By: R. Michael Brown, AI Operator-Biz Consultant | Fractional Writer, Multimedia Producer, Marketing & Communication | Executive Communication | University Teacher and Coach
You’ve been persuading folks your entire life… probably without even knowing it.
- That excited text message you sent.
- The video you posted.
- That presentation you delivered last quarter.
Every one of them nudged someone’s beliefs or behaviors in some direction. As communication scholar Andrea Lunsford famously said, “Everything’s an argument.”
And once you realize that, you start to see persuasion not as a trick—but as a skill you’ve been using unconsciously for decades.
This training pulls back the curtain. It reveals how persuasion actually works behind the scenes and gives you a practical, ethical guide for using rhetorical strategies and clear reasoning intentionally—not accidentally.
Why Persuasion Is the Heartbeat of Communication
Whether you’re crafting digital content, pitching an idea, presenting from a stage, or just trying to get your team on the same page, persuasion sits at the center of all meaningful communication.
Aristotle understood this 2,300 years ago when he wrote in Rhetoric that persuasion requires a balance of ethos (credibility), pathos (emotion), and logos (reason). That framework still stands today—and this training builds directly on it.
But before you can apply those tools, you need to understand the mechanics.
Persuasion, simply put, is the act of influencing opinions or behavior through free will. Even giving someone “just the facts” requires them to trust you. The training makes an important distinction:
- Changing opinions = challenging but doable
- Changing behavior = requires stronger emotional pull or repeated exposure
Social psychologist Robert Cialdini—author of Influence—puts it this way: “People don’t change because you tell them to. They change because something in your message resonates.”
Why People Resist Change (and What to Do About It)
Most humans resist change for one simple reason: inertia. Staying the same is easier than moving.
So your job as a communicator isn’t to push—it’s to show the audience what they gain by moving.
The training highlights two major drivers of human persuasion:
- Significant Emotional Events
- Repeated Messages Over Time
In other words: powerful moments or consistent nudges.
To reduce psychological resistance, this training teaches you to:
• Set achievable goals
• Acknowledge opposing viewpoints – remember there are usually more than two sides to a story…
• Sell benefits, not features
• Avoid triggering reactance (that rebellious “don’t tell me what to do” impulse.
How to Structure Messages that Actually Move People
Great persuasion isn’t just what you say—it’s how you organize it – and say it.
This training introduces several proven frameworks, including:
- Problem → Cause → Solution
- Comparative Advantages
- Refuting Objections
- Persuasive Storytelling
But the star of the show is Monroe’s Motivated Sequence—a legendary five-step method created by Purdue professor Alan Monroe:
- Attention
- Need
- Satisfaction
- Visualization
- Action (The Ask)
This formula is used everywhere—from TED Talks to high-converting sales pages and presentations—because it taps into how people naturally make decisions. It’s often the first choice of top copywriters.
Ethical Persuasion: The Line You Should Never Cross
The training stresses this point:
Persuasion without ethics is manipulation.
To stay on the right side, you must:
✔ Build credibility
✔ Use emotion responsibly
✔ Support your claims with real evidence
✔ Choose the right type of claim (fact, conjecture, value, or policy)
✔ Help the audience—not pressure them
As communication ethicist Richard Johannesen once noted: “Ethical persuasion seeks mutual benefit, not personal victory.”
Thinking Critically: Your Shield Against Bad Arguments
The final section dives into critical thinking so you can recognize—and avoid—faulty reasoning.
You’ll learn the difference between:
• Facts (verifiable)
• Inferences (educated interpretations)
• Opinions (value judgments)
And you get trained to spot the most common logical fallacies:
- Ad hominem attacks
- Appeals to false authority
- Appeals to popularity
- Emotional manipulation
- Faulty cause-and-effect
- Hasty generalizations
- Circular reasoning
Once you see these, you can’t unsee them—and your communication becomes infinitely sharper.
The Ultimate Takeaway
Persuasion is more than a skill.
It’s a responsibility.
When you understand your audience, choose your structure wisely, and use ethical rhetorical strategies, you don’t just influence people—you help them make better decisions.
This training gives you the tools to do exactly that.
With intention. With clarity.
And with impact that lasts.
Work With Me
If you want to elevate the way your team communicates, influences, and inspires action, let’s talk. I offer in-depth persuasion training for businesses, organizations, and creative teams—and I’m available as a guest speaker for company events, conferences, and community programs. Bring proven persuasive strategies, powerful storytelling techniques, and ethical influence principles to your audience.
Contact me today to book a session on Calendly or explore customized training for your organization.
Fill out form below to download this FREE introductory training. [62 Slides]
