I live in a community with a dictatorial homeowners’ association. The HOA police travel around the neighborhood drooling for violations. Threatening letters are sent to violators who must correct and prove it within a specified time. I am a recipient of a letter from the HOA Gestapo.
My offense? A small rusty stain on my driveway. After much work on my part, I realized that I needed professional assistance. I selected a provider and two guys and a truck showed up. One was in training and had to do all the work while the other chatted me up. We talked about Vegas, the weather, fishing, knee problems, raising kids, the economy, blah, blah blah.
The point is that he established a friendly relationship with me in the couple of hours it took the other guy to clean the driveway. He invoked the Friendship trigger: We are friends now, so I must treat him better.
He also made sure that I knew that the other poor guy was going above and beyond in his work, as evidenced by his copious sweating. He invoked the Reciprocity trigger: He gives me something, and now I should reciprocate.
He made sure I knew how experienced he was and how they were the best at what they did. He invoked the Authority trigger: he has credibility and authority, and my risk is reduced.
I won’t further bore you with his use of the other four triggers. He was very good at it. He probably did not know that there are names for what he did. It just came naturally to him. I was impressed. I gave my friend a nice tip.
The stain is still there; however, it is now covered up and I await the clearance from the Gestapo.
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Got a burning question for Manny? Email mannysmoans@mdpublishing.com.
