Attorneys use the art of persuasion all the time in depositions and trials. In depositions they want to get the person giving the answers to respond the way the attorney wants them to so they can make a stronger case. From the moment they enter the courtroom they are trying to persuade the jury to agree with their version of what happened. The VVDailyPress based in Victorville Ca. reports that this requires a lot of skill and experience which Supervising Deputy District Attorney Britt Imes definitely has and he lectures other attorneys on his techniques.
The art of persuasion is a tool many attorneys use all the time. Photo Courtesy of VVDaillyPress.com
"He said trial is a process — starting with jury selection, then making an opening statement to summarize the case, presenting witnesses and physical evidence, and concluding with a closing argument to explain why jurors should find the defendant guilty."
“You don’t win or lose a case in the closing argument,” Imes said. Whether it’s a speech or a trial, “it’s how you build a persuasive case as a whole,” he said.
"Just as lawyers can’t win a case with just oratory skills, persuasive presentations need more than dazzling words. They need evidence to prove the point. But usually in trial, the evidence comes in bits and pieces and it’s up to the attorneys to put them together so they make sense to the jurors."
“There are things that are important and there are things that are not,” Imes said. “Where our oratory skills become important is how we weave these ingredients together. To effectively communicate ideas, Imes suggests a few things."
"He said humor makes audiences receptive to what he says. Although he doesn’t tell jokes to jurors during a murder trial, he focuses on making them smile in jury selection."
"He is a big believer in using visual aids to reinforce his speech. Many prosecutors now rely on PowerPoint slides in closing arguments to explain abstract legal concepts."
"Imes also encourages people to use metaphors and analogies in presentations. To explain the idea of circumstantial evidence to his jury, Imes tells the following story: You find an open jar with the last cookie gone. You look around and find your two kids, one with crumbs on the face."
“Every time you use that example, I always see that nod in the crowd because every parent has experienced that,” he said.
"But Imes’ biggest strength seems to come from his passion and faith in what he does, making him appear assertive, confident and genuine.
“He shows exactly the way things are. He’s not there to sell snake oil,” fellow prosecutor Robert Brown said. “Our goal is to seek justice, not to dazzle jurors with words. ... He absolutely believes in what he does. To me that’s the most effective way to be persuasive.”
I hope this article demonstrates how covert hypnosis and persuasion techniques can be useful in your own life, even if you are not a fancy attorney. You can begin learning covert hypnosis today and just like attorneys, use the art of persuasion all the time.
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