Hi guys,

I was just reading a bit about this whole “change people’s minds about God” thing, and the best approach is one where the individual becomes responsible for their own change. As with any decision, it’s easier to influence someone to change their own mind, than it is to change it for them!

Here’s a wonderful nugget of logic to test your own mental flexibility…

Just for fun.
This method first requires an acceptance of the axioms of existence,
identity, and consciousness. If the person understands that A is A, at
least is a general sense, they will have trouble countering this
argument with anything.
For the purposes of this argument “O” is the Objectivist, and “R” is
the religious individual. You could substitute the Christian Religion
for any religion I suppose, but I’ll just use Christianity as the example:
O: “Can God do anything?”
R: “no”
Discussion over.
O: “Can God do anything?”
R: “yes”
O: “Can God create a mathematical equation so complex that even He
cannot solve it?” or “Can God create a boulder so large and massive in
size and scope that even He cannot move it?”
It doesn’t matter what the answer to that question is. An answer of
“yes” means that God is not omniscient or omnipotent. An answer of
“no” reveals the same fact.
:)

$D$

David C Lewis, FMM, RFA is the founder of Twin Tier Financial – a financial services company based in upstate NY which specializes in retirement for self employed individuals.

Now I ask myself, was that line of questioning too early for me? (no), was it just right and helped me make a decision based on good reasoning? (yes!) or was I already there (well yes, but I sometimes need a reminder! haha)

I love little chunks of logic like this because they represent not the approach, but the form of the approach. It’s the method that works, not just the specific argument.

For example, this argument presented to a devout religious man will have no effect due to his unyielding faith. However, if the person has been introduced to a train of thought that presented cognitive and verifiable facts leading up the ultimate conclusion that God does not exist (or that their current definition contains a contradiction) then it would be more readily acceptable. Especially if they quite naturally came to the successive conclusions themselves.

It’s simply a matter of presenting the correct question at the right time, and letting the mind of your inquirer do the work. Ultimately, with the correct information, and enough stimulation to change, everyone grows. In my experience it’s the emotional response to some kind of dissatisfaction that has the best effect. (It’s similar to a sales industry approach: looking for a clients problem, stimulating an emotional response to the situation, and relieving it with a product solution)

It’s a liberating thought, and I personally find freedom in the knowledge that people around me posses great value to me as free thinking individuals along their own path of self discovery. Yes, some progress slower than others, some go backwards at times. But their desire to solve their problems is somewhat innate, whatever path they choose. It’s there in all of us.

The question is who to invest your time with? Who is best exploited for their current beliefs (yes, I said exploit! – it’s logical and rational but not within the scope of this post), and who is best to invest in for future growth. Indeed, who should one avoid completely?

I think Neo-Tech published their “silver bullets” but I never read them. Maybe it’s one of their projects that went on the back burner and never came out. I’m not sure (but if anybody has a copy I’d be very interested in getting my hands on it!). These silver bullets were most likely individual arguments or approaches, somewhat like a script based upon sound rational concepts and demonstrable ideas. Similar to the 114 advantages. (if you haven’t read them, go and read them now: http://www.neo-tech.com/advantages/

These would be gold in my opinion. Somewhat like a futuristic “cheat sheet” for how to handle any situation. Absolute gold. BUT, better than that is the ability to create your own. How to disassemble any situation to it’s basic elements, understand how it works, put it back together, view it in it’s widest context and take action to position yourself for your desired outcome. Scripts are great, but the method behind the script is better. He who remains the most flexible in their approach gains more options to influence others (and the world).

Chris West
ProfessionalSales.com.au

Filed under: Professional Sales Tips

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