The "I'm Right" Mentality

Just a few days ago I had an appointment with someone to
discuss about a possible business venture. We had previously contacted via phone and had exchanged proposals.

We were talking halfway through our appointment about the terms of the collaboration when I pointed out that the terms she laid out that day was different with those stated
in the proposal she had previously given me.

She got defensive and insisted that the terms were the same
as those written in the proposal. I, on the other hand, was
abosolutely certain it wasn't. However I did not bring the proposal that day, and hence could not prove my point.

Seeing her big reaction, I decided to give in in order to win. I told her "You know what, maybe you were right. Maybe I'm just too forgetful. Let's move on for now and I'll take a look again when I'm back in the office after this."

The meeting then went on smoothly after this.

So what can we learn from here? - that people don't like to be wrong. People don't like to be embarrassed. Humans are selfish creatures who only think for themselves. We like to be right.

In the above case, if I were to debate with her to prove my point, the objective of our meeting wouldn't have been met and we would just be wasting each other's time and resources.

By acknowledging she was probably right (even though I know she wasn't), the meeting proceeded smoothly at that time and we were able to discuss other important issues.

Notice what I've done here? I've used my covert persuasion skills. Unbeknownst to her, I've successfully got her to do what I wanted her to do - and that is to continue our meeting in a favorable and pleasant manner without much conflict, even though that meant giving in to her temporarily.

This "I'm right" mentality is present in every human being.
This is a fact. No one can deny this. However not everyone knows this - and this is good news for you because you can then use covert persuasion technique such as this to your advantage.

So how can you use this in your business? How can you increase your sales revenue?

Covert Persuasion Tip: always get your customers to agree with you on things when you're doing your sales pitch. For example, you could compliment something along the lines of "Wow, don't you think it's such a hot day today?" They'll probably agree with you, provided it's actually a hot day. Ask them a few more questions that will lead them to agree with you. A series of yes will unconsciously direct them into a position of being wrong by not buying your product. This will cause them to buy your product just to prove they were right.

Talk about covert persuasion at work!