Words also have a strong bearing on how we remember certain details. For example, in a 1979 study conducted by Elizabeth Loftus, when defendants were asked how fast they were driving when they "smashed" into the other car as opposed to "hit" the other car, much higher speeds were reported. In another study, subjects were asked if they had headaches "frequently" or "occasionally" and how many per week. Those who were interviewed with the word "frequently" reported 2.2 headaches per week, while those interviewed with the word "occasionally" reported only 0.7 per week.

Have you ever noticed those pharmaceutical commercials currently on the air? They portray all these wonderful benefits and use a soothing, sophisticated voice to highlight these benefits. Then, at the end of the commercial, when they have to run through all the negative side effects: vomiting, headache, diarrhea, etc., they read through these negatives quickly using the same pleasant voice! The effect is that negatives are de-emphasized, and we, as viewers, are still left with an overall positive impression.

The term double-speak means replacing an offensive word with a less offensive word to create less sting. Here are some examples of how double-speak has made its way into our society.

Fired -- Let go
Used car -- Pre-owned vehicle
Sex change surgery -- Gender reassignment
Garbage man -- Sanitation engineer
Interrogate -- Interview
Fail -- Not passing
Fatty (beef) -- Marbled (beef)
Final exam -- Celebration of knowledge

Often salespeople, or people in any sort of persuasive situation for that matter, need to either play up or play down the greatness or smallness of certain numbers. When playing up a number, persuaders use this type of language:

*More than three quarters…
*Almost eight out of every ten…
*Better than two out of three…

When playing down a number, they use this type of language:

*Less than half…
*Fewer than two out of three…
*Under three quarters…

You can use positive words to help prospects feel more confident, safe, or happy. You can also use negative words to trigger depression, anxiety, or sadness. When you use positive words, you capture and keep the attention of your listeners on the points you want them to concentrate on. The words you choose to use can mentally keep them on track. For instance, if you want to plant seeds of doubt, you would use negative forms of speech. When we are in a positive mindset, we don't ask as many questions. Positivity puts our mind in a comfortable, more persuadable area. When the negative is triggered, it requires more mental effort and our mind begins to search for incongruities or weaknesses in the argument.

Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich published a guidebook called Language: A Key Mechanism of Control.3 In it, he advised Republicans to use positive governing words for themselves and negative words for their opponents. This pamphlet encouraged them to use the words "common sense, courage, dream, duty, empowerment, fair, family, and freedom" when talking about Republican ideals. He then advised them to use the following words to talk about their Democratic opponents and their position: "betray, bizarre, cheat, collapse, corruption, crisis, destroy, devour, and disgrace."

APPLICATION QUESTIONS

What words are you using that cause a negative reaction in your prospects mind?

What words can you use to trigger more pain in your presentation?