Thomas van der Kleij, Tapfiliate Founder’s Favorite Book: INFLUENCE: SCIENCE AND PRACTICE by Robert Cialdini

       Of course, dedication is essential, but it’s not enough. Selling for the first time might feel uncomfortable, but when entrepreneurs can successfully sell their skills and ideas, the business will start to take off. Persuasion is a vital skill for every entrepreneur. 

          Although, some think a persuasion is a different form of manipulation. 

Instead, look at influence as an interpersonal skill — something that helps connect people around them. 

        Persuasive people are influential. They’re respected, well-liked, and can speak about their accomplishments, goals, and ideas in a way that gets those around them excited and passionate as well. A persuasive entrepreneur can convince customers to buy and create a strong network of connections excited about helping their organization or idea grow.

        Unfortunately, persuasion isn’t a skill most people can develop overnight. When persuasion is misused, it can come across insincere or gimmicky — making it more difficult to create genuine connections. But with the right approach and practice, any entrepreneur can become more persuasive. 

        The author of Influence: Psychology of Persuasion, Dr. Robert Cialdini,  explains why people say “yes” and apply these understandings. Influence is all about human psychology and how humans react to persuasion to do different things based on various stimuli and information.

    Cialdini spent thirty-five years of rigorous, evidence-based research and three years’ undercover’ in various organizations observing real-life persuasion situations. The study on what moves people to change behavior resulted in this highly acclaimed book. It ranked consistently within the top one-half of one percent of books sold on Amazon. 

         Dr. Robert’s initial goal was to identify what convinced people and what type of compliance techniques worked best.

       He introduces the persuasion tactic and then, through multiple narratives, illustrates how they operate. The anecdotes he uses to convey his research are engaging and intriguing. Cialdini mainly taught persuasion techniques to MBAs and salespeople, who used it in their professions to much delight.

      Cialdini offered his research to the world on how influence and human decision-making occur. Hence, people can use it ethically to benefit and protect themselves from malicious crafty salespeople who only look out for their profit. 

      Each chapter ends with advice on avoiding being negatively influenced by others through these principles. The book teaches how to recognize unwelcome compliance attempts and say no to people who use them against other’s interests.

      Through Dr. Cialdini’s extensive research, he identified the six fundamental principles of persuasion and shared them in the book. He calls them “weapons of influence” because they are mighty psychological tugs that we all use to make decisions.