Authenticity is the key to persuasion

BY CATHERINE HARRIS

When it comes to cynicism, businesspeople get some of the worst press.

Take Gordon Gekko's "greed is good" motto in the movie Wall Street, one of the most cynical business statements ever made.

US communications speaker and author John Marshall Roberts believes cynicism is really only a symptom that something else is missing – inspiration – and he teaches organisations how to give their ideas traction in a cynical world.

Mr Roberts says cynicism should not be confused with scepticism, which he thinks is healthy.

"I think scepticism's great because it helps us filter what we hear, to determine whether or not it's true.

"At the same time, when scepticism becomes entrenched and calcifies emotionally into a clot of mistrust, then it leads to a state in which we no longer trust others and we start gaming for our personal gain, feeling [like] this is just how it is."

Out of that, he says, comes gridlock, an inability to get things done, frustration and "more blame, which leads to more cynicism. I call that the downward social spiral of cynicism".

Mr Roberts was in New Zealand recently to talk to Plunket and the Conservation Department and to give public seminars.

In a nutshell, he believes that the most effective communicators today are those who have recognised that people receive their messages with different filters on, or worldviews. What's more, they are able to convince even cynics that they are authentic.

"What we find is the real game-changer companies and people today in the US and abroad ... are able to access this deeper core of their audiences."

Mr Roberts' thoughts are drawn both from science and the arts, a reflection of his own life. He began his career as a university psychology lecturer but turned to jazz drumming in New York to satisfy his creative needs.

"I really just let go of that intellectual, cerebral, academic, stuffy side and I started to live more from an artist's point of view and I created an artists' community called the Brooklyn Massive in Brooklyn."

This led him to "take a deeper look at what happens when humans communicate and how to create communications that overcome those filters that we have that keep us from really feeling inspired".

Drawing on the theories of another psychologist, ClareW Graves, Mr Roberts believes there are four main worldviews in the developed world.

One common worldview is the "absolutistic" worldview, a black-or-white view which many people would equate with traditional values or religion.

Mr Roberts says this type of person has "a desire to be of service now for future reward" and has core values of discipline, authority and purpose.

"And so if you're communicating with someone who's in that worldview, which a lot of my clients have been – they're socially, environmentally conscious leaders – the first thing I tell them is to make sure that you don't suggest disrespect to their one true authority, because you'll lose their attention right away."

He also suggests they frame their message as "a call to duty".

Dr Graves discovered that people often eventually wanted to break free from this type of morality, leading to a second worldview called "individualistic".

"Think of Donald Trump ... where their core values become those of success, power and affluence. The life purpose or motto for this worldview is `Express self now for what you want, but in a strategic way so as to avoid bringing down the wrath of important others'.

"It's actually a great worldview in some ways because it really is an effective way of getting things done in the world."

However, these people often frustrate those pushing for social change because they do not seem to care about higher causes.

Mr Roberts tells people targeting this group to focus their messages "on pragmatic, measurable results".

"I tell them, don't lead on with the altruism because they're going to shut down. They're going to think you're trying to make them feel guilty."

The third worldview stems from disillusionment with success and affluence.

"The humanistic worldview ... sees that there are many different points of view and their core values become, interestingly enough, empathy, connectedness and community."

These people often get angry at capitalism and fundamentalism and Mr Roberts advises them not to be judgmental.

"They really care and there's a woundedness that they're feeling because the world should be better. They're very idealistic. The problem is that sometimes they're not very pragmatic."

Dr Graves' fourth option is the systemic worldview. Mr Roberts says this is a more pragmatic idealism, with core values of integrity, sustainability and competence, and it exemplifies triple-bottom-line business thinking.

"So what we have now is a 21st- century problem solver who can create real world results. They're not afraid to make money, they ... don't need to judge people who are fundamentalist about their beliefs and they have a heart but at the end of the day they want to get results.

"It's also the kind of thinking that our new President (Barack) Obama does. People have a hard time understanding him and who he is because one day he'll appear like a humanistic pacifist, the next day he'll be a pragmatic guy.

"What it is is he's a systemic thinker, and he has integrity and a desire to be of service but he's willing to take on almost any point of view in order to move the system forward instead of being bogged down in ideology."

In the US, Mr Roberts believes about 25 per cent of the population are absolutists, another 30 per cent are individualistic, 20 per cent are humanistic and just 10 per cent at best are systemic "but these are the innovators".

"This is the Apple Computers, this is the Steve Jobs. These are the people really pushing the envelope and showing that great things can happen."

However, Mr Roberts says the most persuasive message will not work without a ring of authenticity, which is why Mr Obama's campaign worked so well.

"In fact, look at what his message was. His message was overcoming cynicism, right? ... So this tactic works really well, if you mean it."

Several of Mr Roberts' clients are from the sustainability sector, and as the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico worsens, he says New Zealand has a lot to teach the US about an appreciation for nature.

"It's a value here and it's funny, it's like trying to describe water to a fish ... I'm just trying to express to them how clean it is.

"There is a sense of an understanding, that humans and nature aren't separate, there's a valuing of the natural capital.

"There's huge lessons for the United States from New Zealand and one of the things I'd like to do is help continue to build this dialogue and bring the learning that I have had here to the US.

"I think maybe we're ready for that, a little bit more."

John Marshall Roberts' book is Igniting Inspiration: A Persuasion Manual for Visionaries and is published by Book Surge Publishing.

- © Fairfax NZ News