How we change what others think, feel, believe and do

Techniques for Changing Minds

This is the main 'how to' section. Below it, in the website, are generalized principles of changing minds and the psychological details of explanations and theories. In this section we cover specific techniques by which people change minds and otherwise persuade.

• Assertiveness: Being neither passive nor aggressive.
• Body language: A large part of communication is non-verbal.
• Change techniques: Ways to make change happen.
• Closing techniques: From the discipline of sales, a myriad of ways to gain closure.
• Conditioning: How to train animals, people and even yourself!
• Confidence tricks: Ways people get tricked out of their money.
• Conspiracy Theories: You are being watched.
• Conversation: How to hold down a conversation with others.
• Conversion: Converting and retaining people in different beliefs.
• General persuasion techniques: Approaches and things that don't fit elsewhere.
  • Overall Persuasion Methods: General frameworks.
  • Cialdini's Six Principles of Influence: A popular set of methods.
  • Kellerman and Cole's 64 Compliance-gaining Strategies: A long list of what we do.
  • Articles on Persuasion: Things you should know.
  • Being Right: How to be right even when you are wrong.
  • Ingratiation: The Seven Fs of getting them to like you.
  • Sequential Requests: Where one thing leads to another.
  • The Art of Being Right: An original text, discussed.
  • Using Repetition: The same thing again and again.
  • More Persuasion Methods: Yet more ways of persuading.
  • How Can I Get People to Trust Me?: Many different ways.
  • Creating Cognitive Load: To distract from main message.
• Happiness: How to be happy.
• Home Staging: Preparing to sell a house (or just make it beautiful).
• How to...: Direct advice on persuasive activities.
• Hypnotism: How people are hypnotized.
• Interrogation: Getting answers to questions.
• Mind Control: How we control others.
• Negotiation tactics: Getting what you want.
• Language: Much about subtle use of words.
• Listening: Hear the person as well as what they say.
• Objection-handling: Ways of handling objections to the sale.
• Propaganda: covert persuasion of populations.
• Public speaking: Presentation and speech-making.
• Questioning: Using questions to get the results you want.
• Resisting persuasion: A big list of ways to avoid being persuaded.
• Self-Development: Becoming who you want to be.
• Stories and Storytelling: Connecting with stories.
• Stress Management: Keeping it down, building it up.
• Tipping: How to get a bigger tip.
• Using Humor: Changing minds can be (and use) fun.
• Willpower: Getting what you want.

There are around 4000 pages in this section and its sub-sections.

Caveat

Just a note of gentle caution: the word 'technique' sometimes implies some kind of magic, with the implicit promise that 'if you do this you will get that'. There is no magic and the techniques here are things that if you do, you may get something of what you want. Technique is not a substitute for thinking, so do try to understand how things work rather than just blindly applying techniques (then blaming them when they don't work). Life is a numbers game: there are no guarantees. Life is also about practice -- the more you try, the better you will get, so if things do not work for you this time, then keep trying and keep trying different things. Also see the slightly longer Caveat.