The Most Valuable Real Estate

I’ve lived in Central Ohio since I was a teenager. While it may not seem like a golf destination you would be amazed at the number of beautiful golf courses – public and private – within an hour’s drive from the center of Columbus. A huge reason for the popularity of the game is Jack Nicklaus.

Jack Nicklaus is known as the “Golden Bear” because that’s the mascot for the high school he attended in Upper Arlington. He is considered the greatest golfer of all time, having won a record 18 majors. It looked as if Tiger Woods would easily surpass that record but things have been put on hold since his fall from grace, as he’s struggled in the majors the last five years.

Jack Nicklaus is also known for having built Muirfield Village Golf Course, the site of The Memorial Golf Tournament. Muirfield and The Memorial hold a special place in my heart because I learned to play golf at Muirfield as a teenager and I worked the golf tournament during college.

As I watched the tournament this year I saw a player miss a relatively easy putt for birdie. That’s always disappointing because each birdie makes it much easier to possibly win. When you’re as good as the PGA pros seemingly small things can make big differences even though most of their swings look the same to the average spectator. A few hit the ball significantly farther off the tee but others make up for it in putting or chipping so the differences between the top players and the average players is probably much less than you might suspect.

Consider this – in a typical tournament the player winning might do so by one or two strokes, which amounts to being 0.3%-0.6% better than the second place finisher. Quite often the difference comes down to how a player responds to adversity.

Missing a birdie putt highlights the reality that once you’ve attained PGA pro status, the factor that separates good from average and the great from the good amounts to six inches of real estate. No, I’m not talking about a six inch putt. The six inches I’m referring to is the grey matter that rests between the ears (a.k.a., the brain).

Understanding the importance of thought patterns and dealing with adversity, it’s no wonder sports psychologists have become such big business for pro athletes. If sessions with a sports psychologist are enough to get a player to rethink his mental game, especially when adversity hits, and that leads to better finishes then it will be worth all the money paid…and then some.

What does this have to do with persuasion? You possess the same valuable real estate as the PGA pros and how you choose to use it can make the difference between success and failure in your chosen field. Just as in golf, when it comes to persuasion small changes can make big differences. Consider the following:

The small act of generously helping someone can engender a return favor – reciprocity – that might help you complete a project or make a sale.

Taking a moment to compliment someone who genuinely deserves it – liking – might be the reason they like you a little more and do what you ask.

Remembering to mention what people similar to the person you’re talking to – consensus – might make them more comfortable doing what you ask.

If someone knows your credentials upfront – authority – they are far more likely to listen to what you have to say.

Asking someone to do something rather than telling them – consistency – will dramatically increase they odds they’ll actually do what you’ve asked if they say “Yes” to your initial request.

To let someone know when something will no longer be available – scarcity – might be just the thing they needed to know to take action.

Each of the examples above is simple. In fact, they’re so simple anyone can do them if they’re in the right frame of mind just like the golfer facing a tough situation. There is no guarantee that using a sports psychologist will be the difference between winning and losing but it will certainly increase the odds of winning. In much the same way, ethically and correctly using the principles of influence is not a magic wand to get what you want all the time. But, scientific research lets us know your odds of hearing “Yes!” are significantly better when you ethically employ the principles. And one more thing, they’re much less expensive than hiring a sports psychologist.

Brian Ahearn, CMCT® 
Chief Influence Officer

influencePEOPLE 
Helping You Learn to Hear “Yes”.