Persuasion Power At Work – The Principle of Consensus
According to Dr. Robert Cialdini, there are 6 Principles of Persuasion, each acting as a decision trigger in our personal and professional lives. One of the 6 principles is the Principle of Consensus. I have learned how powerful this principle at work in real life when I was in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. There is this well known beef noodle restaurant in Ho Chi Minh City and this restaurant is even patronized by the former US President, Bill Clinton. So, one evening, I decided to walk from the hotel to this restaurant, using a map. As I walked out, there was this man in his fifties, who asked me to take a ride in his rickshaw. Initially I politely refused, but he was persistent and followed me with his rickshaw, asking me where I wanted to go. Again, I turned down the offer. Then he began to show me a notebook, page after page of testimonials from tourists about how great and helpful he was. Finally, I relented and told him I wanted to go to the famous beef noodle restaurant. He even waited for me to finish my beef noodle and took me back to the hotel. Then, I got a shock of me life when he wanted to charge a fee of USD40.00. I told him that was exorbitant, but he got angry. Being a foreigner, I did not want to create problems, after much bargaining, he settled for USD30.00. That man in Ho Chi Minh City is a real smuggler who is competent in the use of persuasion, but is unethical. The lesson learned is this: People decide what is appropriate for them to do in a situation by examining what others are doing in that same situation. This is the Principle of Consensus. So beware of this man in his fifties when you next visit Ho Chi Minh City.
Why not attend the next Principles of Persuasion (POP) workshop in Malaysia?
Dr. Khoo CK is the only Cialdini Method Certified Trainer (CMCT) in Malaysia and among only the 23 CMCTs in the world. He is personally trained and certified by Dr. Robert Cialdini to conduct the Principles of Persuasion Workshop. He can be contacted at: ckkhoo@kairospl.com
