One of my favorite methods to gain compliance is the the Internal Conflict Trigger AKA The Law Of Cognitive Dissonance.  As humans, we feel the need to act in accordance with our core beliefs and values.  In other words, it is very difficult for us to behave or act in a way that is different from what we really believe deep down in our hearts.

A researcher at Stanford University by the name of Leon Festinger formulated something called the cognitive dissonance theory.  In his own words, he stated when our actions conflict with our attitudes or beliefs; we become uncomfortable and motivated to try to change.  The method by which the internal conflict trigger works is by leveraging the fact that people tend to act in a manner that is congruent to their beliefs and values. 

When we act in a way that is different than what our values and beliefs represent, we find ourselves in a state of discomfort.  Behaving in a way that is not consistent with your core beliefs and values can produce anxiety, negative emotions and all-around feelings of general discomfort.  It creates an immense amount of tension within us, and an overall feeling of being off balanced.  Human beings like balance and we will do just about anything to achieve it and relieve ourselves from internal discomfort or uneasiness that is caused when we act differently than what we believe is right. When we experience this internal conflict that I speak of, we don't like it and we will do whatever it takes to experience balance once again.  There are many different ways in which we do this. 

Rationalization - The first method is that we’re going to cover is rationalization.  Rationalization is when someone finds excuses or reasons why the loss of balance or inconsistency is acceptable.  We often find ourselves justifying our behavior or decisions to make ourselves feel better.  

Denial - Next on the list is denial. Denial is probably the most common and easiest form of reducing the tension.  In this case, the person we simply denies that the problem even exists. They can do this by ignoring the entire situation or choosing to believe that the source where the information is coming from is not reliable.  

Correction -The next method that we use to reduce internal conflict is trying to find evidence to support why the information we received is inaccurate. 

Reframing - The next method is called reframing. Here, the person essentially changes their interpretation of the meaning behind the message that was given. This results in them either changing their thought process entirely or reducing the level of value concerning the entire matter as if it’s just not that important to them.  

Separation - And last but not least is separation.  In this case the person simply separates themselves from events or matters that are causing the internal conflict.  They do this by saying things like “one thing has nothing to do with another.”  

All of the examples above simply illustrate how we alleviate the internal conflict within by doing whatever it takes to convince ourselves that we made the right decision.  This is why in sales, it is extremely important to get the prospect to make a purchase on the same day.  Once a person has made a purchase, they are mentally vested in the product or service and will then do whatever it takes to convince themselves that they have made the right decision.