There are famous stories of expensive missed opportunities:

• Many record companies turned down the Beatles; like Decca, who said “The Beatles have no future in show business”.
• Twelve publishers rejected J.K. Rowling’s 200-page script for Harry Potter.
• Disney once sacked John Lasseter – he’s now their Chief Creative Officer.

But you don’t hear too many of these stories. Why? Because the only time you do is when the “no” goes on to become a spectacular success elsewhere.

So, people often find it safer to say “no” than “yes”. After all, which is more likely to be flagged as a mistake?

• Agreeing to something that fails, and makes you rue the day you said “yes”? Or,
• Rejecting an opportunity that therefore never happens, so nobody can say whether it was a bad idea to turn it down?

When you look at it like that, you can see why people often say “no”. They think it just does less harm. And this makes it very hard to persuade certain people to say “yes” to you.

So, you have to prove they’ll benefit by agreeing. After all, it’s easier to persuade people when they view you as an expert in an area they aren’t. This helps them know their best option is to do what you advise. In effect, they let you make the decision for them. Here are a few ways to do this.

This table isn’t an exhaustive list – no doubt you can think of others – but contains the type of thing you should be looking for. Remember:

• No proofs – likely to get a “no”.
• Generic, bland proofs – still “no”.
• Some of the table’s proofs – a “yes” is much more likely.

How many proofs do you need? Well, as you’ll see in the next chapter “When you want to make a sale”, it’s less than people think. Think quality not quantity. The aim is as few as possible. So, start with your most persuasive. If that works, you only needed one. If not, go to the second, then third.