Everyone likes to be able to influence others. You feel accomplished. You view your opinion as something relevant. Decisions of an influential person literally impact the world. Those without a great degree of influence tend to be run over. They tend to be soft spoken. Harsh as it may seem, they account for a lot of those of the suicide population.
Quick sidebar: Can you really have a population of dead people? By definition, population means: the people who inhabit a territory or state. Directly, you can assume that a population can exist. On the other hand, if you assume that to "inhabit" is synonymous to "live" somewhere than one can infer that they can't. Weird, huh? But I digress......................................................................deliberately.
If one wants to decrease their chances of contributing themselves to the oxymoronic suicide death population, then they should strive to be an influential person.
First, you should ask this question: What does it take to be a persuasive person? I've filtered the composition of a persuasive person down to 3 basic skills. One has to have in-depth knowledge on the subject at hand. They've got to have a great degree of charisma. Lastly, they must be aware of the audience they intend to deliver their message to. With these three factors in mind, you'll seldom leave the room without everyone's minds on your words.
Today, I was working with a fraternal Brother of mine, Fred Gray Jr-attourney at law, on a case. One task we were charged with was to find an expert witness who could back our findings in the case. The three previously stated factors were the criteria.
He had to have the knowledge base. As an expert witness, they have to know what they are talking about. Extensive experience in the subject is highly obliged. No one wants someone feeding them malarkey. It gives your contest significant amounts of weight, given you have studied much in the subject. If the trial, has to do with a poker game gone wrong at a Las Vegas casino, the expert witness should be able to tell me what pocket rockets are.
For those of you non-poker players, that’s when you receive a hand with two Aces.
We had a long conversation with the guy. At the end, it felt like we were all pals. This says the man has some type of charisma. This goes a long way in politics and the business world alike. If you can speak well and keep the crowd in enveloped, you are half way there. I know that it’s quite an irritant to endure someone unsure of them self. How can you sway the hearts of the audience if you can't convince yourself that your rhetoric is worth putting an ear to? You can't. I can't be so harsh as to condemn anyone. One of my worst things is an occasional stutter. I was horrible in middle school. I've been told that when I get really bad with it that it seems as though I'm lying. This is a big problem considering I hate when anyone questions my opinion or knowledge on a subject that I hit square on the head. I've learned that it’s not their fault. One step I've made is to slow it down and take thought in what I am about to say. I know it seems redundant but when you get as many thoughts in your head as I do per second, words just spurt out like go-gurt.
That last factor we had to consider was whether he could appeal to the specific class of jurors. No matter how extensive your knowledge base or how well you think you deliver in general, you must always use tact and strategy with respect to those about to receive. If you are about to speak to a kindergarten class, it might serve one well to wear bright colors to appeal to the kids. If you are speaking to a religious crowd, try and tie your message with their morals. The expert witness we chose may not appeal to jurors in the area that the trial was to take place. He was very liberal when they were a more conservative bunch. This can mean quite the difference. In my experience, I know it has. I ran for Mr. Tuskegee, a representative position, and during the campaign there was a pageant held. I failed at appealing to the appropriate crowd. There was a point at which the contestants were to exhibit casual wear. I was the only one wearing jeans and a T-Shirt. This was a bad move. It was clear that the judges were quite old fashioned. We have to be more mindful of the minds of people whose opinion we intend to deter.
Leave with this: be smart, be cool, and be aware. Let's keep that population down.
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