Never Act Predictably

There exists an understanding among con men, comedians, stage magicians and mind control experts that comes down to a simple axiom.

"Now one can defend against what they can cannot predict."

This is how comedians make you laugh. They allow you to assume one thing and then shock you into laughter with another.

Con men come out of the blue, never telling their mark that they are going to con them and steal their money.

Stage magicians use misdirection that causes their audience to assume one thing while something else entirely is taking place.

Guerilla War of Minds

Mind Control, the covert attempt to influencing others thoughts, is no different. You are required to create a context where the subject will naturally assume what you want them to without ever having to say it overtly. So something that seems to come "out of the blue" can be of great benefit.

There are two benefits to this strategy. First, it will aid the subject to draw their own conclusion. Second, it will stop them from making their usual assumptions and create what is called in NLP a "pattern interrupt".

Pattern Interrupt

Think about all the things that you do that are habitual, a handshake, opening a door, reacting to something pleasant or disturbing. All these are patterns engrained deeply into thought and behavior. When they are interrupted the usual thought process stops. For example you reach to open a door and it's actually locked. Or when you extend your right hand to offer a handshake and the person reaches with his left hand to complete the handshake.

In each of these cases we are brought from our usual pattern to one that does not match our expectations.

Creating Mystery

Doing this well on a regular basis in various subtle and not- so-subtle ways will elicit several types of responses from people. The most general response is that they will separate you from the norm of people that they experience, but that happens with crazy and annoying people all the time. The key here is to do it in a way that envelops you in a sense of mystery. Having that sense of mystery combined with a supreme sense of confidence creates a unique attraction from those you wish to effect. Think about it, there is something mysterious and comforting about you. That's a nice combination.

How do you do that?

* Work outside others experience. You can do this alluding to things that you know but that are secret. Saying with a kind smile "I don't think I know you well enough." will create the proper patter interrupt and make them more open to you.

* Unfold the extraordinary from the ordinary. Describe ordinary things as if there is something much deeper within them. An ash tray can be symbolism for how we burn away the things that don't help us. A doorway represent stepping into a new awareness. A room can represent a special place with the mind where we hold our deeper thoughts.

* Act crazy. This should be done infrequently but can have a dramatic effect if the person has a strong rapport with and you set the context of your "craziness" as being very personal and serious. When the "craziness" is complete act as if nothing happened. This may risk shocking the person into fear or bind them closer to you in trust so caution must be taken.

* Keep moving. Don't rest on your laurels. Continue to think of subtle ways to interrupt peoples consistent more thinking. Humor will be one of your best allies here because itis the most socially acceptable form of pattern interrupt.

The best way to "rise above" in this manner is to present everything that usual to their experience and nothing that is ordinarily.

"Mouth to Mouth" a cult perspective: a Movie Review

As a person interested in "group influence" it would be well worth anyones while to rent/buy the movie "Mouth to Mouth".

Based on the directors brief experience in Europe as part of cult the story centers around Sherry, a young runaway meets the radical street collective SPARK - Street People Armed with Radical Knowledge - while she is living on the streets of Europe. She travels through the continent in the SPARK van, recruiting members from street gangs and disenfranchised youth at raves and town squares and experiencing the group's giddy thrills as well as its punishing manipulations. Searching for a place to belong where she can still be herself, Sherry thinks she has found this in SPARK, but when her mother comes to find her, Sherry discovers that she must pay a heavy personal price for rebellion. Director, Alison Murray combines drama, suspense and choreographed movement in an intense, stylish and provocative look at youth culture, the struggles of parenthood, and the dark side of nonconformity.

What one can learn about "group influence" from this film is how easy it is to influence people when you offer them a sense of community and a little hope and encouragement.

The formula becomes very clear.
1) treat them as your friend and show interest in them as a person.

2) Act like you know what you're talking about.

3) Give them the idea that they are part of something bigger, a cause.

4) Enforce obedience to the group cause.

You can also learn how easy it is for a group leader to abuse the power that is given him.

All the characters in this movie have SOMETHING in them that we can empathize with, even the abusive cult leader.