How to Use ‘The Lynyrd Skynyrd Rule’ to Accelerate Your Persuasive Power!

Now, singer Lynyrd Skynyrd did not originate this rule, but he did say, "Gimme three steps, gimme three steps mister, gimme three steps toward the door!"

The rule has been pervasive throughout your experience. You probably recognize most of these "three steps":

• “The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly”
• “Faith, Hope, and Charity”
• “Stop, Look, and Listen”
• “Earth, Wind, and Fire”
• “Larry, Curly, and Moe”
• “I have nothing to offer but Blood, Sweat, and Tears”
• “Duty, Honor and Country”
• “Three Little Pigs”
• “Three Blind Mice”
• “The Three Musketeers”
• “Shake, Rattle, and Roll”
• “Today, Tomorrow, and Always”
• “Mind, Body, and Spirit”
• “I Came, I Saw, I Conquered”
• “Get Ready, Get Set, Go!”

The rule is officially called the “Rule of Three.” Some think that the basis of the rule is that we have been preconditioned, since childhood, to think in threes. Some say that the cadence associated with three things is compelling. Others say that it is easy for humans to remember three things.

Here’s how it’s used in negotiation strategy: “Aim Big, Be Patient, Concede Small”

Here’s how it’s used to diagnose colic in infants: “A baby that cries for three or more hours per day, at least three times per week, within a three month period.”

Here’s how it’s used as a humor technique: Humorist John Kinde’s answering machine: “Sorry I can’t personally answer the phone. I’m either motivating thousands of people at a convention, appearing on the Oprah show…or taking a nap. Please leave a message and I’ll return the call when I wake up.”

The most common explanation, from people who make their living in a communications field, is that they really don’t know why it works but it does work! It is a compelling technique that you can use to improve your persuasive power.

Here are two of the ways you can use this rule.

IMPROMPTU SPEAKING

Impromptu speaking occurs when you are asked to address a group or give a presentation without a lot of advance notice. The good news is that typically we are asked to speak about a topic within our experience range or our knowledge range. The bad news is that we start to feel some tension because of a lack of preparation.

The Rule of Three is a handy tool that accomplishes two goals for you. First, it helps you to organize what you know quickly. In other words, it gives you “hangars” upon which to put your knowledge and experience. Secondly, the Rule of Three gives you a clear direction in your speech or presentation, which tends to decrease tension.

Here is a 3-step process for impromptu speaking (that uses the rule of three within the process!).

1. How will I open? The quickest way to open an impromptu speech is to develop 3 arousing questions around the topic area. These are open questions that cannot be answered yes or no.

• How...
• What...
• When...
• Where...
• Which...
• Who...
• Why...

These are rhetorical questions that have the tendency to engage your audience right from the start.

Here’s an example. Let’s say that you are asked to speak on “Making a Career Change”. You were asked because you are an HR Director and you have some credibility.

You could start this way:

"What are the key steps in making a career change?"

"What are the pitfalls of a career change?"

"Who should you talk to during the process?"

Two hints. First, let the audience know gracefully that you are not asking for answers. For example, “Here are three questions to think about as we start today.” Secondly, PAUSE a few moments, after each question, to allow them to sink in.

2. Once again, use the Rule of Three to organize your thoughts in the body of the presentation. For example, here are some ways to organize your material quickly:

• Past, Present, Future
• Problem, Solution, Action
• Situation, Problem, Solution
• Problem, Idea, Positive Results
• Take each question in your opening and answer it.

3. Close your presentation by summarizing your key ideas

It’s important to remember that we are talking about impromptu speaking. The goal is to quickly organize your thoughts to avoid giving a rambling presentation.

To give a compelling presentation, visit www.fswiatek.com and click on the icon for FIBER-MATIC Speaking.

PERSUASIVE SPEAKING

You can use this rule to be more compelling in persuasive speaking. When you are speaking to convince, you are using reasons for your point of view. Better than that, you are using the benefits of your proposal to sell your idea, your product, or your service.

When you give three reasons for your point of view it tends to have more credibility than just giving one or two reasons.

Let’s say that you want to convince your manager of a change in your department. You could say, “If we implement this change, it will reduce cost, it will increase productivity, and most importantly, it will increase the morale level of our staff.”

It’s hard not to pay attention when you have three strong, credible benefits for a proposition.

 

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