PDF Summary:How Highly Effective People Speak, by Peter Andrei

Effective communication, according to Peter D. Andrei, is more of a science than most people think. Persuasive speech is a complex craft that can be studied and learned, and its strategies can be broken down and used by anyone. In How Highly Effective People Speak, he shares the basic strategies of powerful communication, teaching you how to speak with eloquence and persuasion by tapping into patterns of thinking that affect human behavior and perception.

In our guide, we’ll examine Andrei’s argument that if you understand cognitive biases (how people tend to receive information and make decisions), you can convey your message in the most efficient and effective way possible. To do this, we’ll explore some of the most powerful and influential biases you can use to make your communication more persuasive. Then, we’ll explain Andrei’s strategies and how to practice them, and we’ll compare them to those of other communication experts.

(continued)...

Statistical vs. Anecdotal Evidence

Rhetoricians point out that every argument is based on some kind of evidence, so it’s only natural that people are drawn to arguments that present this evidence explicitly. Though Andrei seems to be pointing to statistical evidence in this section, the use of storytelling to prove a point or back a claim is also a form of evidence, namely anecdotal evidence.

So which form of evidence is more persuasive? A 2020 study tried to answer this question and found that it depends on the emotional weight of the topic or situation. If a claim resonates emotionally (if it involves a serious threat, is health-related, or affects one personally), people are more likely to be persuaded by anecdotal evidence. If the situation doesn’t personally affect someone or trigger strong emotions, they’re more likely to find statistical evidence more persuasive.

An example is the public response to the Covid-19 pandemic, a situation that was threatening, health-related, and personally affected virtually everyone on the planet. Though there were mountains of statistical evidence surrounding the pandemic, many people’s opinions on Covid-19 were impacted most by their personal experience.

Present Social Proof

Another common cognitive bias Andrei points out is our overreliance on the actions and opinions of others to dictate our own. When we rely on social proof, we substitute how others think or behave with how we should think or behave. An ad that claims “nine out of 10 dentists recommend this product” is using social proof, as is a politician who says “80% of Americans support this bill.” Presenting social proof like this will validate your argument in your audience’s eyes.

(Shortform note: In Influence, Robert Cialdini, who coined the term “social proof,” delves further into this cognitive bias. He states that relying on others to dictate thoughts and behaviors generally serves us pretty well—usually, it leads to appropriate decisions and saves us a lot of time and effort. However, this instinct to rely on social proof can lead to harmful consequences, such as when we act on deceptive or manufactured social proof or when the actions of a group go against the standards of the individual. To avoid these negative consequences of social proof, Cialdini recommends taking the time to assess group behavior and to apply individual judgment when necessary.)

The Anchoring Bias

The anchoring bias, also known as the anchoring effect, is the tendency for a person’s decisions to be excessively influenced by an initial reference point, or anchor. For example, when purchasing a new oven, if the first oven you like is priced at $1,200, that price is going to affect your perception for the rest of your shopping experience—when you see a similar oven for $800, it’s going to seem like a great deal even if it isn’t.

The anchoring bias is largely due to our relative perception of the world. We need a point of reference, a way to contextualize information, to understand what anything means. If the salary of a job you’re applying for is $40,000, you can’t do much with this information unless you compare it to what you make now, what the average salary for this particular job is, and the cost of living in your area. Without a point of reference and additional information, the number $40,000 is useless. As Andrei points out, you might be happy with earning $40,000 a year until you learn that someone with the same job is making $50,000.

(Shortform note: The relativity of perception may also be a big factor in our prejudices. As Jennifer Eberhardt explains in Biased, our implicit racial biases, especially anti-black bias in the US, determine how we make decisions and even how we see the world. For example, if you grow up in an environment where you’re only used to interacting with one race, you’re more likely to experience the “other-race effect”—in which you struggle to differentiate between faces of other races. In this case, your perception is relative to the environment you grew up in.)

Anchoring bias is a helpful tool in persuasive speech or writing, but you can also use it to your advantage in all sorts of interactions. Whether you’re a politician persuading someone to vote for you, a new hire trying to negotiate a higher salary, or a salesperson trying to convince someone to buy a product, the anchoring bias can be used to great effect.

(Shortform note: A salary negotiation may seem like the perfect time to use the anchoring bias, but experts suggest otherwise. Some say this is because being the first to inquire about money leaves a bad impression, so trying to be the first to insert an anchor in the negotiation may be off-putting. In What Color is Your Parachute, Richard Nelson Bolles says that, for unknown reasons, whoever mentions a number first in salary negotiations usually loses, which suggests that the anchoring bias isn’t always effective.)

Let’s go over a few specific tactics Andrei suggests.

Use Relevant Anchors to Raise or Lower Expectations

This tactic involves setting an anchor that is directly related to the matter at hand. In its simplest form, this is the most basic negotiation tactic. If you want to buy something cheap, your original offer should be much lower than what you’re willing to pay. If you’re selling something, you start with a much higher price than you’re willing to sell for. This tactic can be used in a variety of subtle ways. For example, if you’re selling a product, you could anchor it with the price of the most expensive comparable product (our competitor charges $120, we only charge $75) or the price before a discount (this originally cost $30, now it’s only $18).

This anchoring tactic can also be used in persuasive speech or writing. Let’s say you’re a mayor running for reelection. You start your speech by pointing out that the average annual economic growth in your city over the past 20 years is 1.4%. Then, you tell your audience that over your last four years as mayor, the annual growth rate has averaged over 3%. Because of the original anchor you set, your 3% will seem a lot more impressive to potential voters and you’ll appear to be a more attractive candidate.

(Shortform note: In Predictably Irrational, Dan Ariely argues that our tendency to use anchors in our lives can lead to a phenomenon known as “self-herding,” which is when you make a decision based on your own past behavior (which serves as the anchor for your future behavior). This can lead you to believe that your current behavior is a personal preference when really it’s just a decision based on past decisions. To avoid self-herding, he recommends asking yourself how a certain preference came to be and if it’s really worth the time and money you’re spending on it.)

Use Irrelevant Anchors to Raise or Lower Expectations

Another way to engage a person’s anchoring bias that Andrei recommends is to set an anchor unrelated to the matter at hand. Let’s say you work at a wine store and want to sell more expensive bottles of wine. Instead of anchoring with a higher original price, you can anchor customers with the price of an irrelevant, but expensive, item. For example, you might casually mention that a previous customer was carrying an $800 handbag. This puts a high dollar amount in the customer’s head, and even though the handbag has nothing to do with what they’re shopping for, they might still be affected by the number and be willing to fork over more money for a bottle of wine.

(Shortform note: Dan Ariely explains that the anchoring bias works even when the prices or figures we use are completely arbitrary. He points to an experiment that found something as random as social security numbers can serve as an anchor for how much one is willing to pay for a good. In the experiment, participants were asked to write the last two digits of their social security number in the form of a price next to specific items and then write what they’d prefer to pay for each item. Those with higher social security numbers were willing to bid higher amounts than those with lower numbers.)

Zero-Risk Bias

Andrei claims that people are irrationally biased toward ideas, products, or circumstances that carry no risk of failure or loss. We’re extremely loss-averse creatures, and we’ll often pay a hefty price to ensure we don’t suffer the pain of losing something, whether it’s our hard-earned money, our precious time, or our health and safety.

(Shortform note: When calculating risk to make decisions, it may be helpful to differentiate between risk and uncertainty. The key difference is that risk is quantifiable (we can reasonably estimate the level of risk) while uncertainty is unknown. Experts point out that people often conflate risk and uncertainty, which can lead to poor decision-making. If you assume that the risk of an occurrence is largely unpredictable, you may fail to take reasonable actions to reduce the chance of it happening. Alternatively, if you try to reduce risk when there isn’t any, you might be wasting time and effort.)

If your proposal, idea, or product is already a risk-free option, you need only emphasize it: State that it’s risk-free, show proof, then reiterate the absence of risk as often as possible. Of course, more likely than not, your idea or product will carry some risk of loss or failure. Here are some of Andrei’s strategies that take advantage of the zero-risk bias even when risk is involved.

Provide Certainty Elsewhere

If the idea you’re proposing has any chance of failure, shift the audience’s attention to a part of it that doesn’t carry any risk. If you’re trying to convince an investor to provide funding to your startup, there’s always a chance that your business will fail and they’ll lose their investment. Nothing you say will remove that risk. Instead, point to a zero-risk aspect of your startup, like the fact that you have a patent for the technology you’re using, so there’s no chance a competitor can copy your product. This will activate the zero-risk bias even if this isn’t a risk the investor had in mind, and even though your plan still carries risk, they’ll be much more inclined to invest in your startup.

(Shortform note: On top of pointing out a zero-risk aspect of your proposal or idea, it may also help to mention the risks as little as possible and instead focus on the benefits. Studies show that when people think about a particular risk more, they’re more afraid of it and are more likely to act on this fear. So even if your proposal carries a very small amount of risk, it may be better to ignore this risk entirely so that the audience doesn’t think about it at all.)

Provide a Loss-Mitigating Guarantee

In the business world, a loss-mitigating guarantee is as simple as offering a full refund for a defective product or underwhelming service. Since you can’t guarantee with 100% certainty that your product or service will deliver value, provide a guarantee that the customer can at least get their money back. Because of zero-risk bias, the extra sales will more than make up for the money you’ll lose by providing refunds.

(Shortform note: Business experts write that while guarantees are common for products, they’re more powerful for services. This is because they provide perceived value to the customer while also ensuring excellent employee performance. When you offer a guarantee for a service such as plumbing, for example, customers will be willing to spend more because they know their issue will be fixed or they’ll get their money back. Employees will also ensure the job is done properly, as a mistake will cost the company money. Further, employees will be more focused on the customers’ definition of good service, which will also improve performance.)

The Halo Effect

The halo effect is the tendency for people to base their overall impression of a person on one observed quality, and Andrei argues you can use this bias to make yourself appear competent and trustworthy to your audience. Essentially, the halo effect is the bias that tells us that good first impressions do matter.

The halo effect is the result of a combination of other cognitive biases, including the primacy effect, attribution substitution, and confirmation bias. When you notice an initial positive quality in a person (primacy effect), you’ll attribute a host of other positive qualities to that person (attribute substitution), and then see small signs that point to those positive qualities as confirmation of your beliefs (confirmation bias).

(Shortform note: Psychologists say that the halo effect comes from two things. Like most biases, the halo effect is a mental shortcut that helps us make easier, quicker judgments. It also helps us avoid cognitive dissonance, or inconsistencies in our beliefs and actions. It’s much easier to say someone or something is all good or all bad than to understand the more nuanced reality, and it can make us very uncomfortable when our original perception is challenged.)

Here are a few of Andrei’s strategies that use the halo effect:

Create an Influential Environment

When it comes to first impressions, context matters. By creating an impressive environment, you can make a good first impression on an audience before you enter a room or utter a word. Book your speech at the most luxurious place you can afford. Give your work presentation in the best conference room available. Make the space you’re communicating in as presentable as possible, and your audience will think you’re a competent and reliable speaker before you begin. If communicating in written form, take the time to make the aesthetic as visually pleasing as you can.

Environment and Situational Status

In Pitch Anything, Oren Klaff explains why creating an influential environment matters. He argues that appearance is a crucial element of perceived status (how others measure your worth and popularity), and your status has a major impact on the success of your speech or presentation. If you have a low perceived status in the eyes of your audience, you have little chance of persuading or influencing them.

Klaff differentiates between two types of status: global and situational. Global is more permanent, indicated by your position or reputation. Situational status can change from moment to moment, however, and might be affected by the environment. If you’re speaking in an impressively decorated room, you might have a higher situational status and thus be more likely to have your audience’s respect and attention.

Demonstrate Consequences Early

At the outset, make clear why your speech matters and the impact it will have on your audience’s lives. If your audience knows early on that what you’re about to say is important, they’ll see you as an important figure, and you’ll command their attention and respect. Conversely, if you don’t show why your speech matters early on, they’ll think you’re unimportant and boring, and you’ll have much less of an impact. Psychological studies confirm that demonstrating consequences early is an effective way to make your communication more compelling and persuasive.

A specific way to do this is to present a positive conditional statement, then a negative conditional statement, then proof—”If you do this, [positive effect] will happen. If you don’t, [negative effect] will occur. This has been shown time and time again by [proof].” The previous paragraph illustrates this technique in action.

(Shortform note: In Get to the Point!, Joel Schwartzberg argues that a common struggle in persuasive communication is the inability to get a clear point across. In order to demonstrate why your speech matters, you need to make sure the point you’re trying to make is as clear and precise as possible. To do this, answer the question, “So what?” after you’ve come up with your initial idea or argument. For example, if your argument is that social media are shortening the attention spans of teenagers, provide the “so what” right after—this will have a major impact on their mental health and productivity in the future. Andrei’s advice to immediately state the consequences of following your recommendation is a practical way to show the “so what.”)

Establish Common Values

Establishing common values with your audience early in your communication is one of the most powerful uses of the halo effect, according to Andrei. When you show you share the same values or beliefs as your audience, you establish a connection. They’ll like you immediately, and this feeling will help the rest of your speech resonate with them even more powerfully.

To employ this strategy, you either need to know your audience and the common values they’d likely share, or use a universally shared value or belief. For example, if you’re writing a grant for an educational program, you could start by sharing your belief that education is one of the most beneficial uses of public funds. If you’re making a speech that you hope appeals to the entire political spectrum, you might start talking about the values of peace and freedom.

(Shortform note: You might also use the halo effect as a way to establish common values without explicitly stating them. In Thank You For Arguing, Jay Heinrichs argues that establishing common values is a form of ethos, or ethical appeal. When you show that you have the same values as the audience, they’ll find you virtuous and trustworthy. But Heinrichs also points out that audiences will find you trustworthy if you look or dress like your audience, and share a story about an experience they’ve also had, you’ll seem virtuous to them, and they might even assume you share their values.)

Contrast Effect Bias

According to Andrei, using the contrast effect in your communication is one of the most useful ways to improve your rhetorical skills. The contrast effect is the tendency to judge things presented closely together or in rapid succession together rather than separately, and it can strengthen or weaken perceived differences and similarities between two or more things. Like the anchoring bias, the contrast effect relies on our inability to judge things without a point of comparison. The contrast effect, however, doesn’t necessarily rely on the initial point of reference as the anchoring bias does. Instead, it’s activated by ongoing comparisons between two things.

For example, you could be presented with two things simultaneously, and this comparison would affect your perception of both of them. If you see a new boat right next to an old, rundown one, the new boat will seem even better than it actually is while the used one will seem even worse.

(Shortform note: One area in which contrast effect bias can negatively impact decision-making is in the hiring process. When hiring out of a pool of candidates, recruiters will naturally compare each candidate to the rest of the pool instead of evaluating each candidate individually. This can result in a weak candidate looking stronger than they should, or it can lead to overlooking someone who’s perfect for the job because they get lost in a sea of other strong applicants. To avoid this, some companies avoid using CVs and instead use work samples, which can more effectively show a candidate’s potential.)

Andrei provides several examples of how you can use the contrast effect in your speech or writing to make it more persuasive.

Use antithesis: Antithesis refers to presenting strongly contrasting or opposite ideas together for dramatic persuasive effect. “Not , but .” Andrei points out that President John F. Kennedy used this strategy to great effect in his famous line, “Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.”

Antithesis and Antimetabole in Kennedy’s Inaugural Address

Andrei points to John F. Kennedy’s famous line from his 1961 inaugural address as an example of antithesis, but the rest of Kennedy’s famous speech is filled with antithesis as well. In the opening, he says, “We observe today not a victory of party but a celebration of freedom.” Later, he says, “We offer not a pledge but a request: that both sides begin anew the quest for peace.” Just after, he says, “Not a new balance of power, but a new world of law.” And he follows up his famous “ask not” line with another: “Ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man.”

Kennedy’s famous “Ask not what you can do” line is also an example of another rhetorical device: antimetabole. Antimetabole is when the words of a sentence are repeated in reverse order, as in, “When the going gets tough, the tough get going.” This symmetrical structure is artistically pleasing and helps the phrase stick in the audience’s mind, which is perhaps one reason that Kennedy’s phrase is so well remembered decades later.

Present and decline other options: To make use of the contrast effect and make your idea seem better by comparison, you need to present other options. If the alternatives you present are obviously inferior to your proposal, you can leave them be. If there is room for debate on which idea is better, you need to settle this debate by showing the benefits of your product or idea or the drawbacks of the alternative. For example, in a sales presentation, you might say, “The [competitor’s product] can do this, while [your product] can do the same thing for half the price.”

(Shortform note: Business experts call this use of the contrast effect a technique of “low-pressure selling,” in which the salesman doesn’t try to coerce a customer into buying something they don’t want but instead lets them make the decision on their own. The contrast effect can be used no matter how similar the competing products are, or even if the product you’re selling is inferior in many ways, because there will almost always be at least one area in which your product is better. Simply pointing out the advantages of your product in an approachable (low-pressure) way can significantly increase your sales.)

Create contrast in the diction: You can use the contrast effect not only in the content of your argument but also in the way you present it. Andrei provides two ways of doing this, both of which involve starting a pattern in your speech or writing and then breaking it to provide persuasive emphasis. For example, speak quickly and loudly for a few sentences then stop, slow down, and speak quietly when emphasizing a point. In writing, you could use a repetitive phrase and then break the pattern for emphasis: “Renewable energy will give us healthier air, healthier water, healthier children, a healthier economy, a healthier planet; oil gives us pollution, greed, and war.”

Pattern-Breaking: How to Use It and Why It’s Effective

In TED Talks, Chris Anderson provides specific advice for how to vary your speech rate. He advises speaking more quickly when telling a story or anecdote because people can easily process information presented in this form. When explaining a theory or concept, slow down, as the audience will need time to fully understand and appreciate what you’re saying.

These pattern-breaking techniques may be effective because of the human brain’s pattern-seeking tendency. Humans are wired to seek and find patterns, and some argue that our superior pattern processing is why we have such a strong capacity for reasoning, communication, and abstract thought. So when you establish a pattern and then break it, an audience will subconsciously notice this abrupt change because they’re hardwired to.