The Player's Colm Ó Riagáin gives some handy, easy to use hints on how to coax the best out of your team-mates or those you are coaching. HAVE you wondered how to get the best out of those around you - your team-mates, the kids you're coaching?  Making small, easy changes to your messages can make them vastly more persuasive - you don't need to be a mind control expert like Derren Brown to do so.

Social psychologists and the marketing industry have invested a lot of time and money in this, and for good reason - it works. Here, The Player is going to outline how you can influence people to change their attitudes and behaviour in a positive manner. Persuasion is a science and not, as is often assumed, an art - the preserve of a few genius-like figures whose secrets will go with them to the grave!

Here are some key principles of persuasion:

• We feel obligated to return favours performed for us
• We look to experts to show us the way
• The more we like people, the more we want to say yes to them
• We look to what others do to guide our behaviour
• We want to act consistent with our commitments and values
• When we're feeling valued, we'll respond better

Strategies can be devised from them to give a few pointers to transform you into master persuader!

Personalise your message
There's a company, 3M Corp, which has made millions out of a certain little office item - the Post-it note: you too can profit from it. If you want your players/team-mates to do certain things in the coming game, why not put your message on a little yellow sticky note? Research shows you're more likely to get people to agree to do it!

Turn a weakness into a strength
The evidence suggests that acknowledging a small weakness in yourself or/set-up can go a long way in increasing trust and confidence in you. Caution - make sure it's a relatively minor one and not that you don't have a clue what you're doing!!

When is it right to admit you were wrong?
If you play the blame game research suggests that pointing the finger only at external factors will mean you and the team will be the losers. If you find you've made a mistake, you should admit it, and follow up immediately with a plan of action which demonstrates that you can take control of the situation and put it right.

Say 'Because'
The power of a small word has never been so effectively demonstrated - there is a unique motivational influence attached to 'because'. Why? Because we associate it with good reasons, eg  we'll win . . . because we've the best attack in the league! When you want someone to do something, make sure you give a good strong rationale for it and "not just because I said so." In addition, to strengthen commitment to a course of action, get the players to say "because" back to you when you want them to say why they agree - it works both ways.

Keep it simple
Complex language and explanations are a turn-off. People like messages and ideas that are easy to read and pronounce.

Avoid 'Groupthink'
History is littered with disasters that happened because nobody dissented from a plan, and nobody encouraged dissent, eg Colombia Shuttle disaster. Worse still, leaders didn't listen when warnings were given. So, in a nutshell, sometimes it's important to hear "no" from your team to increase the likelihood that you'll hear "yes" from those you're trying to persuade. This will encourage diverging, but valid thoughts, which may lead to more productive solutions.

Avoid 'Captainitis'
This is when you need to be aware of the deadly type of passivity displayed by crew members when a flight captain clearly makes an incorrect decision - they just follow the leader. So, ask for input to decisions. It might just break a destructive cycle, but it won't happen unless your style encourages it. Leave your ego at the dressingroom door.

Ask 'Who can I help', not 'Who can help me'
Research has shown that if management is about getting things done through others,  then a healthy web of indebted colleagues, who have benefited from useful information, concessions and perhaps a friendly listening ear, can stand you in good stead in the future when you need them to do the business. This is the reciprocity principle - we feel obligated to return the favours performed for us.

Does fear persuade or paralyse?
Don't angle your motivational message on the fear of losing - make sure you pair the message of the threat of losing with a clear, specific and easy to follow plan as to how to manage the threat! If fear persuaded, we'd have no healthcare costs in Ireland!  

Just asking
Do you have a player/team-mate that you don't really get on with, and maybe he's a dominant figure? Well, don't hesitate to ask for his help, because the chances are that he'll view you more positively and be more co-operative in the long run. Yes, research shows that even an adversary who does you a favour you've asked for is probably going to say - well, he can't be all bad if he asked me to help him - and so stands less in your way thereafter! And in a similar vein, the research also backs up the old adage that asking for a little can go a long way.

And so, in the true spirit of The Player, we ask that you to try them out because we know that the evidence backs them up. And if we've made a mistake, and they don't work, we apologise and look forward to hearing your suggestions and input as to what works for you and your team.