Copyright (c) 2010 Nick Clipton

Hypnosis isn't really all that it's cracked up to be. It doesn't really happen the way it does in the movies where a mustached villain swings a shiny pendant in front of an unwitting victim and he forces them to do what he wants when they fall into a deep, hypnotic trance.

Hypnosis is something that happens to you everyday, at varying levels. For example, have you noticed that you can usually do to things at once, while not really bothering to think about how one action gets accomplished while you are doing another? You've been able to program your brain to do one task like brushing your teeth, while doing another, like listening to the radio and humming along. Or, you can easily fry an egg and toast bread while making coffee and talking to your spouse. While concentrating on a conversation, the rest of your body is on auto pilot.

Just like you've been able to program yourself, you can, with practice, swing another person's train of thought to agree with yours. While it's politely called the powers of persuasion, it's also known by another name, conversational hypnosis. It just means that you bypassed a person's rational part of the brain and got their subconscious to agree with you.

If you've heard of a person being described as a "smooth talker" it's most likely that they are practicing conversational hypnosis. Well, you can, too. While it's not 100% foolproof, you can at least sway people to your way of thinking more often than not.

First of all, acknowledge the speaker. Not necessarily what he says but the fact that he said something would actually be enough. A "Yes, I hear what you're saying ..." is often enough.

Once you're acknowledged them, insert your point of view. It would be easier to add it in if you make use of the word "and" instead of "but" or "however" which give off a controversial feeling and set their subconscious mind on alert for an argument.

Tacking on an "and, I think we can solve the problem this way" to your previous sentence appeals to their subconscious, which would be more likely to agree with you. Then, end your point with a short question that starts them on a mild hypnotic trance, "How would you feel if doing this certain thing would help solve the problem?" You've just turned the movie projector in their subconscious on!