Human psychology really isn\u2019t that complicated, if you think about it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Human psychology really isn\u2019t that complicated, if you think about it. Everybody wants to see themselves in a positive light. That\u2019s the key to understanding Jonah Berger\u2019s simple tactic that makes people 30% more likely to do what you ask. Berger is a marketing professor at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and the bestselling author<\/a> of \u201cMagic Words: What to Say to Get Your Way.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Berger explained the technique using a Stanford University<\/a> study involving preschoolers.<\/a> The researchers messed up a classroom and made two similar requests to groups of 5-year-olds to help clean up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n One group was asked, \u201cCan you help clean?\u201d The other was asked, \u201cCan you be a helper and clean up?\u201d The kids who were asked if they wanted to be a \u201chelper\u201d were 30% more likely to want to clean the classroom. The children weren\u2019t interested in cleaning but wanted to be known as \u201chelpers.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Berger calls the reframing of the question as turning actions into identities.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt comes down to the difference between actions and identities. We all want to see ourselves as smart and competent and intelligent in a variety of different things,\u201d Berger told Big Think. <\/a>\u201cBut rather than describing someone as hardworking, describing them as a hard worker will make that trait seem more persistent and more likely to last. Rather than asking people to lead more, tell them, \u2018Can you be a leader?\u2019 Rather than asking them to innovate, can you ask them to \u2018Be an innovator\u2019? By turning actions into identities, you can make people a lot more likely to engage in those desired actions.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Berger says that learning to reframe requests to appeal to people\u2019s identities will make you more persuasive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n