How to Coach Yourself and Others How to Influence, Persuade and Motivate | Page 403

them what to believe; you draw the conclusion for them. Make the call to
action easy for them to follow and simple for them to do.
There should be no doubt in your prospects' minds about exactly what you
want them to do. There is a story of an old man who goes to a dentist
because he has a tooth that is killing him. He has been putting it off for
months and finally he has to get the tooth taken care of. Once there, the
dentist agrees that the tooth needs to come out. The man asks the dentist
how much it will cost. The dentist replies that it will be about $250. The
old man yelps and yells, "$250 to pull out a tooth?!!" Then he asks how
long the procedure will take. He is told it will take about five minutes.
"$250 for five minutes of work? That is highway robbery!" the old man
protests. "How can you live with yourself charging people that kind of
money?" The dentist smiles and says, "If it's the time you are worried
about, I can take as long as you want."
When planning and preparing your call to action, remember that the
process does not have to be long and painful. Be short, brief, and to the
point.
Structure Points
Once the call to action has taken place, your audience needs to remember,
retain, and respond to your message. They have to keep doing what you
want them to do. Have your points been memorable, easy to understand,
and simple to follow? Remember, your message will boil down not to
what you say and do, but to what the other person remembers. The
following critical items must be included in your persuasive presentation.
1. Repetition
The use of repetition is very effective. We have heard that repetition is the
mother of all learning; it is also the mother of effective persuasion.
Repetition creates familiarity toward your ideas, and that leads to a
positive association. When something gets repeated, it gets stuck in your
memory. It improves your comprehension. You need to repeat your
message several times so your audience understands precisely what you
are talking about and comprehends exactly what you want them to do.
You can repeat the message several times without saying the same thing
over and over again. My motto is: When you repeat, repackage how you
say it. Each time you express your point, use new evidence and new
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