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About
It is a special kind of persuasion with an incubation period of just seconds. It is a psychological secret weapon that can instantly disarm even the most discerning mind ...
This is the kind of high-wire psychological espionage which, in the right hands, can dismantle any conflict - but which in the wrong hands can kill. It is black-belt mind control. It doesn't just turn the tables, it kicks them over. From the malign but fascinating powers of psychopaths, serial killers and con men to the political genius of Winston Churchill -from Buddhist monks, grandmasters of martial arts, and magicians, to advertisers, salesmen, CEOs and frogs that mug each other -Kevin Dutton's brilliantly original and revelatory book explores what cutting-edge science can teach us about the techniques of persuasion.
Provocative, and ultimately inspiring, Split-Second Persuasion reveals, for the first time, how each of us can learn to be that little bit more influential. Introduction
Chapter 1: The Persuasion Instinct
Chapter 2: Foetal Attraction
Chapter 3: Mind Theft Auto
Chapter 4: Persuasion Grandmasters
Chapter 5: Persuasion by Numbers
Chapter 6: Split-Second Persuasion
Chapter 7: The Psychopath — Natural Born Persuader
Chapter 8: Horizons of Influence
Appendices
Acknowledgements
Picture Credits
Notes
Index
Chapter 1
The Persuasion Instinct
Judge: I find you guilty as charged and hereby sentence you to 72 hours' community service and a fine of £150. You have a choice. You can either pay the full amount within the allotted three-week period or pay £50 less if you settle immediately. Which is it to be?
Pickpocket: I only have £56 on me at the moment, Your Honour. But if you allow me a few moments with the jury, I'd prefer to pay now.
A policeman on traffic duty pulls a motorist over for speeding.
'Give me one good reason why I shouldn't give you a ticket,' he says.
'Well,' says the driver, 'last week my wife ran off with one of you guys. And when I saw your car, I thought you were bringing her back.'
A Spew-rious Tale? 1
In 1938, in Selma, southern Georgia, a physician by the name of Drayton Doherty was summoned to the bedside of a man called Vance Vanders. Six months earlier, in a graveyard in the dead of night, Vanders had bumped into a witch-doctor and the spook had put a curse on him. A week or so later Vanders got a pain in his stomach, and decided to take to his bed. Much to the distress of his family, he'd remained there ever since.
Doherty gave Vanders a thorough examination, and grimly shook his head. It's a mystery, he said, and shut the door behind him. But the next day he was back.
'I tracked down the witch-doctor and lured him back to the graveyard,' he announced. 'When he arrived I jumped on him, pinned him to the ground, and swore that if he didn't tell me the exact nature of the curse he'd put on you, and give me the antidote, I would kill him on the spot.'
Vanders' eyes widened.
'What did he do?' he asked.
'Eventually, after quite a struggle, he relented,' Doherty continued. 'And I must confess that, in all my years in medicine, I've never heard anything like it.
This is the kind of high-wire psychological espionage which, in the right hands, can dismantle any conflict - but which in the wrong hands can kill. It is black-belt mind control. It doesn't just turn the tables, it kicks them over. From the malign but fascinating powers of psychopaths, serial killers and con men to the political genius of Winston Churchill -from Buddhist monks, grandmasters of martial arts, and magicians, to advertisers, salesmen, CEOs and frogs that mug each other -Kevin Dutton's brilliantly original and revelatory book explores what cutting-edge science can teach us about the techniques of persuasion.
Provocative, and ultimately inspiring, Split-Second Persuasion reveals, for the first time, how each of us can learn to be that little bit more influential. Introduction
Chapter 1: The Persuasion Instinct
Chapter 2: Foetal Attraction
Chapter 3: Mind Theft Auto
Chapter 4: Persuasion Grandmasters
Chapter 5: Persuasion by Numbers
Chapter 6: Split-Second Persuasion
Chapter 7: The Psychopath — Natural Born Persuader
Chapter 8: Horizons of Influence
Appendices
Acknowledgements
Picture Credits
Notes
Index
Chapter 1
The Persuasion Instinct
Judge: I find you guilty as charged and hereby sentence you to 72 hours' community service and a fine of £150. You have a choice. You can either pay the full amount within the allotted three-week period or pay £50 less if you settle immediately. Which is it to be?
Pickpocket: I only have £56 on me at the moment, Your Honour. But if you allow me a few moments with the jury, I'd prefer to pay now.
A policeman on traffic duty pulls a motorist over for speeding.
'Give me one good reason why I shouldn't give you a ticket,' he says.
'Well,' says the driver, 'last week my wife ran off with one of you guys. And when I saw your car, I thought you were bringing her back.'
A Spew-rious Tale? 1
In 1938, in Selma, southern Georgia, a physician by the name of Drayton Doherty was summoned to the bedside of a man called Vance Vanders. Six months earlier, in a graveyard in the dead of night, Vanders had bumped into a witch-doctor and the spook had put a curse on him. A week or so later Vanders got a pain in his stomach, and decided to take to his bed. Much to the distress of his family, he'd remained there ever since.
Doherty gave Vanders a thorough examination, and grimly shook his head. It's a mystery, he said, and shut the door behind him. But the next day he was back.
'I tracked down the witch-doctor and lured him back to the graveyard,' he announced. 'When he arrived I jumped on him, pinned him to the ground, and swore that if he didn't tell me the exact nature of the curse he'd put on you, and give me the antidote, I would kill him on the spot.'
Vanders' eyes widened.
'What did he do?' he asked.
'Eventually, after quite a struggle, he relented,' Doherty continued. 'And I must confess that, in all my years in medicine, I've never heard anything like it.