Persuasion Through Isolation
Last year I saw a documentary about the cult leader Jim Jones called "Jonestown: The Life And Death of People's Temple". It is the history of the murder/"suicide" of 913 members of the People's Temple in Guyana through photos, clips, recordings and interviews of surviving members.
The Reverend Jim Jones was a master at getting people to join his "ministry" because he reached out to people who were disenfranchised and he preached equality. This appealed to a larger community and he expressed caring and was able to eventually use his power to persuade the followers to drink cyanide-laced cherry Flavor Aid.
This is a very disturbing example of evil persuasion through isolation, charismatic authority and all of this in relationship to brainwashing and manipulation.
There are two kinds of isolation--physical and mental. Jim Jones used both.
Physical isolation isn't always possible for some cults, MLM companies or religions. It's possible they may employ both kinds of isolation, but normally the mental isolation is enough to keep their members involved. They begin to "divide and conquer" the members by suggesting that anyone who doesn't support their choice in life of belonging to the group/cult/religion/MLM, is not looking out for their best interest.
When isolation is used by someone who has bad intentions, it is a very dangerous tool.
Isolation can also be used for sales or business on a more reputable level.
Mental isolation is most effective with customers/clients/prospects who you see on a regular basis. Lots of small interactions tend to create more loyalty. Cafes are a good example of this. It's competitive. People have many choices from chains to locally owned chains to independently owned mom and pop cafes.
Recently I was in a locally owned cafe where the owner sparked up a conversation and suggested their product was not generic, it was high quality and didn't cost a fortune like the most famous national chain. If you are invested in a home grown, grass roots type of existence, this remark might be preaching to the choir. Alternately, if you're someone who doesn't pay much attention to things like that, then it might plant a seed or it might just float right past you.
Some religions use isolation in terms of imposing rules about what is and what is not okay to talk about with non-members or "outsiders".
I consider myself a very spiritual person and this is in no way a judgment about religion. it's just a way to illustrate persuasion and how the persuasion of isolation is used to indoctrinate members of a given group.
Creating a shared experience is another way to create a psychological isolation. This can be accomplished in business by having a retreat or conference. It can be used to reward employees. Shared tragedy also has this effect. Think of 9/11 wives/survivors, New Orleans residents who were at the Superdome, Gulf War veterans. All of these groups have incredibly powerful bonds and there is the potential for them to become very committed to each other.
The final strategy in isolation is to 'predict the future'. Sales people do this all the time in response to the 'shop around' objection. "Sure, go ahead. But X shop doesn't have our selection (return policy, prices, etc.)" Cults use this future predicting by telling new members that their "choice" in joining will be ridiculed by friends and family. The cult leaders offer this as "proof" that the new member's family and friends obviously don't care about them as much as the group does. 'If they really cared about you, wouldn't they be glad that you found something to make you happy?'
I urge you to use this information with integrity and honesty. Failing to do so will most definitely come back to bite you.
Persuasion FAQs Related Articles
- Base Desires And Persuasion
- Factors Influencing The Impact Of Humor In Persuasion
- Foundational Principles Of Persuasion
- Increasing Persuasion With Humor
- Layers Of Complexity In Life And Persuasion I Am An Onion
- Persuasion Techniques
- Persuasion Through Isolation
- Storytelling - Pure Emotional Persuasion
- Why The Laws Of Persuasion Work
Storytelling - Pure Emotional Persuasion
I'll admit it. I cry at movies sometimes. I'm comfortable with it and not ashamed in the least. Movies are stories and stories have been used to elicit emotions (either by design or accident) since the beginning of man. Some of the most fantastic stories are tremendously moving. This emotion can be manifested as a 'feel good' or a 'tear jerker', it can be uplifting or depressing, revolutionary, or merely entertaining. The most important thing to keep upper most in your mind as you think about stories, is that they are an opening, a hole, so to speak, that you can fill with a message, your message.
Stories tailored for business and sales need to consider the emotional state of mind that they will put your prospect our client in. In persuasion, we're really simply using stories to control these emotional states. The value of stories is in the state in which it puts our audience.
When I tell stories I want to both make a point and put my prospect into a profound emotional state, carry them away, so to speak and open to accepting my message.
Ideally, we should have an arsenal of compelling, persuasive, powerful stories at our ready for any given situation. Think about 'respect', for example. For our affluent and perhaps elderly clientèle, the idea of respect is sometimes an incredibly important and motivating factor as to whether or not they want to do business with you.
With my son, I do my level best to instill a sense of respect as he deals with his elders. I reinforce this point with him when I watch him interact. I was with him the other day at his marshal arts lesson. And in front of my son, I addressed his Sensei. I said, 'Sensei, I wanted to tell you that at the last belt advancement that I was just at with my son, I was really impressed. There was a man there that must have been in his seventies.' And Sensei smiled broadly and he said, 'Yes. He's about 73.'
And I said, 'He was up for the test to advance his rank. When it came time for his sparring, his Sensei jumped up to spar with him. I noticed that the older man was having think before reacting, he would see something coming, he would stand there for a brief second and then he would react. It was clear that his faculties weren't as sharp and his body wasn't as quick, but yet, it almost brought tears to my eyes to see this man walking into the ring, walking onto the matt and doing his level best. Moreover, it impressed me that his Sensei made him look so good. He respected him enough to make him look good. I realized this wasn't about outperforming the man, it was about respecting the human spirit.' My son's Sensei just beamed and he responded, 'That's absolutely correct. You've got it right on all fronts.'
What preceded this, is a two paragraph story on respect that most likely elicited an emotional response. I wanted to illustrate to my son the importance of showing respect for our elders just in the same way the Sensei showed respect to his elder.
The story worked and my son understood profoundly. The story also touches me profoundly as I have a great affection for both the Sensei and the older man in the ring.
With emotional storytelling I look to constantly and consistently maneuver the emotions of the listener, and once I've opened them up emotionally, I can implant anything I want. What is a story like this, about respect, going to show you? Well, it's going to show that I have respect for my elders, that I find value in the concept of respect itself. What might you believe as a result of hearing this story? That I am highly respectful.
This sets the frame. Within the frame, we can leverage knowledge so that somebody like our listener, has an undiscovered hero.
What are some of your stories that might elicit deep emotional responses and how can you incorporate them into your persuasion repertoire?
Persuasion FAQs Related Articles
- Base Desires And Persuasion
- Factors Influencing The Impact Of Humor In Persuasion
- Foundational Principles Of Persuasion
- Increasing Persuasion With Humor
- Layers Of Complexity In Life And Persuasion I Am An Onion
- Persuasion Techniques
- Persuasion Through Isolation
- Storytelling - Pure Emotional Persuasion
- Why The Laws Of Persuasion Work