Convincing other people to think again isn’t just about making a good argument — it’s about establishing that we have the right motives in doing so. When we concede that someone else has made a good point, we signal that we’re not preachers, prosecutors, or politicians trying to advance an agenda. We’re scientists trying to get to the truth. “Arguments are often far more combative and adversarial than they need to be,” Harish told me. “You should be willing to listen to what someone else is saying and give them a lot of credit for it. It makes you sound like a reasonable person who is taking everything into account.

When you have strong desires to believe something, it is always possible to convince yourself that a decisive argument against one node wasn’t decisive after all, or that you have found a reply to it. Mending and making do can enable one to think a web of belief still holds together, even after a good critic has ripped it to shreds. But the fact that we know reason will not convince everyone is beside the point. Whether an argument is sound or whether it is persuasive are two different questions. It should come as no surprise that good rational arguments often fail to persuade people. The case for reason is not that it is always psychologically efficacious but that it genuinely helps us towards the truth. However, just as you can lead a horse to water but you cannot make it drink, so you can lead a mind to reason but you cannot make it think.

And so when you stand in their presence to speak, about anything, it matters less the reason for gathering, it could be a funeral, a party, a wedding, a meeting etc., your intention is for you to get your audience not only hear what you have to say, but that ultimately they understand, buy into and agree with you.

Given to exaggeration in its feelings, a crowd is only impressed by excessive sentiments. An orator wishing to move a crowd must make an abusive use of violent affirmations. To exaggerate, to affirm, to resort to repetitions, and never to attempt to prove anything by reasoning are methods of argument well known to speakers at public meetings.

… our inherent assumption is that you convince people with rational arguments. But all the data shows that most people are not influenced by rational arguments. They're influenced by social pressure. … That's just the human condition, and we just have to acknowledge it and accept it.

At the end of your venture, you will win some of the people and lose some. As you speak, pay attention to the crowd.There will.be others who will constantly nod their heads in agreement. I like to pick up those and focus my eyes on them, it makes things a bit easier. Basically….this is the essence of public speaking…. I will pause there for now.

We may convince others by our arguements, but we can only persuade them by their own

What convinces is conviction. You simply have to believe in the argument you are advancing; if you don’t, you’re as good as dead. The other person will sense that something isn’t there.

If you wish to enhance your effectiveness as a persuasive speaker — at home, at work, even with friends — attempt to become more expressive in your use of hand movements. [...] Whether you naturally speak with your hands or not, recognize that we communicate our ideas more effectively when we employ our hands.

If you wish to enhance your effectiveness as a persuasive speaker — at home, at work, even with friends — attempt to become more expressive in your use of hand movements. [...] Whether you naturally speak with your hands or not, recognize that we communicate our ideas more effectively when we employ our hands.

I think the most important thing is to instantly give them a sense of who you are and how you feel in that moment. If a speaker is nervous and tells the audience that, people immediately contextualize it and respond accordingly. If a performer is in a good mood or feeling wild and crazy and says so, I’ve found, the crowd will be good at matching that energy. So for me, the rapport is built by a genuineness conveyed as quickly as possible.

A line of reasoning could persuade, but so could a sequence of feelings. Constructing a chain of logic was one thing; building a chain of emotions required a different understanding.

Arguing to hear one's own wonderful voice: I know people who use argument merely to hear their own voices. They are noisemakers. These people seem perfectly secure, but they are enchanted with their words, enthralled with their own wisdom, and they are, to be sure, as boring as popcorn without salt. They have, during the course of their lives, made so much noise and filled the air with so much authoritative banality that they have had no time to form an original thought, nor have they given themselves the opportunity to hear and learn anything from listening to anyone else.

1. Get Attention Immediately Begin Your Talk with an Incident — Example Arouse Suspense State an Arresting Fact Ask for a Show of Hands Promise to Tell the Audience How They can Get Something They Want Use an Exhibit