People are sharing “cool psychology tricks” and you’re going to want to try some of these out immediately

Over on Reddit, sneakyboii is asking “What are the coolest psychology tricks that you know or have used?”

We’ve dug through the hundreds of answers and these are the 16 very best, make sure you try some of them out and become an evil-arch manipulator like ol’ Mandrake the Magician in the photo.

1. How to not upset clients

If you work with clients, prevent them from getting defensive and angry by not using the word “you”.

It’s not “you didn’t send the attachment”, it’s “the attachment didn’t send”. Don’t blame them, blame the thing you’re talking about.

I take my time when I write emails to clients because I like to word things *just* right…one word can be the difference between a happy client and an unhappy one. The right words in the right order can influence people to make decisions you want them to make. Words are powerful.
–athaliah

2. How to get children to behave

Best one for kids, and this works wonders for behavioral problems. You never say “don’t do x.” I had a terror child in daycare and people would yell at him for acting out. I would start each day by saying “You’re going to be a good boy today!” And every time he acted out I would say “wait, you’re my good boy right?” He would say yes and stop doing it. When his mom came to get him I made a point to of telling her how good he was. That child never acted out around me after a week.
–myBisL2

3. How to take objects from people without them noticing

If someone is talking or preoccupied, you can hold out your hand and they’ll give you whatever they’re holding. I did it to my sister with the car keys and made her think she lost them somewhere at the store.
–beccabooha

4. How to make people like you

You want someone you just met to like you? Ask them open-ended questions about themselves. Don’t wait for your turn to speak. Listen, and then ask a follow-up question based on what they said. If you do that a couple of times, that person feels heard and appreciated by you. If they realize they’re doing all the talking, they’ll apologize and ask a question of you. If your answer is short and pivots back into something they said, you have now formed a connection in their mind as a good listener who is interested in what they have to say. People like that a lot.
–faceintheblue

5. How to make people do things with the illusion of choice

Giving students in my elementary class the illusion of choice. If you ask “do you want to start your work?” Or “isn’t it time we got something done?” I modify it to-

“Would you like to do your assignment with a pencil or blue pen?” They are too consumed with this choice that they have forgotten that they didn’t want to do it in the first place.

Also, every recess-

“Did you push jimmy?” “No.”

“Ok umm two people saw you do it, and reported it to me. Are you sure you didn’t?” “In sure.”

Then change it to “can you tell me *why* you pushed him?”

“Well it’s because…”

Gets’em every time
–CrawlingLuliGoGo

6. How to win bargains

My favorite is silently maintaining eye contact when a person is attempted to bargain or convince you of something that you don’t want to do, or don’t believe.

They usually end up negotiating with themselves (which gives you a huge advantage because once that happens, it is pretty much game over).
–ShowMeYourTorts

7. How to make people spend big by giving small

The concept of getting something for free completely derails a person’s critical thinking skills.

My dad was tool distributor and drove a truck to various repair shops selling tools to mechanics.

He got an idea to start selling candy bars on his truck for one dollar. But you would get a free candy bar with every tool purchase.

Almost everyone who asked how much the candy bar was didn’t want to pay a dollar for one, but they would buy a $100 socket set in order to get the candy bar for free.
–graveyardspin

8. How to make horrid people leave you alone

I used the “gray rock” method on my narcissist brother in law.

Basically, I made myself so dull and boring and the opposite of drama that he learned to avoid me at all costs. It worked like a charm, and only took 4-5 encounters to take effect.
–Sparkly_alpaca

9. How to cheer up grumpy toddlers

Have a toddler that is in a bad mood? Sit down with them, look them straight in the eye, and say “You’re mad, so don’t laugh.” Just keep repeating it as seriously as you can.

I’ve done it for 15 different cousins over a couple of decades, and by the fifth repetition of “DON’T LAUGH” they are busting a gut and rolling on the floor.

–Nitrostoat

10. How to win an argument by lowering your voice

In an argument speak softly. It forces active listening which leads to active thinking. When they are listening and thinking they are not yelling, arguing, or talking.
–TheR1d3r

11. How to get a raise by flinching at the right time

The Flinch. Whether you’re negotiating a raise, the sale price of a car you want to buy, who does what chores around the house, always flinch visibly at the first and sometimes second offers. The Flinch can be as simple as a small wince, a sigh, or an eyeroll. The Flinch quite often causes people to lowball the initial offer. I learned this from my was-husband and it freaking works. Got my current job at 10% over the max salary because I flinched.
–HyperComa

12. How to calm down someone angry with you

If you want to calm someone down, sympathize with them whilst describing what’s upsetting them in descending orders of magnitude.

I understand why you’re angry

you’re right to be frustrated

This would annoy me too.

As they accept the acknowledgements they want they should also accept the declining emphasis on emotion and become calmer

–Lon-Abel-Kelly

13. How to flatter people (and not be scared to)

Many people (I would say most, maybe almost all) are surprisingly susceptible to flattery and being told what they want to hear. People tend to shy away from this strategy, thinking it will be too obvious and clumsy, but just try it. It’s as if being flattered or hearing people agree with you gives people a rush of pleasurable hormones to the brain.
–zazzlekdazzle

14. How to win rock paper scissors every time

When playing rock, paper, scissors stop right before and ask “without looking, can you tell me what color your shirt is?” and people seem to always pick scissors after. I’ve done it to maybe 20 people and got the same result every time.
–Gr1pp717

15. How to make people like you by letting them do you small favours

To get someone to like you more, ask them to do a favor for you like let you borrow a pencil. Benjamin Franklin was a big proponent of this idea.
–TLaz3

16. How to make people not mind waiting

When you need someone to wait a moment as you hunt for something, or you’re struggling, say “Thank you for your patience” instead of “sorry for the wait”

It subtly strokes their ego and makes them MORE likely to be kind and patient with you, because you’ve already asserted they’re kind and patient people, and denying that would hurt their own self image.

Works with most people, but some are just raging assholes lol.
–daitoshi

Source: Reddit