10 Psychological Tricks That Can Make Your Life Much Easier

by Erica Wagner

Communicating and dealing with people can be hard for everyone at one point or another. Whether it’s work related or if it’s pleasure, it’s important to learn these psychological tricks to make things run much more smoothly. These are not to be confused with ways to maliciously manipulate others into getting what you want, but to simply improve overall communication and relationships with others.

1. Look into someone’s eyes when you get a dissatisfactory answer

Sometimes we don’t like the answer to a question that we receive and sometimes we don’t understand it. Instead of repeating the question or asking another, look into the eyes of the person. This will make the person feel under pressure or cornered, and this will force them to further elaborate their thoughts.

2. Stay calm when someone raises their voice to you

Make a strong effort to remain calm. When a loudmouth acts out it’s usually in anger, and our behaviors can sometimes unintentionally provoke that. The feelings of anger usually quickly subside and guilt will set in and usually this person is first to ask for forgiveness.

3. Sit close to the aggressor to avoid attack

If you’re heading into a meeting and you know you’ll be in the room with an aggressive person, you know the discussion may become heated, or you may be subjected to negative criticism, make a point to sit next to that person. You may feel uncomfortable and awkward, but you won’t be the only one. Close proximity is known to make people uncomfortable which will lessen the level of aggression they plan to exercise.

4. Remember everyone’s names if you want to be popular

If you want to be popular with your peers and colleagues, make it a habit to start calling people by their first names when speaking with them. A person feels instantaneously special when you call him or her by their first name.

5. Write down your thoughts when you feel stressed or anxious

We all feel some level of mental stress or anxiety at some point. Write down your thoughts in a journal and then close it up. Believe it or not, you’ll be able to focus on your work more easily because you have now shared your thoughts with someone. When you share them, you will then feel the burden on your mind reduced.

6. Give yourself fewer choices when you can’t make the decision

Some people believe that it’s better to have more choices and more information and actually, they prefer to have more. However, it is actually paralyzing to have too many. There is evidence that shows that having four options at a time is the maximum number we can consider and still make a choice. In order to be an effective decision maker, you should only give yourself a few options at a time. This will allow you time to consider each one while giving you enough space between looking at a new set of options.

7. Right posture can boost confidence

This psychological trick applies to both work and pleasure. It can drastically improve your dating life and help you move up the ladder at work. How can you become confident do you ask? The best way to do this is through your posture. If you allow yourself to take up more space, you’re more likely to feel more confident. This is referred to power language.

8. Surefire way to win in ‘rock, paper, scissors’

This one is definitely intriguing. When you’re about to play this famous game, ask your opponent a random question right before. This typically will throw your confused opponent off and more often than not they will throw up ‘scissors’.

9. Make people feel needed when you ask for help

If you need someone’s help start off with the phrase, ‘I need your help…’ People like to feel needed and they hate feeling guilty. By starting off the conversation with that phrase, you’re more likely to receive the help you need.

10. Warm your hands before shaking hands with others

Did you know that cold hands are linked to distrust? When you’re about to touch someone or shake their hand, make sure that your hands are warm. Warm hands promote a friendly atmosphere.

Other psychological tricks

• If you think someone doesn’t care for you, ask him or her to borrow their pen or pencil.
• If you can’t seem to get a song out of your head try remembering the end of it.
• If you need help carrying something, try talking to the person while handing them whatever it is. They will most likely not even realize you’re handing them something and they will just take it.
• During an introduction, make a note of someone’s eye color. You’re not going to use this information it’s just important to take note of it. It’s a technique to achieve optimum eye contact. People find this friendly and confident.