The Fine Art of Persuasion

by Mark S. Fulton

Toward the conclusion of the Spanish Civil War, a writer said of Francisco Franco’s fascist rebels: “They will conquer, but they will not convince.” And conquer they did, establishing Franco’s 35-year dictatorship.

Of course, once they have seized power, tyrants have little reason to bother convincing their subjects about the appropriateness of their decisions—or anything else. Despots rule by decree. The opinions, ideas and feelings of others have no relevance, except as indications of insubordination.

Sound familiar? Perhaps you work in an environment where the CEO would rather pass edicts than persuade his colleagues to follow his vision. Maybe some of your company’s managers get their way by wielding their authority rather than by working for consensus on an issue. You yourself may even have had occasion to order people to perform rather than seek cooperation by means of a convincing rationale.

Granted, sometimes you just have to give a directive and expect it to be carried out. Time may not permit the luxury of persuasion. However, few people outside the military respond well to being ordered around. We would all like to be treated with the respect that is inherent in being given an explanation about a course of action.

In fact, there will be plenty of times when you will have no choice but to persuade others to your perspective. For those times, you would do well to master the art of rhetoric.

Rhetoric is the art of using language effectively and persuasively. Although nowadays the word “rhetoric” has a somewhat negative connotation (i.e. inflated, pompous language), in ancient Greece it was considered one of the two primary forms of expression—the other being poetry.

The Greek philosopher Aristotle taught his students the art of rhetoric so that they could be persuasive orators. While Aristotle’s advice was aimed at improving the quality of political discourse, his principles work equally well in business. Think of rhetoric as the art of winning others to your position.

Aristotle identified three instruments of persuasion: the appeal of the speaker's character (ethos), the speaker’s appeal to the listener’s emotions (pathos) and the speaker’s appeal to the listener’s reason (logos).

Ethos refers to the persuader’s reputation. Your listener must first respect you before he or she will consider your argument. You must have credibility. Personal attributes such as integrity, sincerity, gentleness, intelligence and self-confidence are key ingredients for building your listener’s trust in you. Aristotle argued that ethos is the foundation of persuasion.

How do you establish ethos with an individual or group? The obvious answer is to be a person of high moral character, good credentials and well-rounded knowledge. However, with people you don’t know, try telling stories about yourself, especially self-deprecating stories. Gentle humor puts your listeners at ease. Humility engenders admiration.

Pathos is your knowledge of the needs and emotions of your listener. The root word for “sympathy,” pathos leads you to consider: what your listeners want to hear; how they will react to your statements; what they are likely to say in response. Your aim as a persuader is to get your listener’ emotions running in the direction of the action to be taken. Popular books
such as Emotional Intelligence by Daniel Goleman and Executive EQ by Robert Cooper attest to the power of pathos.

The first step in developing pathos with your listeners is to recognize the desires that are present in all human beings: the desire for liberty, justice, peace, pleasure, worldly goods, honor, repute, position and preference. By appealing to these desires, you tap into the reservoir of emotions that usually drive decisions. In addition, pathos leads you to focus on the benefits of an action to your listener, rather than how you will be affected. Likewise, if you disagree with an idea, show how it will hinder the person making it, not you.

Logos refers to the solicitation of reason. Once you have achieved credibility and the emotional stage has been set, reason reinforces passion. A reasonable argument, debate or proposal relies on the proper choice of words coupled with logical thought. There are many books that can help you develop your communication and thinking skills, such as: How to Speak, How to Listen by Mortimer Adler and Brain Building in Just 12 Weeks by Marilyn vos Savant.

While there are more facets of the logos stage of persuasion than I can address here, some basic tips include: avoid lengthy and involved arguments; don’t argue what is already accepted or acknowledged as true; show how your position exemplifies what everyone knows to be true.

The next time you are called upon to make a case for a new policy, implement a new procedure or give a project team its marching orders, consider the roles of ethos, pathos and logos in planning to persuade your listeners.

Copyright 2001 © Mark S. Fulton