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Blink 3 of 8 - The 5 AM Club
by Robin Sharma
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The Small BIG summary
Steve J. Martin, Noah J. Goldstein and Robert B. Cialdini
Small Changes that Spark Big Influence
16 mins
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The Small BIG
Summary of 8 key ideas
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Key idea 1 of 8
A few small changes in persuasion can have a big impact in getting people to commit.
Did you know that some simple, small changes can significantly alter how persuasive a message is?
More than a crafty tactic, persuasion is important, and lack of it can have costly consequences. For example, as a society, we lose a lot of money when we don’t fulfill our commitments. So persuading others to fulfill their commitments can be very beneficial.
One industry which suffers as a result of lack of commitment is health-care. A popular phrase in healthcare is DNA, standing for “Did Not Attend.” This is when we schedule an appointment but don’t show up. In the UK alone, the problem of DNA has accounted for a £800 million loss.
Governments and organizations are responsible for collecting funds in a prompt manner. Yet, due to late or absent payments, governments, organizations and customers alike are all charged fees.
Fortunately, even slight changes in the approach can have a surprisingly large effect.
You might think that if we were to offer people detailed information and a rational explanation on the subject, it would change their behavior. Take turning off the lights in an office, for example: a common approach is to give your co-workers reasons why it’s important to switch them off, such as cost efficiency and environmental friendliness.
But persuasion science studies tell us that these rational methods are likely to fail.
There is a better way to get workers to switch off their lights. It’s a small change that has a big effect: put a garbage bin under the light switch. This way, workers will be predisposed to flip the light switch as they throw out their waste when they leave the office.
This is just one of the small bigs that can effect people’s behavior.
As the rest of the blinks will show, these small bigs can also solve the aforementioned DNA problem and much more.
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What is The Small BIG about?
The Small BIG offers 52 examples on how minor changes in your behavior can make you more confident and successful when it comes to negotiating with and persuading others. Those who read this book will be able to draw value from the examples and make significant improvements to their persuasion style.
Best quote from The Small BIG
… Strategies that simply attempt to inform people into making a change carry a high likelihood of failure.
—Steve J. Martin, Noah J. Goldstein and Robert B. Cialdini
Who should read The Small BIG?
- Anyone who manages individuals or teams
- Anyone with children
- Anyone who wants to improve his or her persuasiveness
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