Today we will carry on with where we left off previously and note down more key points from the book.
Chapter 3: Commitment and Consistency
Key points:
- Once we have made a choice, we will tend to behave consistently with the commitment.
- Inconsistency is taught to be an undesirable trait.
- Be careful about agreeing to trivial requests.
- People who go through a great deal of trouble to attain something tend to value it more highly.
- Commitment is most effective when it is active, public and effortful.
- People need to feel they own what they have done, hence small incentives instead of big ones will be more effective.
- We accept inner responsibility for a behavior when we think we have chosen to perform it in the absence of a strong outside pressure.
- We should never heavily bribe or threaten our children to do things we want them to truly believe in.
- We should use a reason that will produce the desired behavior and will at the same time allow a child to take responsibility for that behavior.
- Lowballing: offer an advantage that induces a favorable purchase, then sometime after the decision is made but before the bargain is sealed, remove the advantage deftly
So when to say no?
- When we feel our stomach tighten as we agree to something. Tell the people who are trying to influence us thorugh commitment exactly what they are doing. We need to bear in mind that consistency is important but not foolish consistency
- Ask yourself, if I go back in time, will I make the same decision? –Â and take note of the first burst of impression
Chapter 4: Social Proof
Key points:
- One means we use to determine what is correct is to find out what others think is correct.
- Social proof works best when the proof is provided by the actions of a lot of other people.
- When uncertainty reigns, we are most likely to look to and accept actions of others as correct.
- We use the actions of others to decide on proper behavior for ourselves, especially when we view those others as similar to ourselves.
- The most influential leaders are those who know how to arrange group conditions to allow the principle of social proof to work maximally in their favor.
