Have you ever noticed that some people have an incredible ability to convince their audience and get their ideas across far beyond the average? A speaker whose one word can bring down a round of applause. A super-salesman/woman who achieves outstanding sales figures for a product that, on the face of it, shouldn’t attract many people. A future entrepreneur who raises millions in funding while his project is still at the concept stage. In short, the kind of person who simply gives the impression that the world is at their feet, and that their ideas are worth their weight in gold. So much so, in fact, that they can get others to do things they would never have done on their own. Their secret? It can be summed up in three words: strength of conviction.

That almost magical power that makes your listeners think like you and go your way.

What are convictions?

In general, conviction is defined as anything that the human mind is likely to believe, or more precisely, to admit to be true. In other words, it’s being firmly convinced of something.

In concrete terms, conviction is the mental state of believing that a hypothesis, an idea or a thought is completely in line with reality. This is done uncritically, independently of the facts, and in the absence of certainty attested by the existence of proof.

Moreover, conviction often determines the subject’s commitment. For this reason, we can quickly see that the power of conviction is directly linked to action. In this sense, Charles Sanders Peirce always said that it’s our beliefs that guide our desires and regulate our actions.

WHY IS THE POWER OF CONVICTION ESSENTIAL TO CONVINCING AND PERSUADING?
As mentioned above, the power of conviction is the ability of an individual to speak in a way that attests to the fact that he or she is fully convinced of the truth of his or her words and the importance of his or her ideas. It is this power of conviction that makes a speech persuasive. Quite simply, because to convince others, you yourself have to deeply believe that what you’re offering will benefit the other person. As Anatole France once said: “It is by believing in roses that you make them bloom.”

In fact, no matter how well-prepared your speech and the quality of the arguments you put forward, it will be very difficult to convince and persuade, to influence the opinion of your interlocutor or to make him change his point of view if you yourself are not aware of the issues, the stakes and the purpose of what you are saying. It’s only your power of conviction that will encourage others to take what you say seriously, and above all, to rally to your cause.

To better understand the importance of your power of conviction and its impact on your interlocutor, remember the great leaders. Nelson Mandela, Mao Tse-Tung and Gandhi. It wasn’t their conquering sociability, their winning personality or their ease in dealing with others that enabled them to convince and persuade thousands or even millions of people to join their struggle, but the fact that they had deep-seated confidence in what they believed.

It was this conviction that endeared them to others and gave their message exceptional persuasiveness. In fact, have you ever noticed that when a person is endowed with great power of conviction, his or her message and arguments immediately inspire people to take action?

Convincing: how to increase persuasiveness?

Whether in your professional or personal life, you constantly need to know how to convince and negotiate for things you firmly believe in. Indeed, whatever the reasons, we have to assert ourselves on a daily basis. To get a promotion, persuade others to adhere to our point of view, ask them to follow our recommendations, and so on. Obviously, charisma and poise are necessary components in becoming eloquent. However, the effectiveness of a speech depends above all on the strength of conviction you bring to it. In fact, if you want to be convincing and eloquent when you speak in public, you absolutely must strengthen your power of conviction.

Here are the keys:

SELF-PERSUASION
Remember, the first person you need to convince is yourself! So self-persuasion is the best way to show others that you believe in what you’re saying.

USE NON-VERBAL COMMUNICATION
Non-verbal communication has been shown to be an integral component of persuasiveness. Indeed, convincing an audience depends not only on what you say, but above all on how you say what you have to say. Hence the importance of non-verbal communication in strengthening your power to convince. That’s why it’s essential to take care of your body language:

Facial expression;
Eyes;
Gestures;
Posture;
Intonatio ;
Volume of your voice;
Flow;
Timbre;
Etc…

KNOWING HOW TO ARGUE
Argumentation is an essential skill if you want to show your interviewer that you have mastered your subject to perfection. Indeed, to prove to your interlocutor that you are convinced of the merits of your ideas and that you believe in their potential, you need to know how to argue. A good argument must :

Explain the basics;
State the advantages of your solution or idea;
Demonstrate how it benefits your target audience.

BUILDING CONFIDENCE
Remember, your level of conviction is a function of your self-confidence. So, to become eloquent and strengthen your power of conviction, you absolutely must give the impression that you are in complete control of the situation. Of course, to exude confidence, you need to gain maximum self-confidence.

What methods do you use to increase your persuasiveness?