
