I’d like you to imagine the following scene. At some point in the late fifteenth century, Christopher Columbus went full Shark Tank pitching to the Catholic Monarchs his project of reaching the Indies directly across the Atlantic Ocean. He asked for ships, crew and provisions to do what everyone (supposed) could be done because since ancient Greece it was already known that our planet was round… but no one dared to slash it proven. The fact is that Columbus was quite persistent and spent nine (Yes, 9!) Years requesting financing for the expedition. We can picture him standing in front ... [keep reading...]

You may think that you need to show visible and noticeable emotions to persuade, but it's not always necessary. An example is when Humphrey Bogart took his stylist (and, um, lover!) Verita Thompson to dinner. Verita was a Mexican who made it to Hollywood as a stylist. She had an affair with Bogart while they were both married. The first time he took her to Romanoff's restaurant, he introduced her as "Petée González, Mexican actress". Verita was WTF, but went along with the joke. To continue the ruse, Verita spoke only Spanish with Bogart, and Sofia-Vergara-grade English with everyone else. When ... [keep reading...]

I often see these two words used synonymously. As if being persuasive or manipulative were the same thing. Although both are aimed at getting people to do what you want, this is a fundamental difference: Our ability to make our own decisions. To illustrate it, I'll add a third term: Coercion, which doesn't cause as much confusion. It is when you are forced to act against your will; in other words, it eliminates your ability to make decisions. Generally coercion is notorious; you know that someone is preventing you from acting or deciding for yourself. And in that sense it is ... [keep reading...]