How To Leverage Sameness And Difference Sorting Strategies For Easy Persuasion
One of the ways we sort thing is by putting them into categories of "sameness" or "difference."
Let's say you go to a new restaurant, let's say an Italian place, that you've never been do before.
Maybe it just opened up, or maybe you discovered it on a roundabout way home from work.
Anyhow, there you sit. You'll automatically go into it with your favorite Italian restaurant in mind.
One thing that the human brain hates is uncertainty. The less uncertainty, the better. So when you walk into a new place or experience, your brain is busily finding references to help you out.
What happens next differs from people to people.
If you sort by "sameness," you'll automatically and unconsciously notice all the things about the new restaurant that are similar to your familiar one.
If you sort by "difference," you'll automatically see everything that's different.
Which is better? It depends.
If sort by sameness, and your date or partner is sorting by differences, it can seem confrontational.
If you're sorting by differences, and you find stuff that's different, but better, but your date or friend or partner or whoever is sorting by differences, but she finds stuff that's worse, you won't have such a good time.
Just understanding that these filters exist can help out a great deal. Instead of just reverting to your automatic "set point," try and consciously ask yourselves these questions next time you're in an unfamiliar environment or situation:
What's similar to stuff I've done before?
What's different than stuff I've done before?
How is this situation better than stuff I've done before?
How might this situation be worse than stuff I've done before (and how can I minimize that)?
Is there anything here that I can learn that might help me later?
When you're persuading others, it can help to take a step back. You can use "sameness" or "difference" both with content, and with structure.
For example, say you're selling a blue sports car to somebody. First, figure out if youre client sees things more "differently" or with sameness.
If they choose by sameness, but they've never bought a sports car before, you can emphasize all the other big purchases they've made in the past that worked out well.
If they choose based on difference, and they already own a blue sports car, you can simply point out all the things that are different about the particular model you are showing them.
The great news is that with just a little bit of mental flexibility, you can easily show how pretty much anything can be thought of as the same as anything else.
You can also show how two things are different, despite how similar they appear.
All you've got to do is understand the criteria, and the sorting strategy, and you're good to go.
Let's say you go to a new restaurant, let's say an Italian place, that you've never been do before.
Maybe it just opened up, or maybe you discovered it on a roundabout way home from work.
Anyhow, there you sit. You'll automatically go into it with your favorite Italian restaurant in mind.
One thing that the human brain hates is uncertainty. The less uncertainty, the better. So when you walk into a new place or experience, your brain is busily finding references to help you out.
What happens next differs from people to people.
If you sort by "sameness," you'll automatically and unconsciously notice all the things about the new restaurant that are similar to your familiar one.
If you sort by "difference," you'll automatically see everything that's different.
Which is better? It depends.
If sort by sameness, and your date or partner is sorting by differences, it can seem confrontational.
If you're sorting by differences, and you find stuff that's different, but better, but your date or friend or partner or whoever is sorting by differences, but she finds stuff that's worse, you won't have such a good time.
Just understanding that these filters exist can help out a great deal. Instead of just reverting to your automatic "set point," try and consciously ask yourselves these questions next time you're in an unfamiliar environment or situation:
What's similar to stuff I've done before?
What's different than stuff I've done before?
How is this situation better than stuff I've done before?
How might this situation be worse than stuff I've done before (and how can I minimize that)?
Is there anything here that I can learn that might help me later?
When you're persuading others, it can help to take a step back. You can use "sameness" or "difference" both with content, and with structure.
For example, say you're selling a blue sports car to somebody. First, figure out if youre client sees things more "differently" or with sameness.
If they choose by sameness, but they've never bought a sports car before, you can emphasize all the other big purchases they've made in the past that worked out well.
If they choose based on difference, and they already own a blue sports car, you can simply point out all the things that are different about the particular model you are showing them.
The great news is that with just a little bit of mental flexibility, you can easily show how pretty much anything can be thought of as the same as anything else.
You can also show how two things are different, despite how similar they appear.
All you've got to do is understand the criteria, and the sorting strategy, and you're good to go.