Presupposition is one of the most powerful persuasion techniques I know of. At the core of it, a presupposition is assuming a position or thought that our prospects have to take for granted and believe in order for what we're telling them to make sense. This happens without us having to name what it is that we're even talking about.

Presupposition is that which must be accepted as true in order to make sense of the sentence. Think about that definition for a moment. If it is that which must be accepted as true, it has to be accepted because you didn't say it. In other words, it's assumed, or presupposed.

Presuppositions get us to the point where we don't have to say the things we're thinking, instead they are "magically" implanted in the minds of our prospects and clients (because of the assumption).

This is a heady concept. You are going to learn how to talk to someone in ways that you want them to think. They have to assume the core of what you want them to think just in order to make sense of what you're saying.

This gets us closer to getting people to think what it is that we want them to think without us having to say it.

A very popular example of presupposition: "We have to fight the terrorists over there so we won't have to fight them over here."

There are actually a few presuppositions here, the first being that we have to "fight" at all. This is the main one. Who says we have to fight? Why is this a given? And yet, how often does this get questioned? Of course there's a fight. They started it. (Or did we?) The second presupposition, which is one that is more surface and only exists if we accept the first presupposition, is that if we don't go serve it up over there, they're going to come get us over here.

'The great ocean of truth lay all undiscovered before me.' -Sir Isaac Newton

What's the presupposition here? Well, that there's a 'truth' that we are capable of knowing and discovering.

"How will you be paying for this today?"

This presupposes that the potential buyer is a definite buyer when the answer to the question has to be how it's being paid for, not if it's being paid for.

Here's an example of how much presupposition exists in the world. It might be a little existential, but it's cool nonetheless. Nouns presuppose existence. What does that mean? Well, it means that a noun, or anything similar, presuppose a level of existence.

What are some examples of how you can you use presupposition in your business?

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Kenrick Cleveland teaches techniques to earn the business of affluent prospects using persuasion. He runs public and private seminars and offers home study courses and coaching programs in persuasion techniques.