Small changes that spark big influence

        Every now and then, it’s worth going back to the ground rules of influence laid out over 30 years ago by Robert Cialdini. His six universal principles of persuasion, first outlined in his book ‘Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion’ are:

1. reciprocity – people feel obliged to return favours performed for them;
2. authority – people look to experts to show them the way;
3. scarcity – the less available the resource, the more people want it
4. liking – the more that people like others, the more they want to say yes to them
5. consistency – people want to act consistently with their values
6. social proof – people look to what others do in order to guide their own behaviour

       His latest book, written with co-authors is called 'The small BIG: Small Changes that Spark Big Influence', and it's well worth a read. Focused on a 'nudge-style' list of little things you can do, there are many examples such as:

       "...When it comes to weight loss, should your goal be 1-3 pounds weight loss or exactly 2 pounds? Which one would keep you committed?"

The research shows that a flexible goal achieves better results and has better long term engagement… he explains how and why!