Persuasion

[wufwugy]

This just in: Trump is more charismatic than his rivals, and that counts for a whole lot. Red pill/game blogs have been writing about this since before Scott Adams was (if you'd like further reading).

I was just thinking that I would.

I'm considering buying Adams' How to Fail. I would probably prefer online sources for stuff though, as I tend to read blogs far more often than full length prose.

Persuasion has typically been a topic I've avoided, perhaps because I dislike the implications of the concept. My feeling is probably twofold: first, I feel that if somebody can be intellectually persuaded by a non-intellectual presentation, then it implies intellectual weakness. Second, I have a fear that using persuasion tactics turns people into things I don't want to be. An illustration of this is in how most people view Donald Trump. He seems totally vapid. He gets asked questions where some are looking for substantive answers, and he just keeps saying "Build a wall! China is killing us!" And I'm left thinking "Is this a legitimately stupid person?". This goes beyond the idea that he's just staying on message and instead into the territory where it looks like the depth of his intellect is tween girl cranky grandfather dudebro.

When I step back a little bit, I get a suspicion that his behavior may only be a front, and that perhaps he's not like that in personable or intellectual situations. But my fear is that persuasion tactics are so close to falsehoods that engagement in them enough can turn a person into somebody who believes falsehoods. If to be charismatic like Trump, you have to be a clown all the time, don't sign me up.

Anyways, I'm open to learning about this stuff. I've identified a handful of habits I have that bring worse results than I would like, and they're all things that are said to be affected by persuasion tactics.