Have you ever found yourself agreeing to favors you thought you’d never agree to? Or perhaps you found yourself in situations you swore you’d never be in, but somehow you were successfully persuaded by your friends? Your friends may have used psychological tricks to get you to do what they want, or they’re just really persuasive and nice. But now you might be wondering: what kind of psychological tricks actually work? Some of these tricks are cleverly used by teachers, psychologists, and maybe even your friends. So, here are eight psychological tricks that actually work.
1. Call Them by Their Name
People love it when you talk about them most of the time. When you say someone’s name mid-sentence in a conversation, it’s a great way to grab their attention and redirect the conversation back to you or them. Have you ever noticed, as a child, when a teacher would say your name in the middle of a lecture? That’s because hearing your own name grabs your attention and pulls you back to the present. School teachers don’t want their students to be distracted, so they say their names to bring them back to the discussion at hand.
This same tactic works for making someone notice you. While in conversation with someone you admire, try saying their name often, at the beginning or end of a question. This will grab their attention and add charisma to your regular conversations.
2. Hand Someone Something While in Mid-Conversation
Here’s a fun trick: let’s say you need help carrying something up to your room, but your pesky brother isn’t interested in helping. Try handing him the object while in mid-conversation. For some bizarre reason, when people are telling a story or engaged in deep conversation, they’ll generally take anything you hand them. Go ahead, try it out next time. Eating a banana? Randomly hand over your banana peel while discussing the complexities of life and the stirring of the planets. They’ll probably take it without question.
3. Practice the Pavlov Theory
Believe it or not, bubble gum may help you ace your next big exam. How on earth will chewing gum improve your test scores? If you need to ace that exam, find a distinct flavor of gum and chew it during your study sessions. Then, when you take the exam, you’ll have conditioned yourself to associate that flavor with the information you studied. This may help you remember the information during the test.
This is a form of conditioning from the Pavlovian Theory. According to Husson University Online, the Pavlovian Theory is a learning procedure that involves pairing a stimulus with a conditioned response. In Ivan Pavlov’s famous experiments with dogs, he showed how a bowl of dog food (the stimulus) triggered salivation (the unconditioned response). So, next time you’re studying, bring out the bubble gum and get chewing it may just earn you that A+.
4. Try Imagining You’re Where You Want to Be in Life
This psychological trick can really help if used correctly, using cognitive dissonance to your benefit. Try changing your mindset to the person you want to be. According to Medical News Today, cognitive dissonance is a theory in social psychology that refers to mental conflict when a person’s behaviors and beliefs don’t align. Instead of experiencing discomfort, use cognitive dissonance to motivate change.
If your behavior doesn’t align with your goals, convince your mind you’re already someone actively working on those goals. For example, if you’re a shopaholic, tell yourself you’re not the type of person who likes shopping a lot. Changing your mindset could change your actions if you work at it. Or, if you’re feeling sad and focus on the negative, imagine yourself as someone who looks on the bright side you may start seeing the good during grumpy days. Use cognitive dissonance to your advantage by imagining you’re where you want to be in life.
5. Ask for a Big Favor, Then Change It to a Smaller One
Imagine you want that adorable chinchilla you’ve been eyeing in the pet shop window. You pass by every day, and it stares you down with its cute, beady eyes. Your birthday’s coming up, but you don’t have the cash, and you’ve already named it Giblets. To use a psychological trick, ask your parents for a dog first. Yes, you don’t want a dog you want Giblets but if you ask for a big favor first, they’re likely to say no. Later, change it to a smaller favor, and they’re less inclined to deny you.
In psychology, this is called the door-in-the-face technique and works in many situations. If you need 20 bucks but know your friend doesn’t like lending money, ask for 50 instead. Twenty bucks seems like a lot less in comparison. You and Giblets are now living splendidly.
6. Ask for a Favor When Someone Is Exhausted
Here’s another sneaky trick: say your friend needs to crash at your house, but you’re busy binge-watching The Office on Netflix and don’t want them to stay. Then, they knock on your door in the middle of the night. Somehow, you let them in and agree they can stay. You gave in because you were exhausted and too tired to say no.
According to studies, people are more likely to be influenced to do something they didn’t want to do when they’re tired. You’re mentally and physically exhausted, and you didn’t want to argue late at night. You’d do anything to resolve the situation and get some rest.
7. Mirror Others to Help You Make Friends
Having a hard time making friends at school? Without changing who you are, try mirroring the other person’s movements and gestures they may be more open to getting to know you. This is called the Chameleon Effect and has been explored in studies. If someone thinks you’re like them, they may be more willing to be your friend. Someone could be mirroring you subconsciously to gain your trust or, more likely, because they want to be your friend.
8. Nod Your Head If You Want Someone to Agree with You
Need someone to agree with a pitch at work or to persuade them on a subject like why they need to watch The Office on Netflix? Try nodding while discussing a point you want them to agree with. According to a 1980s study in the Applied Psychology Journal, psychologists found that when others nod while listening, they’re more likely to agree. You may even find yourself subconsciously nodding to someone’s intense story because they are too.
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