Publisher's Synopsis
Scott Adams, the world-famous comic strip artist (Dilbert) and trained hypnotist,
recognized Donald Trump's powers of persuasion before nearly anyone else. Now
he's expanding his controversial blog posts into a fascinating book about master
persuaders like Trump, and how anyone can copy their techniques--for good or for ill.
Soon after Donald Trump declared his presidential candidacy, when most
experts dismissed him as a joke who'd be gone before Iowa Scott Adams called
Trump a master communicator in the same league as Abraham Lincoln and Steve
Jobs. As a student of the art and science of persuasion, Adams recognized
Trump's deep toolbox for persuasion. On his popular blog, Adams predicted that
Trump could go all the way. The public response was ridicule, scorn, and even
calls to boycott Dilbert. But ultimately, Adams was right and his critics were wrong.
So what did Adams see that the pundits missed? The short answer is the power of
irrationality. We humans like to think of ourselves as rational beings, but we
overwhelmingly make decisions on gut instinct, then invent reasons to justify
those decisions after the fact. Emotional persuasion works despite a leader's flaws,
missteps, and tacky behavior. It can overcome all appeals to logic and even
self-interest.
In his new book, Adams goes beyond politics to look at persuasion tools that can
work in any setting. He explains the secret tricks of the world's greatest
persuaders, giving readers what he calls "access to the admin passwords for
human beings." You'll learn, for instance, how to...
Create linguistic kills shots ("Low-energy Jeb"!) with unexpected vocabulary and
sticky imagery to refuel confirmation bias
Use the High Ground Maneuver--a successful tactic of Steve Jobs during
publicity flare-ups--to win almost any debate
Spot the tells for cognitive dissonance so you know when others have
abandoned reason
Written in the clever but relatable voice that his fans love, this is a must
read if you care about persuading others in any field--or if you just want to
resist the tactics of emotional persuasion when used on you.
