#091: Try These 8 "Magic Words"

I'm not sure if this episode is for you, but have you ever struggled to pitch something to someone without coming off as pushy or salesy? Today, I share a powerful eight-word phrase that can deliver huge results in business and life. 

(And by the way, I just used the phrase in the very first sentence!)

This insight comes from the Phil M. Jones' book, "Exactly What To Say: The Magic Words For Influence and Impact".

All episodes in the series
#091 - "I'm not sure if it's for you but"
#098 - "How open minded are you?"
#105 - "What do you know?"
#112 - "How would you feel if"
#119 - "Just imagine"

Here are some key takeaways from the episode:

• Magic Words, as Jones describes them, are sets of words that talk straight to the subconscious brain.
• The eight-word phrase "I'm not sure if it's for you, but..." is a rejection-free approach that lessens the pressure on the listener.
• The word "but" is the real magic word in this phrase, as it grabs the listener's attention and makes them focus on what comes after.

Tune in and learn how to use this powerful phrase in your own life and business.

"Exactly What To Say" by Phil M. Jones on Amazon

As always, thanks for listening!

You can find me here:

WEBSITE:  https://www.thorchallgren.com
IG: https://www.instagram.com/thorchallgren

You can find me here:

WEBSITE: https://www.thorchallgren.com
IG: https://www.instagram.com/thorchallgren

Transcript

Welcome to Every Day A New Thought. I'm Thor Challgren. I'm not sure if it's for you, But in this episode, I'm going to share a simple eight word phrase that can deliver huge results in business and life. 

You want to know more? 

Well, today I'm going to share some insights from one of my favorite books on speaking. It's written by Phil M. Jones, and it's called "Exactly What To Say: The Magic Words For Influence and Impact". It's a great book, very short read less than 150 pages, very actionable. I think I first found this book from Pat Flynn who referred to it. At any rate, I love this book. 

And in the book, Jones talks about what he calls this whole list of magic words. And I think what I want to do is periodically share some of my insights and how I've used it. On the Saturday episodes of Everyday a new thought. Magic Words, as Jones describes them are sets of words that talk straight to the subconscious brain. 

As Jones says, the subconscious handles things automatically, without having to evaluate them, it moves quickly and decisively. It gives yes and no answers and not maybes or equivocations. So when you're able to move to that part of the brain, you get a yes and no answer. There are no maybes. So that's one of the reasons why he says it's so powerful to be able to use words that speak to the person's subconscious in that way. The first set of words is sure I'm going to describe today are these. I'm not sure if it's for you, but it's just eight words. 

And I, you probably heard I use them at the top of the show when I said I'm not sure if this is for you. But so here's how it works, you would say something along these lines. 

And I'll give you an example. "I'm not sure if it's for you. But would you happen to know someone who might be interested in..." and then you'll add, like whatever product service idea or whatever it is, you're trying to communicate to that person? 

So for example, you might say, "I'm not sure if it's for you. But would you happen to know someone who might be interested in this particular skincare product." 

The way that it works is that when someone hears that, one of two things can happen. Either they lean in, and they say, Well, maybe it is for me, and they become interested. Or they may say, You know what, I'll think about it. But either way, you've pitched something to them, and they've leaned in, or they've at least considered it. 

Note also that in that example, you probably felt no pressure, it's kind of a rejection free approach. You're already telling this person this, my item may not be for them. So it lessens the pressure on you. Energetically, what you're doing is you're acknowledging, hey, this is for some people, but not others. So like a good Buddhist, you're unattached to the outcome. I don't care whether this is for you or not, I'm just presenting something and then you decide what you want to do with it. 

Jones also notes that the real magic word in this sentence is the word that comes at the very end, the BUT. When you say, I'm not sure if this is for you, but and here's why that word is so important. He says you know that we're conditioned, that when we hear the word, but we listen to what comes next, you probably have heard something along the lines of sentences like this, where someone says, "You did a great job, the team really responded to you, but..." and we know that whatever comes after the but is really what the person wanted to say. So when we hear that word, we begin to focus. So you you are hearing everything that comes after the word but so in the same way, when you say that, now they're going to listen to what you say after the word but and that's how this phrase works on your mind. 

So here's some other examples of how you may use this. You could say, "I'm not sure if it's for you but we're getting together this weekend. And you're welcome to join in." "I'm not sure if it's for you but we have a group retreat in August and a lot of cool people are going." "I'm not sure if it's for you but we have a new class beginning next month. And we have limited space." 

So the takeaway from this is look at your own life and your business and ask, are there one or two ways that you could use this phrase? I'm not sure if this is for you, but thanks for listening today. If you enjoyed this episode, please hit follow so that you'll receive new episodes daily. Until tomorrow. Thank you so much for listening.