Maximize Your Influence

Did you know that money can buy happiness?  A recent study published in "Psychology Today" shows just that.  Kurt and Steve discuss the ins and outs of this study and how money certainly can buy happiness...up to a point.  Continuing off of recent episodes, Kurt and Steve cover how we can overcome objections before they ever occur in the first place.  This concept is called "inoculation."  The term comes from the medical field, where patients are given a weak form of a virus so that their body can develop an immunity to it.  This same concept happens on the pscyhological level.  If we can introduce a weak form of the objection to our prospects, they will be better prepared for when the real one comes along at a later date. For example, do most of your prospects end up looking for more bids from competitors?  Or do they end up getting serious resistance from friends and family?  Letting them know very subtly that this will happen beforehand helps them avoid the shock and disappointment that will later surface.  They'll think "hey, you know what?  He told me that the competitors would say this, or that my family would think that."  This even applies when raising children.  Unfortunatley we know that at some point kids will be exposed to and given the opportunity to take drugs.  Pretending this won't happen just increases the chances that they will be influenced by a drug dealer and not by you as a parent.  Letting them know in advance "hey Jr, at some point somebody is going to offer you drugs.  If you say know they'll call you chiocken, they'll make fun of you, etc.  But just say no no matter what and come talk to me about it.  It's okay." You can't, nor should you, inoculate against everything.  Just pick the two or three most common objections your prospects have and presolve them with stories, examples, statistics, and testimonials!

Stay tuned as we will soon be rolling out Influence University...your way to access absolutely everything that Kurt has ever produced on Persuasion, Influence, Negotiation, and Leadership!  One of the greatest features of Influence University is Kurt's "Persuasion Software."  There are 77 potential objections out there and this software allows you to click on whatever one you've received and immediately see the course of action you should take! On this episode, Kurt and Steve follow their discussion on objection psychology.  Now that we know where objections come from, what do we do when they actually arrive?  There are a few steps to consider.  First, make sure you listen to the entire objection.  You might know the answer. You might think the objection is stupid.  But it's just as important for your prospect to completely verbalize the objection as it is for you to actually answer it.  The point is that you can never adequately answer an objection until the prospect has completely verbalized it. Second, repeat the objection back to your prospect to make sure you understand.  Pause.  Think it over.  A lot of times when prospects have completely verbalized an objection it takes care of itself.   There are five more steps that Kurt and Steve discuss on this episode, so download it here or subscribe to Maximize Your Influence on Itunes or Stitcher Radio to hear the entire episode! 

After a rant about Philly Cheesesteaks and Gourmet Grilled Cheese, Kurt and Steve continue to break down the psychology of objections.  Undestanding what's happening to your prospect mentally will help you overcome objections faster and many times, avoid them all together. A study done by Knox and Inkster shows us that people tend to justify and feel more confident in their decisions AFTER they have made them.  So if your prospects are not at least subconsciously making a decision to do business with you, they are looking for reasons to NOT do business with you This essentially comes down to small mental commitments and painting the picture.  Anytime your prospect is confused or feels ambiguous about the future, they will throw out knee jerk reactions.  This is why advertisements show pictures and videos of people using their product and smiling.  They want to paint a picture of a bright future where people are using their product and are satisfied.  How can you do this?  How can you help your prospects see, touch, taste, feel, and overall experience your product?  Take away that uncertainty and the decision gets made subconsciously now and it's easy sailing from there!

Have you ever had a conversation that just didn't get results?  Or even worse, one that felt completely fake?  On this episode, Kurt and Steve interview John R Stoker, author of "Overcoming Fake Talk - How To Hold Real Conversations that Create Respect, Build Relationships, and Get Results."  This is a fantastic new book (available at "overcomingfaketalkbook.com", by the way) that will show you how to have more productive conversations.  Whether this is with a co worker, a teenager, or a boss, you'll find it to be highly useful!   Fake talk is any conversation that no matter what is said, just fails to produce results.  You may be under the impression you received a commitment from somebody or that somebody is going to do something.  But what ends up happening?  Nothing.  We typically don't find out we've engaged in fake talk until after the fact, which is extrememly frustrating!   One of the reason's people engage in fake talk is because they are conflict adverse.  Most of us don't enjoy getting in situations where think we will disappoint them or make them angry.  This causes us to steer conversations around productivity in favor of not causing conflict.  However, most of the time when we are avoiding confrontation it's because we assume there will be a problem. This, many times, is just an assumption. Don't assume that somebody will necessarily be mad (unless it's blatantly obvious).  You never know how they will react.  In addition keep in mind...many times THEY want to avoid conflict too! 

Closing a deal isn't about a slick line at the end of your presentation.  It's about understanding what your prospect is REALLY saying when they say things like "I need to think about it" or "I don't have the money."  First we need to figure out if we are dealing with a real objection or one that is just pure "venom."  If somebody is just objecting to be a pain in the butt, there isn't much you can do there other than to cut your losses. But if they have a genuine question or concern, or even a "knee jerk" reaction, that's something you can work with.  So what's a knee jerk reaction?  This is an instinctual resistance to being persuaded.  Your prospect doesn't feel good about doing business with you so they throw out something that's common to say like "I don't have money" or "I need to talk to my spouse."  The best way to reply to knee jerk reactions is with questions.  The more questions you can ask the more you flush out the real objection and the reason they feel uncomfortable.  It's important to evaluate at least twice a year where your leads are coming from.  Are you talking to prospects that have the ability to buy your product?  Continually upgrade the quality of your leads (to the extent that you can).  Beyond that, focusing on questions and continually drilling down to the prospects core need will eliminate knee jerk reactions.  How do you know you've drilled down far enough?  When the prospect starts talking about their problem on an emotional level.  Now you know you're in the zone.  On this episode Kurt and Steve also discuss how to handle situations where you persuade somebody who then has to take your product infront of a committee or supervisor...without you being present.  Be sure to tune into the episode to hear more!

Have you ever met somebody that didn't seem all that sharp but could sell circles around you?  Here at Maximize Your Influence we help you hone your persuasion skills to generate the income and results you want! As always, send your comments, questions, and ideas to maximizeyourinfluence@gmail.com. Also: Kurt is willing to give you a FREE audio download of his book Maximum Influence if you leave a review of this podcast on Itunes!  Just log into Itunes and leave a review, then email us at maximizeyourinfluence@gmail.com and we'll email you a link to download the book, for free.  On this episode's Geeky Article Moment (yeah, we're capitalizing it now because it's officially a thing), Kurt discusses a recent study by Michigan State University.  As it turns out, when employees see superviors act verbally abusive or demeaning to employees, it gives subconcious permission for the rest of the employees to demean everyone else.  This really isn't a surprise.  The culture of a business is established from the top down! Next, Kurt and Steve discuss one of the oldest sales training categories: closing skills.  More appropriately, closing skills are a call to action.  Many persuaders think closing involves a clever line or two towards the end of their presentation.  Things like the Ben Franklin Close, the Alternative Close, or the Bait and Switch are old tired tactics now.  Car dealers are notorious for the "what do I have to do to get you into this car today" line.  Most of the time lines like this just don't work.  When closing skills do work, there is a common denominator: opening.  Effective persauders ask questions throughout the presentation to establish trust and help the prospect know that they are actually listening and understanding.  Closing skills are only effective once this trust and value has been established.  Once it's done they are quite effective in getting people across the finish line.  But using them without trust alienates and offends them!

In Episode 54 of Maximize Your Influence, Kurt and Steve start things off by discussing a recent study about the chemical oxytocin.  According to the study, the more oxytocin present in somebody's system, the more accepting they are of others.  This of course leads to better social skills and possibly, the more persuadeable they are.  Many business and marketing firms are trying to trigger the release of this chemical through smell.  Heaven help us all!  The core of this episdoe deals with how to help your prospects and employees see the overall vision of what you are trying to accomplish.  People like to follow somebody with a vision.  If you're having trouble getting people to buy your product or follow your cause, you aren't instilling your vision in others.  Those who can't articulate a clear and concise vision won't be successful, period.  One key part of instilling vision, however, is WIFFM (What's In It For Me).  Sure, being apart of an exciting vision helps...but if there is no perceived benefit (or realized benefit over time), your credibiltiy is permanently damaged.  We all like to be apart of a cause bigger than ourselves.  But call us shallow...we want something out of the deal too! Kurt and Steve relay this into a conversation about successful politicians.  The most successful politicians are those whow are able to instill a vision in their constituents, but not be too specific to the point that they can be held accoutable for not fulfilling their vision later.  That sure makes you want to show up and vote, doesn't it?  Not only is it important to instill a vision in your prospects and employees, but yourself.  If you can't see, taste, touch, and feel the big picture, you'll find yourself subtly resisting they key things you need to do to move forward.  A mind that lacks clarity will subconsiously avoid anything associated with that lack of clarify.  However when there is absolute clarify, fear is removed and we aggressively attack our goals.

A whole year of Maximize Your Influence Podcasts are now behind us!  And listenrship in the Islamic Republic of Iran is still strong (that has to be a fluke, right)! After two podcasts delving into the female brain, Kurt and Steve discuss a recent article that reveals that women get cheated at the negotiation table more than men.  Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania and UC Berkely found that women were "warmer and more kind" in negotiations, and thus were more taken advantage of. Getting into the remainder of the podcast, Kurt and Steve discuss what it takes to inspire others in the work place.  But how can you do this when/if the person you are inspiring has a horrible job or a position that is just without inspiration?  There are a few ways to do this and you don't necessarily have to have an exciting job to do it.  Boosting the self esteem of those that work for you or who you work with goes a long way.  When people feel appreciated and liked, even menial tasks can beomce fulfilling to them.  Second, unite your team to a common goal.  If they feel like they are always in the trenches and don't see the big picture of what they are apart of they will never be inspired.  Third, find a common enemy.  Sure, this sounds a little dark but business leaders, religous leaders, and politicians have used it through all time to achieve their goals (both good and bad). Finally, create an atmosphere where people can offer input.  If they feel iike they don't have any say then they quckly just won't care...about anything.  You'll be stuck in a situation where your employees or partners "work just hard enough to not get fired, and where you pay them just enough so they don't quit."

Don't worry, it's still us!  We just have a new Itunes and podcast logo.  Kurt and Steve discuss the recent news in the Middle East and the conflict between Israel and Hamas.  They discuss the generations of emotion that are involved in the conflict and why a resolution is unlikely.  They probably offend both sides of the issue as well, which is par for the podcast! They also discuss an entertaining blunder by United Airlines.  Here's a link to the letter.  Judge for yourself what the blunder is or feel free to tune into the podcast to hear all about it.  Kurt and Steve conculde this episode by finishing their interview with Maureen Simon...an expert on the female brain and what it takes to persuade and influence females more effectively.