Andres Lares & Jeff Cochran 
Persuade [PDF ebook] 
The 4-Step Process to Influence People and Decisions

1 The Art of Influence and Persuasion 1
Ethics of Influencing 3
The Tenets of Ethical Principles 3
The Influence and Persuasion Process 4
2 Building Credibility 9
Credibility: Trust and Expertise 10
Building Trust 11
Establishing Expertise 19
The Influencer’s Toolbox 23
Borrowing Credibility 23
Show Vulnerability 27
Become a Trusted Advisor 30
Putting It All Together 34
3 Engaging Emotion 37
The Linda Problem 37
Emotions 39
Achievement 40
Fear 40
Obligation 41
The Influencer’s Toolbox 44
Managing Emotions 44
Storytelling 47
Scripting 50
Mirroring 58
Putting It All Together 68
4 Demonstrating Logic 71
Logic and Rational Decisions 72
The Rational Decision-Making Model 73
The Weighted Criteria Matrix 74
The Role of Prior Belief in Reasoning 77
The Three Steps in Demonstrating Logic to Persuade Others 82
The Influencer’s Toolbox 95
Framing 95
Anchoring 98
Features, Advantages, and Benefits 104
Putting It All Together 108
5 Facilitating Action 111
Facilitating Action 111
Types of Closes 113
Soft Closes: Asking Questions to Yes 114
Hard Closes: Making the Ask 118
Creating a Sense of Urgency 120
After the Close 121
The Influencer’s Toolbox 122
Getting the Small Yes 122
Providing Options 126
Creating a Safety Net 132
Putting It All Together 133
6 Time and Place 135
The When and the Where 135
The Right Time 136
The Right Place 139
The Right Audience 141
The Influencer’s Toolbox 143
The Empathy Gap 143
Happy Endings 145
Putting It All Together 145
7 Body Language 147
Reading and Understanding Body Language 147
Posture 148
Gestures 152
Facial Expressions 154
Awareness of Cultural Differences 161
Body Language for Virtual Selling Environments 162
The Influencer’s Toolbox 164
Making a First Impression 164
Body Language as a Tool for Managing Your Own Emotions 165
Body Language as a Tool for Managing the Emotions of Others 167
Putting It All Together 172
8 Personality 175
Characteristics, Traits, and Types 175
Measuring Your Personality Traits 176
The Big Five Personality Traits 177
Altercasting 182
Personality Type Assessments 183
Influencer’s Toolbox 187
Identifying with the Traits 187
Influencing with the Traits 188
Putting It All Together 190
9 Putting It All Together 193
A Closer Look at the Four-Step Process 194
Building Credibility 194
Engaging Emotion 195
Demonstrating Logic 195
Facilitating Action 196
Time and Place 196
Beyond the Four-Step Process 196
Appendix 1: A Study of Decision Makers’ Decision Making 199
Methods and Analysis 199
Sample and Instrument 199
Analysis and Results 201
Summary of Hypotheses under Consideration 219
Discussion 219
Appendix 2: 50 Question Big Five Personality Traits Assessment 221
End Notes 223
Recommended Reading 229
Acknowledgments 231
About the Authors 233
Index 235

ANDRES LARES is Managing Partner at the Shapiro Negotiation Institute and an Adjunct Professor at Johns Hopkins University. His professional focus is on coaching clients in the areas of sales, negotiation, and influencing, especially within sports and Fortune 500 organizations. Andres’ expertise in the field has led to being featured in Forbes, Harvard Business Review, CNBC, FOX, and Entrepreneur, and guest lecturing at universities all over the world.
JEFF COCHRAN is one of the most sought-after negotiation speakers and trainers in the world. He has delivered high-impact sessions in over 20 countries to tens of thousands of professionals as part of customized in-house training and as a speaker at global conferences. In both cases, he has won countless awards and been rated the best speaker of international events.
SHAUN DIGAN is a writer who has run a company and studied business –with an MBA and Ph D–and taught in the field. As a result, Shaun brings a unique perspective to persuasion along with an academic rigor to this book.