From the second we were born and our first indignant, demanding cry, long before we begin to talk as a toddler, we use words to get what we want.
We’re programmed to do it. It’s natural. It’s what words are for.
Persuading others to get what we want.
As we get older and our audiences get tougher we instinctively realise the power of certain persuasive words.
Parents are the first audience – like me, you probably pleaded to get a pet, to stay out late, or for more pocket money. Then the audience expands and you want other kids to play with you, teachers to like you. Then the stakes are raised: you apply for your first job as a teenager, you ask that person for a date. We use words to try and get our own way.
“Don’t worry, it’s easy…”… “I’ll prove it to you…” … “I love you.” … “I promise…”
Soon we understand the need to test and edit and hone our words. This hilarious little Irish girl starts off using and reusing and emphasising, please. When that formerly very effective magic word doesn’t work she starts trying to identify objections: “you’re too young“ is countered with what she thinks is the killer argument: “I‘m six.“ When that doesn’t work she goes tactical with peer pressure and discrediting opponents. https://youtu.be/soI0q3CBliE
As adults, the power of the words we choose has an (even) bigger impact on our lives. In speeches, presentations, interviews and meetings with managers, we either inspire or bore. We trigger action or apathy. We boost or derail our carrier.
As a speaker coach, it’s my job to help you be more persuasive as a speaker.
I help people like you choose and combine words into a persuasive story so you can get what you want – with words.
Whether you want to be promoted, to win a pitch, secure a sale – key to that is the right mix of persuasive words.
The journalist turned politician, Churchill understood the power of words and spent decades obsessively picking and combining words – the right sized and right sounding words in the right place. Time starved business leaders and CEOs hire me as a storytelling coach and speaker coach partly because, while they are ridiculously short on time, they still need to make an impact with their words.
Magic words: 10 Persuasive Power Words for Your Speeches
I have a magic list of 15-20 words and phrases – favourite tools of my storytelling trade. Here’s ten of them.
- Easy
- Guarantee
- Health
- Love
- Money
- New
- Proven
- Results
- Safety
- You
They’re not secret words but, used and combined skilfully, they are the most persuasive words in the English language, used in marketing, advertising and public speaking.
It’s what you do with them that counts. I have an underused shiny yellow DeWalt Drill – it doesn’t mean I can build a bookshelf!!
If you are speaking at an important event and you need results but are short on time, why not hire some speaker coaching in the safety of your own space, a proven way of improving your performance and helping you get what you want with words? Let’s chat and see how I can help you? I guarantee I can improve your performance.*
1-2-1 Speaker Coaching
Great leaders are great communicators. That’s not a coincidence. Studies have repeatedly shown that improving your public speaking is the easiest way to stand out in your career. Invest in yourself by gaining confidence in public speaking, developing how you articulate and communicate your ideas and increasing your impact.
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*How many magic words did I use in that paragraph?