How to Coach Yourself and Others How to Influence, Persuade and Motivate | Page 286

Chapter 9
The Rule of Contrast
How to Create Extra Value
Overview
In the long run, men hit only what they aim at. Therefore . . . they had
better aim at something high.
—HENRY DAVID THOREAU
Have you ever taken your car to your mechanic and he tells you that you
might need new brakes, a new transmission, a new fan belt, and that the
timing sounds off? You go away thinking, "Oh man, I'm sunk. I might as
well just buy a new car." Then when you come back, he tells you, "You
just need new brakes." You feel as free as a lark, only having to pay $300
for what could have been a $3,000 repair job. Imagine if he had told you
he thought he could fix it for $50 and the bill ended up being $500. That
is the Rule of Contrast in action.
The Rule of Contrast explains how we are affected when we are
introduced to two vastly different alternatives in succession. We know
that contrasting two alternatives can distort or amplify our perceptions of
things. Generally, if the second item is quite different from the first, we
will tend to see them even more differently than they actually are. As a
Persuader, you can use this contrast to steer your audience toward the
object of your persuasion.
The use of contrast is based on our perception of items or events that
happen one right after the other. If you've had a rotten day because you
found out you're losing your job and you come home to a new scratch on
your car, you will have a vastly different reaction than if you were having
a great day because you're getting a promotion and then came home to the
scratch on your car. It's the same scratch, but there are very different
perceptions and reactions to it, depending on your personal circumstances.
Time can erode your ability to use the Rule of Contrast. The key to this
law is that the two contrasting items must be presented one right after the
other. This has an effect on group meetings and decision making: If in a
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