Omani author says art of persuasion not inborn, anybody can master it

The skills of persuasion largely cross cultural boundaries, whether in the multi-cultural world of the UAE or in Europe, the US and East Asia.

Have you ever wanted to charm your way into persuading people to do exactly what you want, but aren't quite sure how? One Omani author in the UAE thinks he has the answer.
Muneer Al Busaidi, also a motivational speaker, has recently penned a book titled Power Persuasion - 6 strategies to instantly influence and hypnotise both online and offline which has quickly become an Amazon Kindle bestseller in multiple categories in eight countries, including the US, UK, India, France, Germany and Japan. He's also travelled the world coaching and training clients on the skills of persuasion.
The skills of persuasion, the seven-year expat in the UAE added, largely cross cultural boundaries, whether in the multi-cultural world of the UAE or in Europe, the US and East Asia.
"People are the same throughout the world. We all have brains that operate in the same way. It's human nature to want better things, to move away from danger. These are intrinsic throughout the world. We are all sort of afraid of losing out," he said. "These are universal principles."
"Too many people think that charm, charisma and the ability to influence and persuade are skills that people are born with," he added. "That's not the case."
A former stand-up comedian and door-to-door salesman, Al Busaidi says he first noticed the importance of the power to persuade as a young man.
"When I was growing up, I was very scrawny. I was the awkward kid. I had coke bottles with rims for glasses. If a normal guy put on my glasses, he might see back in time," Al Busaidi recalls jokingly. "Guys would push me around, and girls didn't like me."
"I started reading (about persuasion and influence)" he continued. "Just like a person who loses weight very gradually, the people around that person don't notice until it's really far down the line. When I went to university, all of a sudden I was the most popular guy...I realised that learning this stuff is really good.
"My first job was as a door-to-door salesman. Nobody grows up wanting to knock on doors in English weather for commission. But the people around me were so charismatic and had a system to influence people very quickly. That's how the passion and desire came about."
While Al Busaidi says his programme, which also incorporate elements of hypnosis and euro-linguistic programming, are perhaps most attractive to businessmen, marketing and sales executives hoping to put them to use in a professional setting, and they can be applied anywhere.
"We are all influenced and persuaded every day. While it does relate to sales and negotiation and a number of things like that, at it's core the principles of persuasion are about how to get a person to do anything," he said.
"We are all made to do things on a daily basis, or want to make others do things, whether it's getting someone to come to a dinner party or asking your wives and kids to do something," he added. "There are simpler forms of persuasion, and there are more complex forms of persuasion. These are skills that will help you in your life." 
bernd@khaleejtimes.com
 

• UAE
• Dubai

Bernd Debusmann Jr.

bernd@khaleejtimes.com