Instant Fact: How to Get the Truth Out of Anyone Read Online Free PDF Page A

who claimed he had gone on safari, you might let him know that you
    would love to see pictures of the trip. If he offers up a reason why you can’t see the pictures, then this
    should arouse some suspicion.
    4. Expand-a-Fact
    • Use this clue to determine how far someone is willing to go to get what she wants. All you do is expand on
    a fact that she has already offered. If she just goes on without correcting you, then you know that she may
    be lying about what she’s said so far and/or is willing to lie to get you to see her point. For example, your
    secretary asks you for the rest of the day off because she’s not feeling well. You might say, “oh, of course,
    if you’ve got a fever and a bad headache, by all means take off.” She never claimed to have these
    symptoms. You merely expanded on her statement.
    Special Occasions
    1. Third-Party Protection
    • This tactic is used if someone is reluctant to tell you something that involves another person. You have to
    appeal to his ego and let him forget that he’s telling tales out of school. The conversation needs to be
    positive. The other person must feel as if he’s doing a good thing by answering your question.
    • Scenario A: Your attorney is telling you about a case that a fellow attorney screwed up on. Simply
    asking, “What did he do wrong?” would probably get you nowhere. However, by turning it around
    you create an incentive for him to tell you. Ask, “Had you handled the case, what would you have
    done differently?”
    • Scenario B: While chatting with Brad, one of your sales people, you would like to find out why
    Susan’s sales figures are low. But simply asking him why she’s not doing well might prove fruitless.
    Ask, “What areas do you think Susan can improve in?”
    2. The Power Play
    • Sometimes the person reluctant to tell the truth is in a position of power. In these situations it’s usually
    inappropriate and futile to become argumentative. In these instances you want to bring the conversation to
    a personal level.
    • Scenario: You’re trying to sell to a buyer who doesn’t want to buy and is not giving you a reason that
    you truly believe. Your objective will be to get to the real objection. “I do this for a living. My family
    relies on me to support them. Clearly we have a fine product and you’re a reasonable man. Would
    you mind telling me what I did to offend you?” Now your buyer is caught off guard and will
    undoubtedly follow with “Oh, you didn’t offend me. It’s just that…”
    3. Hurt Feelings
    • Someone is lying to you to protect your feeling – perhaps one of those little white lies. A touch of guilt
    makes the other person reevaluate his approach.
    • Scenario: You feel that the truth is being withheld from you for your own benefit. “I know you don’t
    want to offend me, but you’re hurting me more by not being perfectly honest.” “If you don’t tell me,
    no one else will. If I can’t count on you for this, I don’t know what I would do.”
    4. It’s A Matter of Opinion
    • The following is an excellent method for detecting deceit in a person’s opinion.
    • Scenario: You’re not sure if your boss really likes your idea for a new advertising campaign, even
    though she says she does. “Do you like the concept for my new idea?” “Sure. It’s very original.”
    “Well, what would it take for you to love the idea?”
    5. I Don’t Know
    • This response can stall a conversation and leave you searching for answers. Sometimes it’s just easier to
    say, “I don’t know,” which is often why we say it in the first place. Either way, when you hear “I don’t
    know,” try some of the following responses:
    1. “Okay, then why don’t you tell me how you’ve come to think the way you do?”
    2. “I know you don’t know, but if you were to guess, what do you think it might be?”
    3. “What emotion best describes what you’re thinking right now?
    4. “What one word comes closest to