Maximize Your Influence

With Valentines now over with, you likely know where you stand with your significant other. However, Kurt and Steve still find it fit to bring up a recent study that shows how you can tell if somebody loves you...or lusts after you. Check out the article here! It's been a few years since Kurt developed the "Persuasion IQ Test"... a way for you to get a straightforward assessment on how persuasive you really are. On this episode, Kurt and Steve break down one of the questions on the test: the most effective way to create scarcity. Check out the episode to learn the answer! Finally, Steve wraps the episode up with a blunder by a company who has been featured as the persuasion ninja on multiple occasions: Apple.

Do you know people who are ALWAYS late, no matter what? Do you find yourself telling these people earlier times in an effort to get them to unintentionally show up? A recent article in the Wall Street Journal studied type A (aggressive) and type B (non aggressive) and found something shocking: some people perceive time to go by slower than it actually is. This explains a lot about people who just can't show up on time! Check out the article here. Last episode, Kurt and Steve focused on detecting deception through verbal cues. On this episode, they explore some of the non-verbal cues that reveal deception. Tune in to hear all the great info!

Have you checked out www.universityofpersuasion.com yet? Did you know that you can enroll in our 52 week persuasion course for as little as $7 a month? Shameless plug over. On this week's episode, Kurt and Steve discuss a recent article that shows us how to exercise more effectively. Yep. Pushing through a difficult task (like exercise) is key to success in anything. Kurt and Steve break down the article and discuss how we can use it in exercise and in business. Due to listener demand, deception is back. We all deal with it. Prospects, family, kids, co-workers...they all have been known to deceive. Hopefully most of the time it's harmless. But we've all suffered due to taking somebody's word for it only to have them never come through. There are two ways to detect deception. Verbal cues and non-verbal cues. On this episode Kurt and Steve focus on verbal cues. The best "liars" are the ones who tell half truths with their deception. Tune into the episode for some great pointers on how you can detect verbal deception! Finally...the blunder of the week. Or is it a ninja? Steve isn't really sure. Due to a business trip he couldn't get out of, he didn't get to watch most of the Super Bowl. From what he heard, the commercials during the Super Bowl this year were just downright depressing. Kurt discusses whether this is an effective advertising techinique or not.

Welcome to episode 74 of Maximize Your Influence! On this episode, Kurt and Steve roll out an interesting article published in the Economist. More and more, governments and intelligence agencies are analyzing body language to determine if somebody is a terrorist threat. Kurt and Steve discuss the article and what it means for the study of body language. You can check it out here. Well it's late January now. How are your goals coming? If you're like most people, they're quickly fading into the distance. While it's only been a couple of weeks since they discussed it last, Kurt and Steve re-hash the main components of successful goal setting. If for no other reason than to at least REMIND you that you set some goals a few weeks ago. Accomplishing goals requires YOU to consistently follow up on them, measure your progress, and to be realistic. Other wise you end up like everybody else: your in mid February and things are right back to where they were! On this episode Kurt and Steve also discuss vision versus worry. When you're setting goals, trying to sell a product, or trying to promote a cause...do you do it out of vision or worry? When it comes to you and your goals, this needs to be done out of vision. Even though it brings on compelling short term emotions, acting out of worry never lasts. Only a positive vision of the future will keep you going when times get tough! Check out the episode for some tips on how to use this on your prospects and your marketing!

Have you ever met the kind of person who is always stressed, has a negative attitude, and who nobody wants to be around? Oftentimes we later hear these people have major health problems down the road. In this weeks article, Kurt and Steve discuss a recent study that shows why Optimism is heart healthy. Not only is it good for your wallet...it's good for your health! Oftentimes, persuaders run into the issue of their prospects having a miscontrued "value" of the persuaders product. This usually isn't the persuaders fault. It's just the reality of the market and the media that shaped the value. So how can we "reset" the prospects perception of value? How can we have home field advantage? On this epsidoe, Kurt and Steve discuss how we can use the "door in the face" technique to gain the upper hand. Remember, go to www.universityofpersuasion.com for more resources on how you can become a power persuader! And finally...this week's blunder features a waitress at Morton's Steakhouse who thought it would be a good idea to talk to Steve about the movie "Food Inc" while he ate a porterhouse.

On this week's episode, Kurt and Steve lead off with the "Geeky Article Moment" as well as some banter about food, NFL playoffs, and seagulls eating hotdogs. Yep. It happened. A restaurant in Pittsburgh has recently decided that it will ban "tips" for its servers. Instead, servers will receive a salary and annual bonuses. Kurt and Steve discuss how this will impact staff performance and if it's a good idea or not from a leadership perspective. After this, Kurt and Steve discuss presentation pitfalls. Like it or not, we are all presenters. Whether its one on one, on a web conference, or in front of thousands of people, we are all on stage. Kurt and Steve discuss what the common pitfalls are that plague most persuaders. Are you a power persuader? Would you like individual feedback on your video/audio presentation...for FREE? Record an audio or video of your presentation and upload it here. Kurt and Steve will go through each presentation and provide you individually with feedback! Just put your email address in the subject line of when you upload your video. First prize will get a free year to www.universityofpersuasion.com!

Happy New Year! We're back with the first episode of 2015! If you we're asked "do you have a rewards card with us" last time you were shopping, you're not alone. Business are loading up on rewards programs like never before, in hopes of enticing you to return and buy more stuff from them. As it turns out however, a good old fashioned "thank you" is more effective. Kurt and Steve discuss this recent study on this episode. Well it's 2015. It's time to set goals. You're either excited about that or you're rolling your eyes saying "not again!" Whatever you think about it, however, it's important. Setting goals (in writing) is one of the main attributes that differentiates successful persuaders from failures. Check out this episode for some concrete tips on how you can set goals more successfully in 2015!

If you have kids or employees (they're kind of the same, aren't they) you have probably used threats as a way to gain compliance before. When we are in a rational state, we can all agree that most of the time threats are only good for very short term compliance. But when we become emotional, it's easy for our brain to think that a threat is the best solution to the problem. In a recent study by McGill University, researchers discovered that threatening children doesn't stop them from lying. Here's some hope for humanity: researchers also concluded that kids are more likely to tell the truth when they feel like it's the right thing to do! In Episode 79 of Maximize Your Influence, Kurt and Steve expand more on persuasive writing styles. There are certain words that you should never use when persuading others. Those words, however, may be beneficial when you are discussing the competiton! Check out the episode for all the information. Kurt and Steve will return in 2015 with more Maximize Your Influence!

Are you tired of faking that you like your boss when you really don't? Michigan State University has good news. Apparently, you don't need to fake it anymore! Their study shows that your productivity and your bosses satsifaction with your work performance goes UP when you both can admit that you're just co-workers and not necessarily best buddies. After discussing the weekly article. Kurt and Steve launch into the important topic of persuasive writing. In order to persuade, you need people to talk to. You need leads. It's persuasive writing that does this. Oftentimes, writing persuasively involves the use of pictures. Yeah, this sounds like a bit of a contradiction. But when we ssee words, how we feel about them is usually influnced by the pictures that accompany them. Use pictures that involve attractive people, things, and places. You can use bright colors as well as images that make others curious, happy, or even angry. This makes them pay attention to what you write. Check out the rest of the episode for more information on how to structure your persuasive copy for optimal results. And finally, www.universityofpersuasion.com is half off for the rest of the year! Wheverver you are in your persuasion journey, there's something on universityofpersuasion.com for you!

Every year it happens. Black Friday. That one day where retailers apparently lose their mind and start giving away massive discounts in order to lure bargain hungry shoppers. The urgency created on Black Friday is unparalleled! On this episode Kurt and Steve discuss what retailers do right on Black Friday as opposed to what they do wrong. Using some of their tactics could turn your prospects away...or it could create massive legitimate urgency that will spike your sales, big time. Tune into this episode for more info!