Write a 300-350 word letter reflecting on how you will apply what you learned in the attachments.
novakingwaiBusiness Communication, MGT309
University of North Carolina at Greensboro
How to Create a Persuasive Resume
Writing that Works (2010). Oliu, Brusaw, & Alred
I have an important question for you…How much money is your resume worth? It’s worth what your potential employer will pay for your services. What is your target salary…say it out loud now. For the sake of our virtual environment, let’s say your resume is worth 45K. Think about that….that means your resume, that document is worth 45 thousand dollars. Whew…we have some very important work to do.
Take a moment now, and write down the first job you want to have after you graduate and then write down the job title at the pinnacle of your career.
Register with your school's placement office. Work to keep your resume to one full page. Emphasize information that is relevant to the job you want, is recent (last three years), and shows your superiority to other applicants. Organize to the power positions on the page. Use strong active verbs to start your bullet points. To create a scannable résumé, create a "plain vanilla" text; use keywords. Respond to the employer in the way they ask for the application package. You are being judged on your ability to follow directions. Remove any unprofessional material from your personal Web page, blog, and social networking sites. Always be honest in your résumé.
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Hook, Salting & Emotional Word Pictures
One of my favorite books is Mentored by a Millionaire by Steven Scott. And according to Stephen Scott, there are three components of a persuasive message. The hook, salting and emotional word pictures. Let’s talk about these three items.
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Hook
A great hook successfully takes your mind out of the past or future and hooks you right into the moment and into the conversation. Now I’ve got your attention.
Steven Scott tell this story in his book to help us understand a hook.
Two neighbors were outside in their backyards. One was moving the grass and his wife was in the kitchen fixing lunch. He could smell the hamburgers cooking over the smell of fresh grass. The other was preparing for a fishing trip; he was testing his fishing gear and practicing his casting. In one particular cast, the line and hook went over the fence and hooked the other neighbor, the one moving his grass, in the nose….OUCH. Now, where is his lawnmower…who knows, right, at this moment all he cares about is the hook in his nose. ………….That’s a HOOK. Bring them present…to the moment…to you.
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Salting
Ever heard, “You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink?” Scott says, that you can make him drink.
Just feed him a few oats beforehand and put lots of salt on the oats. Why? Because salt makes you thirsty!
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The purpose of salting is to keep an audience-member’s attention as our attention naturally waxes and wanes. Keep attention by creating curiosity or a creating a feeling of anticipation in the listener.
Emotional Word Pictures
An emotional word picture is a word, a statement, or a story that creates an instant picture in listener’s minds that clarifies what you are trying to say and implants a feeling into their emotions.
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We connect with one another using words. So use words the others best understand (which means you need to understand them aka audience-centeredness). Use words to create pictures and stories. Here’s a list to help you in selecting effective languaging.
Passions, hobbies, interests of the other person
Memorable events or current events
Everyday objects of familiarity to them
Nature images
Imaginary stories
6 Principles of Persuasion
Robert Cialdini wrote Harnessing the Power of Persuasion, for Harvard Business Review, and in the article he detailed 6 principles of persuasion. Let’s talk about these principles so you can apply them to your writing.
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Liking – People like those who like them.
Action: Uncover the real similarities and offer genuine praise.
Win friends
People stand physically closer to one another after learning they shared political beliefs & social values.
Establish the bond early and it will carry you forward.
We are social animals. We want to be liked and we want to like others. Steven Scott calls says the same thing differently – he says we want to love and be loved. This desire of life impacts our decision-making.
Think of how you can language using liking.
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Reciprocity – People repay in kind.
Action: Give what you want to receive.
Smile at someone, watch them smile back.
Managers can elicit the desired behavior from coworkers & employees by displaying it first. Whether it’s a sense of trust, a spirit of cooperation, or a pleasant demeanor, leaders model the behavior they want to see in others.
Another principle is reciprocity. Have you ever been given a Christmas gift and not had a gift to give that person in return. Ugh. That feels bad doesn’t it. That’s reciprocity.
Again, think about how you can employ this component of persuasion.
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Social Proof – People follow the lead of similar others.
Action: Use peer power whenever it’s available.
Social creatures that we are, human beings rely heavily on the people around them for cues on how to think, feel & act.
Persuasion can be extremely effective when it comes from peers.
Again, influence is often best exerted horizontally rather than vertically.
We are social animals. We learn by viewing others and mimic those that we trust and believe to be worthy. Think about the ways in which persuasion is in how we influence those within our in group – those who have credibility with us.
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Consistency – People align with their clear commitments.
Action: Make their commitments active, public & voluntary.
Take a stand and stick to it.
Once spoken out loud or written (made explicit), it’s more powerful.
So be verbal and publicly visible.
We make decisions from our values which are our commitments. Look at others intentions to understand what they care about. What they care about is what they think about.
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Authority – People refer to the experts.
Action: Expose your expertise; don’t assume it’s self-evident.
“Believe an expert.” That may or may not be a good advise, but it’s what we do.
Leaders are to ensure they establish their own expertise before they work to influence.
Display your awards & credentials.
In a social engagement, lightly touch on your experience in a natural way.
People give power to authority, sometimes without question.
Sometimes I show a video in class of a professional-looking boss and a underperforming employee. The video shows two meetings of the two company representatives. The boss is calm cool and collected. The subordinate looses her emotional control and is rude, loud and hostile. She even pulls a no show for a scheduled time with the boss. Ouch. Interesting is when I show this video all the students in class, immediately say ‘fire her, she’s awful.’ I smile and acknowledge her poor behavior. Then, I reshow the video and point out all the communication mistakes buried within the boss’s seemingly professional manner. The audience sees how quickly they gave power to the ‘boss’ without questioning and without even knowing the reasons for communication mistakes.
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