Speak Like a Leader: The Definitve Guide to Mastering the Art of Conversation and Becoming a Great Speaker by Andrian

Author:Andrian
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Published: 2015-02-15T05:00:00+00:00

The reptilian brain, despite its reliability and importance, tends to be somewhat rigid and compulsive. Consequently, although our common sense encourages us to make logical decisions, sometimes this logic is somewhat jeopardized by our primitive impulses. These are impulses imposed by the reptilian brain, which tries to act as a defense mechanism, yet in a somewhat illogical way. The reptilian brain is actually the key actor behind what we call frame control. It detects frames, protects us from threats and uses dominance and aggression to deflect attacking ideas and information.

In every human interaction, each individual brings his own personal frame to his social encounters. When those frames come into contact and square off against each other, beliefs, values, ideas and instincts collide. Frames, because they are deeply rooted in our survival mechanisms, seek to sustain our own dominance, thus we experience feelings of competitiveness and distress when we encounter opposing frames.

Frames typically do not merge. They rarely blend, and they don’t intermingle. They collide in a battle that has its roots deep in our subconscious, and the stronger frame absorbs the weaker. This is what happens below the surface of every business meeting you attend, every sales call you make and every person-to-person business communication you participate in.

I focus on business related frames because in our everyday lives this is the most relevant context. Besides, the business world, being competitive by nature, is the best possible representation of frame control in practice. Of course, as I have already stated, frames are present in every human interaction. Whether you are talking to your mother, your father, your best friend or your girlfriend, there will always be a frame. Particularly in male-female relationships, they are even more present. I will share my thoughts on this topic towards the end of this chapter.

Nonetheless, understanding how to harness and apply the power of frame is one of the most important communication principles you will ever learn.

Winning the frame wars

When the famous 19th century philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer wrote, “The world is my idea” in his seminal work ‘The World as Will and as Representative’ he was likely the first to introduce the concept of frame as a part of reality. What Schopenhauer was trying to communicate was mainly that - in his words:

“No truth is more absolutely certain than that all that exists for knowledge and, therefore, this whole world, is only object in relation to subject, perception of a perceiver--in a word, idea. The world is idea.”

If only he knew that after almost two centuries his writings would have such a huge impact on the way that we communicate and shape our relationships. Frame wars have always been a part of people’s lives and although in Schopenhauer’s day the idea of a strong frame was most probably conceived of differently, the same principles were applied.

A strong frame is made up of a combination of the following:

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.