The Elements of Persuasion

House of Glass

I resolved over New Years to go to at least one network meeting a week. This is more difficult than it sounds. I have a touch of Acrophobia.This makes me want to run away from densely packed rooms filled with people screaming to be heard. But I take my resolutions seriously.

The other night I went to a mixer sponsored by ideablob at a local bar. Ideablob is a site where entrepreneurs are encouraged and rewarded for coming up with great business ideas. The bar gleamed with hard and cool aluminum surfaces. The mirror polished floor glared out at me. Voices bounced off walls and floors to create a modern Tower of Babel. Bodies were so tightly packed and distorted it looked like they had been compressed by the oversized tire of a Texas u-haul.

At first I watched what was happening from the safety of the sidewalk. All I wanted to do was “Go Home” What finally helped me hold my ground and enter the fray was something I heard Ira Glass say. Ira is the creator of This American Life and is a national treasure, as far as storytelling is concerned. When Ira was beginning to write in journalism school his professor gave him the assignment of going to a local high school and interviewing “interesting students” Ira was perplexed and asked the professor how was he to find these students? His professor replied that he should go to the school cafeteria during lunch and simply watch and listen. Ira was instructed to ask himself “Who are the most vital people in this room?”  “Where is the energy coming from?” Once Ira had determined who and what was vital he would go to those people and start asking questions. To his amazement he found that the more he got out of his head and paid attention the better his interviews.

I applied the wise professors advise to the bar situation and not only found interesting people to meet but turned a miserable situation into a blast.

Here are seven steps I use to prepare myself for networking events:
* Before stepping into the room take three slow breaths from your abdomen
* Feel the ground under your feet
* Feel connected to the earth as you move thru the room
* Let go of the voices of judgment in your head
* Watch and listen to the whole room
* Go to the area of greatest vitality
* If you are feeling anxious, tired or unhappy repeat the steps again

Turning Toward The Flaw

When I lived in Japan I studied the Tea Ceremony with Soen Nakagawa Roshi. The tea ceremony is an ancient art and ritual practiced for over a thousand years. Powdered green tea is placed in bowls called chawan. Some bowls are over 400 years old and the great bowls were hand thrown by master potters who spent a lifetime perfecting their art. The tea master ladles hot water into the bowl and vigorously whisks the tea into froth with a bamboo brush. This could be the original Chai latte. As the master hands the tea to each guest he turns the bowl so that a tiny flaw or imperfection in the finish of the bowl is visible to the guest. As the bowls were fired in kilns they developed flaws in their finish. Rather than throwing the bowls away they are revered and valued. The flaws represent the unpredictable forces of nature. These imperfections were most valuable because they pointed to forces beyond human control which mark each bowl as unique.

Jeff Pulver was an extremely shy child. He had trouble going to his friend’s birthday parties and socializing. He spent many years as a lonely kid with few friends. He became a geek and turned to technology to expand his horizons. Yet in the back of his mind he realized that he wasn’t alone. There were others out there feeling lonely and isolated. He was driven to find easy and inexpensive ways to connect people. First Jeff turned his attention to developing an internet phone company. He was one of the founders of Vontage. Now Jeff has turned his attention to helping people come together. He travels around the world sponsoring breakfasts. I went to a recent breakfast in LA and had a blast. Jeff has created a safe place for people to come together and share stories and maybe end up as friends. He uses all the devices of social media such as Twitter and Facebook to let his fans know where he’ll be and what’s next. Jeff has over 5000 friends on Facebook alone. For a shy and lonely kid this ain’t bad. Jeff turned his flaw of shyness into his passion for connecting people.

We’re all flawed. Usually our first response is to turn away with feelings of guilt and shame. Can we take a lesson from the ancient art of tea and realize that our flaws may be the very thing we need to contemplate. Perhaps our flaws are to be seen like a window where the powerful and unpredictable forces of nature help us express our creativity.

KILLING WITH A KISS

If you’ve followed this blog since the WGA strike – boy, that seems a long time ago doesn’t it – you know the deep respect we have for Dave Letterman and the master storytellers behind the Late Show, 

Here is Dave talking about John McCain. It is a prime example of how a small personal story can make a larger political point precisely by remaining small and personal. Done right, it can be devastating.

"I don’t know if I can trust him.” Have you ever seen a shiv slipped between a politician’s ribs with more grace and style? And describing Keith Olberman as “that kid with the really big head” gives it just the right sense of good-natured balance. Masterful.

COOLER HEADS

Like a lot of people who spend way too much time prowling the web I was shocked by this YouTube of folks coming out of a Palin Rally convinced Obama was a terrorist. If that is the take away from a GOP rally something is seriously wrong.

There are plenty of legitimate reasons not to vote for Obama – enough so that I don’t really have to list them here – but him being a “one man terrorist cell” whose “name says it all” is not one of them.

In The Elements of Persuasion Bob and I say:

“Of course, not every story has a happy ending, and there is a very real moral danger in creating villains… Story telling is innate in human beings, but it is in some respects a value-free process. Fortunately, there is a fail safe. Those stories that produce destructive and negative actions tend to cannibalize the people who tell them. They rapidly eliminate themselves from the cultural dialogue…”

But what do we do while we wait for the fever to run its course? Listening to the wise words of our political elders seems a good place to start.

This speech by Republican Jim Leach, formerly the Representative from Iowa’s 2^nd District, fills the bill. It was given at the Dem convention, and is an endorsement of Obama, but that isn’t the point. The point is that it is truly bipartisan.

What I really like about it is that it places the story of this election cycle in the larger context of the Four Great Questions that have been at the heart of every American election from our county’s beginning and lists progressive politicians from both parties who have helped our country move towards achieving our ideals. It would make the kernel for a great High School History class discussion.

Sometimes the real gems from a political convention don’t standout until later. This speech is one of those. To find out more about Jim Leach, click here.

ALASKA NOIR

Sarah Palin is not the only interesting story coming out of Alaska. Ted “Hell No” Stevens is on trial for failing to report “gifts” from “lobbyists.” His is also running for reelection. The DNCC put together this little gem. I don’t like negative ads, but this one is too genre perfect to pass up. If you still have doubt that great political ads are story driven, this 30 sec spot should lay them to rest.

A quick 5-elements analysis: The Passion (irreducible core) of the ad is carried by the opening sound track – a cross between a political thriller and a local news stations investigative reporter theme. It establishes beyond doubt that this will be a crime story. The people in the van are our Heroes (we even see Stevens' house on a video monitor stressing their point of view is our point of view). Stevens is the Antagonist “He thinks he is above the law”. And crucially there is a moment of clear awareness when one “reporter” says disgusted, “And I voted for him.” Finally a transformative tag line “It’s not about Alaska anymore.” This is great stuff.

BTW, if anyone has any great Repub ads I’d love to analyze them. Most of what I’ve seen from the Repubs are tired retreads, but I’m probably missing something. Enlighten me, please.

THE MAYOR FROM MAYBERRY

Great stories always have an inherent symmetry. This is particularly true of those stories written by history.

At the beginning of the Bush Administration in 2002 John DiIulio, who had run President Bush’s Office of Faith Based Initiatives resigned and called Karl Rove’s minions “Mayberry Machiavellis.” For many the name stuck.

But among Mr. Rove’s most useful political skills is his ability to see the branding gems hidden inside many insults. Attack George W’s grammar and miraculously his syntax will become even more tortured. Then Neocon commentators will stress how “down home” and “mainstream” W’s wisdom really is, as if most folks didn’t actually pass the seventh grade and most “ranches” aren’t devoted to growing cattle but to producing an endless supply of scrub brush that needs to be telegenically cut.

So it is to be expected that the Mayberry theme of this White House might lead the Rovian Repubs to choose a down home Mayor from a backwoods little town even smaller than the mythical Mayberry for the role of VP.

And Sarah Palin, who got here training in front of the camera as a local sportscaster for KTUU-TV in Anchorage, is playing it for all it is worth. And more power to her. Her unique speaking style, so easy to imitate and so brilliantly parodied by Tina Fey, is a form of verbal branding that will make sure her 15 minutes of fame won’t run out who ever wins this election.

That her verbal style is a conscious decision – and so worthy of praise – can be seen if you listen to how she responded in debates when she ran for Governor of Alaska. The winks, nods, “aw shucks” and “I’ll get back to yas” just aren’t there.

To see how effective this type of verbal branding can be in building a heroic persona, listen to the Master, Andy Griffith in his classic storytelling routine "What It Was, Was Football." One problem for McCain: If Palin is playing wise and steady Sherrif Andy, who is playing the socially awkward, nervously erratic and occasionally irrationally angry role of Barney Fife?

BIG DOG BARKS

As we prepare to tune in to tonight’s Vice Presidential Debate it's good to remember that the big story news of the campaign this week already happened two days ago down in Florida.. That's when Bill Clinton finally came off the sidelines and delivered as strong stump speech for Obama. A great stump speech, well worth study.

Who ever wins tonight VP psychathon it will really just be more of the same – a struggle between hero and antagonist. Of course each voter gets to choose who is which. It is unlikely that the debate will actually move the story forward. If you are like me, I'm sure you will be sure your hero won. To move forward we have to get to the point of AWARENESS, a simple clear moment of decision when we really know what we need to do to make things right.

On the big screen the classic is the voice of Obi Wan Kanobi telling Luke Skywalker “Trust the Force, Luke” Luke does, and the Republic lives on.

That call to clarity, to making the right decision under pressure is what Clinton’s speech in Florida is all about. And notice how many times he uses the word decision.

Do yourself a favor and listen to it. If you like oratory, if you like listening to a a great storyteller capture the crowd’s imagination about something really important, do yourself a real favor and listen to the whole thing.

The best version I’ve found on the web is from the folks at Crooks and Liars (a great site BTW). Click here to see it. Go on. Click. 

My favorite part? After talking about how the mess we are in is the result of bad decisions not accidents, Clinton adds, “We have a saying in back in Arkansas, “If you find a turtle sitting on top of a fence post, it’s not there by accident.”

MC CAIN SHOULD SAY NO

As I said in the last post both candidates should take a strong NO position on the suggested financial sector bail out for purely story reasons. Lets start with McCain.

Remember, this election is about America choosing its “hero-in-chief” We are looking for someone who can hold their ground in a difficult and dangerous world. In marketing terms it is about having a strong and sustainable brand.

The McCain campaign has been pushing two related brand concepts; 1). McCain is a maverick and 2) McCain “will fight for you”. Saying yes to this bailout seriously erodes both messages.

By definition a maverick does not run with the herd, and that goes double in the middle of a stampede. It looks like that is what Paulson is trying to get going. The Treasury Secretary probably sincerely believes that this is best way to save the situation, or it may just be that this is the way the Bush Whitehouse likes to market its proposals (it does seem eerily similar to how we got into Iraq and passed the Patriot Act) but that is the current administration’s story choice. For McCain to beat the bad rap that he is “McSame” he needs to separate himself from those choices. He needs to stand strong against the biggest special interest in Congress – the Financial Products Industry. If he doesn't his maverick brand is toast.

McCain also needs to say no to protect his only really effective brand slogan “I’ll fight for you.” You can’t go into a fight by giving up before it starts. And you won’t have much leverage to “hold the bad guys accountable” and “make them famous” if you give them a blank check and promise not to ask any hard questions for the next two years, and that is what this bailout does.

So McCain should just say “Thanks but no thanks” to the Treasury Secretary’s proposed 700 Billion dollar “bridge loan to nowhere.” His political survival depends on it.

If you don’t think a tsunami of populist anger is heading our way check out this ad I found on that bastion of socialist skullduggery – Market Watch. BTW last Friday was the 13^th Annual “Speak Like a Pirate Day” so in the spirit of better late than never – ARGHH!

MONEY TALKS

Not all stories are words. Some are told visually, some numerically. The right spreadsheet at the right time can speak volumes.

A headline like the one I woke up to in this Sundays L A Times:

“Bailout to reach $700,000,000,000”

(with every zero in there for emphasis) makes it crystal clear that the Market Meltdown will be sucking up all the story oxygen for a many news cycles to come.

So how can the McCain and Obama campaigns get ahead of the story and roll it into their candidate’s vision of the future? I’m not talking about political spin or partisan posturing. Any hint of that will probably prove fatal. I’m talking about how the candidates can use their points of view – the empathic connection they have been developing for months with the voters - to help us all get a handle on this problem. That’s what heroes do – they bring us together for the common good by giving us a common framework to solve our problems.

How should Obama and McCain do it? Interestingly enough both campaigns should follow the example of Nancy Reagan and “JUST SAY NO!”

The reasons why they should say no are different for each candidate because each candidates story is different but the fact that they should both end up saying the same thing – NO - gives me bipartisan hope.

In the next day or two I’ll go into details on the story implications for each candidates. But to get an overview of the situation I suggest you check out this interview Bill Moyers just did with Kevin Philips. Philips first major work – The Emerging Republican Majority - was done while he was working in the Nixon White house and laid out what became known as the Southern Strategy. Since then his analysis has crisscrossed back and forth over party lines. His book “Wealth and Democracy” is as good a macro analysis of the problems America now faces as I have ever read. In this interview Phillips makes it clear that current financial crisis is a bipartisan problem long in the making, with more than enough mud to go around if we want to start slinging. Hopefully we won’t.

To stay up on breaking news you might want to try out ‘The Big Picture” blogsite if you don’t use it already.

KATRINA WITH CASH

There is a real symmetry between what is happening right now on Wall Street and what happened in the 9^th Ward of New Orleans when Katrina struck. Both that hurricane and the financial down turn we are now in were acts of nature. Hurricane seasons brings nasty storms, and stocks go down as well as up. 

The job of a government agency – FEMA or the SEC – is to make sure that as few people as possible are hurt by the laws of physics. But if you are a committed Neocon and believe that if you can’t have less government you can at least make sure the government you do have will work less well, then the crooks and cronies you have manning the levies and policing the street when the shit inevitably hits the fan will be predictably incompetent. This isn’t a mistake. It is the result of doctrine.

According to Andrew Leonard at “How the World Works” John McCain is trying to get ahead of this story by calling for the firing of SEC head Christopher Cox. Aside from the slight “lets eat our own young” aspect to this, it is a good story move by McCain. A bad move would have been to say Cox was “doing a heck of a job.”

But Cox alone isn’t the real culprit. Over at “The Big Picture” Barry Ritholtz makes it clear that the real decisions that put us in this mess happened in 2004. So it now seems there might actually be a smoking gun here. Unfortunately for McCain if his suggestion to have a 9/11-style investigation of this mess were to actually take it looks like there would be plenty of GOP fingerprints on the pistol. 

If it is all seems too much of a bummer to bare believe me I understand, and so does Jon Stewart.  He’ll put it in perspective.