Robert Cialdini explains how he used self-persuasion while writing Pre-Suasion, keeping a photo of his three grandchildren by his screen to stay motivated. He argues persuasion techniques work on yourself the same way they work on others.
You have to change with every new population that you're dealing with. You segment that population. You adjust that approach. Okay. Second, interesting question. Can I persuade or really persuade also myself to influence my own decisions? Can you use it on yourself? I did it when I was writing the book Pre Suasion because I had this following image in mind. I have grandchildren now, and I have this image. I've given their parents each a copy of the book, and I've dedicated the book to them. When they're old enough to read it, I want their parents to give them the book and say, your grandfather wrote this book for you. Well, it better be a good book. So next to my screen, as I wrote this, I had a picture of my three grandchildren. That's what kept me in my chair late into the night, making sure this was the best possible book in 20 years. They're not going to get to it in 20 years. I want this book to have durability. I want it to have legs. So three little kids for 20 years down the road, and this is the last question.
