Obamacare, Abortion, Gay Marriage and Christmas aren’t going away

This post is going to upset some people and that’s okay because we’re all entitled to our opinion. What I’m going to share is my opinion but it’s rooted in the psychology of persuasion.

Obamacare, abortion, gay marriage and Christmas aren’t going away anytime soon. It seems as though each of these cause intense debate because there are passionate people on both sides of each issue – those for and those against.

Why do I believe neither Obamacare, abortion nor gay marriage will go away? In a word; scarcity. This principle of influence tells us people value things more when they are rare or going away. It’s the reason we react so strongly when we think we’re going to lose something.

Think back to childhood when you got that long awaited privilege; to eat dinner in front of the television! You begged and begged, for what seemed to be a lifetime, to get this golden opportunity. Then one day your mom or dad caved but assured you it was a one-time thing. And what happened the next day? You asked again but this time heard, “No.” You protested, “But you let me yesterday!” Arguments became commonplace and I’m willing to bet as time went by you ate in front of the TV more and more.

Parents are usually hesitant to extend privileges like dinner in front of the TV, staying up later on school nights or getting candy at the store because they know its inevitable there will be arguments down the road. Once we have something we don’t want to give it up and I believe the same principle will dictate people not wanting to give up these “rights.”

Women have enjoyed freedom of choice for several decades; tens of millions will enjoy access to health care with the passage of Obamacare; and more and more people are heading to states where they can legally marry their same sex partner. If the government tries to take away any of these rights/freedoms I think there would be violent protest because it all goes back to scarcity, the fear of loss. As hard as people worked and as vocal as they may have been to gain these rights they’ll work even harder and be more vocal in their attempts to stop any legislation that might repeal them.

How does this apply to Christmas? Every year in December we hear people talking about “the war on Christmas.” Let me state emphatically, there’s no “war.” Go ask a veteran who’s seen combat if the debate over Christmas is anything like war and they’ll set you straight. There are however, many people who want to limit or do away with Christmas for a variety of reasons.

I believe Christmas will be around for a long time too because so many people want to keep it. It’s the same psychology that applies to Obamacare, abortion and gay marriage, and it will propel people to fight hard to keep their Christmas traditions.

Another reason I think Christmas as we know it will survive is because the other side isn’t fighting to gain something, they’re only seeking to prevent people from tying in Christ to Christmas and thus making it a religious observance.

As I noted earlier, people will work much harder to keep what they have than they will to gain the very same thing. Studies show the average person will work about twice as hard to keep the same thing, as they will to gain the very same thing.

How does this apply to you? Understand whenever you seek to take something from another person or limit them in any way it’s very likely you’ll be met with resistance because that’s human nature. So before you extend something – eating in front of the television, a new compensation plan, an offer to help – make sure you’re willing to deal with some rough consequences if you decide to change your mind because whomever you’re dealing with will feel the pull of scarcity and react accordingly.

Brian, CMCT® 
influencepeople 
Helping You Learn to Hear “Yes”.