Words that Change Minds - by Shelle Rose Charvet

/
0 Comments


'Words that Change Minds: Mastering the Language of Influence' is a book that describes how different people are motivated by a variety of factors. The book enables you to understand and predict from someone's language in everyday conversation, how they will behave in a given situation. It aims to help you learn how to customise your language for specific people and groups to trigger motivation and change people's minds. The book expands on a neuro-linguistic programming (NLP) tool called Language and Behaviour Profile (LAB Profile) which was developed by Rodger Bailey.

Shelle Rose Charvet is the author of the book and is a Canadian NLP expert and a best selling author. 'Words that Change Minds' was listed on Forbes as the number one book on their list of best management books for entrepreneurs and executives.

* It's important to note that neuro-linguistic programming (not to be confused with natural language processing) is considered a pseudoscientific approach to communication and personal development. Surveys in the academic community have shown NLP to be widely discredited among scientists. Although, me being a very logically and rational person, I tend to be naturally repelled to anything associated to the New Age category. Despite this I thought I'd read this book with an open mind with the hope of being pleasantly surprised.


Foreword

In the past I use to write reviews on books. The main reason for writing these reviews was in the hope of retaining the information that I had just learnt from reading. I realised how silly this is as whether I liked, disliked or had neutral thoughts about a book doesn’t really matter in the quest for knowledge. This may actually cloud my judgement and hinder from absorbing valuable information. Consequently, I’m taking on a different approach by writing summary notes and key learnings rather than giving a personal opinion. Hopefully, this approach will help me remember valuable information, as well as, help others who may serendipitously come across these summaries.




Summary and Key Learnings

Basic concepts that are explored:

Motivation

  • 2 Motivation Traits - Proactive and Reactive
  • Motivation Directions - Toward and Away From
  • Sources of Motivation - Internally and Externally
  • Motivation Reason - Options and Procedures
  • Motivation Decision Factors - Sameness and Difference

Working Traits

  • Global and Specific
  • Sorting - Self and Others
  • Stress Response - Feeling, Choice and Thinking
  • Working Style - Independent, Proximity, Cooperative
  • Facts and Feelings - Person and Things
  • Convincer Channel
  • Convincer Mode




2 Motivation Traits - Proactive and Reactive


Proactive
Shelle claims that proactive people make up 15 to 20% of the population. They act without thinking or analysing. Their main aim is to get things done. These people tend to have difficulty sitting still, they use short sentences with nouns, active verbs and tangible objects. They can get impatient and bored. They usually buy a product when it enables them to do something right away. Tip - To influence these types of people, offer them something that will fulfil an immediate need.

Reactive
Reactive people supposably make up 15 to 20% of the population. They use incomplete or long convoluted sentences often with the subject or verb missing. They tend to use passive verbs and nominalisations (nouns created from adjectives e.g. judgement rather than judge). Reactive people need to understand, analyse, consider ramifications and alternatives. Taking the initiative stresses them. They tend to buy a product a when it allows them to gain an understanding. Tip - Since these types of people are waiting for something to happen before they decide, you can say phrases such as, “this is what you’ve been waiting for” to coax them to buy your product.

People who are equally proactive and reactive make up 60 to 65% of the population.



Motivation Directions - Toward and Away From


Are you motivated by what you want (pleasure) or by what you want (pain)?
The carrot versus the stick approach for motivation is where the carrot is the reward for compliance and the stick is a consequence for non compliance.

Toward
Toward people make up 40% of the population. Toward people consider goals to be achieved. They are good at managing priorities, they are excited and energised by goals. They can have trouble considering potential obstacles. Tip - To influence these people provide them with a goal to achieve. 

Away From 
Away from people make up 40% of the population. They consider what should be avoided, what should be gotten rid of and problems that need to be solved. Threats and deadlines energise them (they call targets deadlines). They are easily distracted and are compelled to respond to negative situations. They often forget priorities and focus on the crisis. Tip - You can influence “Away Froms” by presenting in terms of preventing or solving problems.

Insurance is mainly an example of 'away from', while investment is and example of 'toward'. People who are equally 'toward' and 'away from' makes up 20% of the population.




Sources of Motivation - Internally and Externally

Sources of motivation relates to our frame of reference for knowing whether we have done well. We have different frames of reference in different situations. Learning something new requires an external frame.

Internal Frame of Reference
Internal frame makes up 40% of the population. They gather information from the outside and decide based on internal standards. They take orders as information, they don’t need praise or feedback. They provide their own motivation and judge the quality of their own work for themselves. They can become demotivated when they don’t get to decide anything. Tip - You can influence them by asking them to consider information and letting them decide for themselves.

External Frame of Reference
External frame makes up 40% of the population. They are likely to interpret information as orders and are motivated when someone else decides. They need outside feedback or results because they gather standards from the outside. In fact, they become demotivated and unsure of themselves in the absence of feedback. When they receive criticism or negative feedback, they question themselves. Because they are good at adapting what they are doing based on outside requirements they are great in sales and customer service. Tip - With influencing these people, offer them feedback and do more of the decision making for them.

Equally internal and external makes up 20% of the population.



Motivation Reason - Options and Procedures

There are those who prefer options and possibilities or prefer to take action right away.

Options
Options makes up 40% of the population. They look for opportunities and possibilities. They create procedures and systems but don’t follow them. They like breaking or bending the rules. They like starting things, development and setup. They don’t like reducing their options. When you ask, “Why did you choose?” they give you a list of criteria. They are good at developing and testing safety procedures and process engineering. They are good at training design but not delivery. Tip - Unlimited choice motivates them.


Procedures
Procedures make up 40% of the population. Procedures believe there is a right way to do things. They are interested in how to do things. They like to finish what they start. They answer, “Why did you choose?” with, “how did it come to be?” They give you a story or series of events. Anything to do with safety and security needs a procedures person. Telemarketers with a procedures pattern sell three times more than options people. Sales requires honing procedures until they work. Tip - To influence them talk about “the right way”.




Motivation Decision Factors - Sameness and Difference

Decisions tend to be made based on 'keeping things the same' with some exceptions or inviting difference and change. This is called the relationship filter - sameness and difference. This relates to how often we need to change things in a particular context. Does the successful fulfilment of objectives demand creating a revolution, building upon what is already there, or maintaining the status quo? A combination of options and difference can lead to compulsive change.

Sameness
Sameness is 5% of the population. They may accept major change every 10 years and will actually provoke change every 15 to 20 years in a given context. Sameness with exception is 65% of the population. They prefer evolution over time, improvements, and need change every 5 to 7 years.

Difference
Difference is 20% of the population. They resist static or stable situations; need major change every one to two years and like change to be revolutionary. Sameness with exception and difference is 10% of the population. They like change and revolutionary shifts. They are comfortable when things are evolving and need major change every 3 to 4 years




Working Traits

The patterns below show how people deal with information, what types of tasks and environment they need to be most productive in the given context. In addition, these patterns show how people get convinced about something and how to maintain someone’s motivation.


Global and Specific


Specific
Specific makes up 15% of the population. They need small pieces of sequential information. They may need to start over if the sequence is interrupted. They use lots of modifiers, adverbs and adjectives and speak in sequences step-by-step. They get frustrated with summaries and may have difficulty prioritising this. This pattern is is useful when dealing with bookkeeping, contractual agreements, working on an assembly line or as a pharmacist.

Global
Global, or big picture makes up 60% of the population. They prefer overviews and summaries, concepts and abstracts and may present things in random order. They tend to use simple sentences with few modifiers or details, speaking in vague terms. Sometimes they don’t specify the link between items and ideas, which can be confusing. They can get bored or feel overwhelmed with lots of detail. This pattern is useful when deciding on financial strategies, dealing with people and project management.

Equally global and specific makes up 25% of the population. They can handle complex tasks and analysis.




Sorting - Self and Others

The patterns described below provide examples of how a person can perceive and respond automatically to the body language and tone of voice of other people.

Self
'Sorting by Self' people makes up 7% of the population. This filter experiences a gap between receiving a stimulus and responding to it. These types of people have difficulty with rapport, they don’t notice other people’s body language and queues. Instead, the content of what people say convinces them. Since they have little or no facial expression or voice variation, they often find interpersonal communication difficult. This pattern is not suited for customer service and they do well where technical expertise is required.

Others
'Sorting by Others' people makes up 93% of the population. They consciously and unconsciously receive responses from other people and are good at creating and maintaining rapport. Their body language is animated. They respond to both content and nonverbal aspects.




Stress Response - Feeling, Choice and Thinking

This pattern is about how people respond to typical work pressures.

Feeling
Feeling makes up 15% of the population. This pattern visibly and vocally has an emotional response while describing a difficult situation. They can overreact or be hypersensitive and find it difficult to handle rejection. This pattern is well suited for artistic and creative work. They need tasks they can get passionate about.

Choice
Choice makes up 70% of the population. They have an emotional response and then return to an unemotional state. They feel emotions and therefore can empathise with others and are therefore good people managers.

Thinking
Thinking makes up 15% of the population. They don’t have emotional responses to normal stressful situations and have trouble empathising with others. This enables them to keep cool in most emergencies. It is useful with occupations like air traffic control or pilot, anywhere where it is necessary to present logical facts or think clearly.




Working Style - Independent, Proximity and Cooperative

Independent
Independent makes up 20% of the population. They like to work alone and have sole responsibility. They can lose their train of thought if interrupted. They need space and time to themselves and can forget to consult with others.

Proximity
Proximity makes up 60% of the population. They want a clear territory of responsibility but like to have others involved. They don’t like to work totally alone but don’t like to share responsibility and authority.

Cooperative
Cooperative makes up 20% of the population. They want to work and share responsibility with others. They have trouble with deadlines and finishing tasks if they have to work on their own and like open concept offices.



Facts and Feelings - Person and Things

Person
Person makes up 15% of the population. This pattern focuses on people and their feelings. They talk about people’s emotions and feelings and are good at rapport. Feelings can become the task itself and they may become preoccupied with the emotions of others. This pattern is useful with customer service and reception type work.

Things
Thing makes up 55% of the population. They concentrate on products, ideas, tools, tasks and systems and tend to treat people and ideas as objects. They believe emotions have no place in the world of work and will talk about people impersonally.

Equally Person and Things makes up 30% of the population.




Convincer Channel

How do you know someone is good at their work?

See makes up 55% of the population. They need to visually see a product service or idea to be convinced.

Hear makes up 30% of the population. They need an oral presentation or to hear something to be convinced

Read makes up 3% of the population. They need to read something to be convinced.

Do makes up 12% of the population. They have to do something to be convinced.




Convincer Mode

After someone has gathered information in a specific sensory channel, they need to process it to become convinced. What do you need to be convinced that you know something?

Number of examples makes up 52% of the population. Advertising is based on the theory that if you repeat a message six times in a given time, most people get the message.

Automatic makes up 8% of the population. They give things the benefit of the doubt and tend to jump to conclusions.

Consistent makes up 15% of the population. They are never convinced and need to reevaluate every time. You need to reestablish rapport and credibility at each contact. This is useful for quality control.

Period of time makes up 25% of the population. They are convinced after a period of time such as after seeing someone in a particular job for six months.


About Post Author

Hi, my name is Christine Calo and I'm a designer by trade who has an engineering background. I have an interest in design, technology and science which I like to read, watch and write about from time to time. This blog contains random ramblings of these topics and may tangent off to other topics. Want to say hello, you can contact me on: calo.christine@gmail.com

No comments :

© Christine Calo 2021. Please do not reproduce without the expressed consent of Christine Calo. Powered by Blogger.