Eben Pagan reveals how to use incentives to persuade people by understanding their deepest motivators. Learn to align your influence efforts with what truly drives people's decisions and actions.
Persuade People Using Incentives
Eben reveals that incentives are the invisible drivers behind all human thoughts, decisions, and actions. Drawing on insights from Charlie Munger and neuroscience research, he explains how dopamine hits during anticipation create more motivation than actually receiving rewards, establishing the foundation for effective persuasion.
The core methodology focuses on discovering people's deepest motivations through strategic questioning, capturing their exact words, and repeatedly connecting every request back to their true desires. Eben demonstrates this with specific coaching examples showing how to drill beyond surface goals to uncover what really drives behavior.
Advanced persuasion techniques include breaking down large investments into manageable terms and helping people understand value in their own currency. Eben shares real examples from his high-end training programs, showing how to justify premium pricing through hourly breakdowns and 'reducing to the ridiculous' strategies.
The final piece involves maintaining alignment after initial commitment through continued value addition and shared future visioning. Eben emphasizes having bigger visions for others than they have for themselves, creating lasting inspiration that goes beyond temporary motivation.
“The best trick I've ever learned for persuading, for selling, for marketing, for getting customers, and it's aligning. Aligning the incentives and making sure that they're all lined up and they stay aligned.”
— Eben Pagan▶ 5:51
Discover what truly motivates the person, then align everything you say and do with those incentives. Use their exact words when reconnecting them to their motivation, and keep connecting the motivator with the desired outcome.
“We get a hit of it whenever we anticipate that a reward is coming. And it turns out that we get an extra burst of motivation and joy right before we get something that we want.”
— Eben Pagan▶ 3:25
Brain science shows we get dopamine hits when anticipating rewards, creating powerful motivation. Once we get something, the wanting feeling disappears because we now have it, which is why 'getting kills wanting.'
“One of the ways that I do it is I try to keep adding value and adding surprises and bonuses and new great stuff to my customers' lives after they purchase things”
— Eben Pagan▶ 5:13
Keep persuading after the sale by continuously adding value, surprises, bonuses, and new benefits to customers' lives. This prevents them from feeling they made an impulsive decision they don't really want.
“I wouldn't just be satisfied with I want to be thin and fit into my wedding dress. I would ask deeper. I would say, why do you want to wear that wedding dress?”
— Eben Pagan▶ 8:59
Don't be satisfied with surface-level answers. Keep asking 'why' to drill down to their exact specific motivation. Get their precise words describing what they want and use those same words repeatedly.
“I said, is it worth it if you could hire me for about $20 an hour? What if you could hire me for $19.97 an hour? Would you do it?”
— Eben Pagan▶ 19:05
Break down the total cost into hourly rates or daily amounts to make it feel manageable. Also use 'reducing to the ridiculous' by comparing to small daily expenses like coffee.
“It is very valuable for you to see in your future a time and see in their future a time where your success and their success really overlap.”
— Eben Pagan▶ 13:17
Look for where your future success and their future success intersect and overlap. Find the shared future where you both win and talk about it so everyone understands what's in it for both parties.
A systematic approach to discovering and aligning with people's true motivators for effective persuasion
Discover the Surface Goal
Ask what the person wants to achieve or their stated objective
Drill Down to True Motivation
Keep asking 'why' until you discover their deepest, specific motivation behind the surface goal
Capture Their Exact Words
Record the precise language they use to describe their deepest desires and motivations
Align Every Interaction
Connect everything you ask them to do back to their motivation using their exact words
Create Visual Reminders
Help them visualize their desired outcome and place reminders everywhere to maintain alignment
Find Mutual Benefit
Identify where your success and their success intersect in the future
Translate Value
Break down costs into manageable terms they understand, like hourly rates or daily amounts
Maintain Post-Purchase
Continue adding value after they commit to prevent buyer's remorse and maintain satisfaction
Incentives are the hidden drivers behind all thoughts, decisions, and actions - understanding them gives insight into persuading ourselves and others
Eben references Charlie Munger's principle that whenever we're baffled by someone's behavior, we can always find incentives somewhere, even if they're obscured or hidden
The anticipation of getting something is more motivating than actually receiving it - getting kills wanting
Neuroscientists have discovered we get a hit of dopamine when we anticipate a reward, and Eben observed in dating advice that people lose interest once they get what they wanted
To prevent buyer's remorse, keep persuading after the sale by adding value, surprises, and bonuses to customers' lives
Eben explains that buyer's remorse occurs because getting kills wanting, so continued value addition prevents customers from regretting their purchase decision
The best persuasion trick is aligning incentives - making sure everything about your influence efforts connects with what motivates the other person
Eben describes this as his best learned trick for selling, marketing, and getting customers, emphasizing the importance of keeping the motivator connected to the outcome
Visual alignment with goals creates powerful motivation - putting your face on your desired outcome image and displaying it everywhere keeps you aligned with your incentive
Eben gives specific example of a bride wanting to lose 30 pounds: scan a model in wedding dress, put your face on it, display on refrigerator, office wall, and car to maintain visual connection to the goal
Drill down to discover the exact specific motivation behind general goals - don't be satisfied with surface-level answers
Eben explains that if 10 different women want to fit into wedding dresses, asking 'why' reveals 10 different specific motivations - some want to look good for husband, others for photos, others to impress friends
Use the client's exact words when reconnecting them to their motivation - if they say 'so my family can grow up comfortably,' use those precise words repeatedly
Eben provides specific coaching example: client wants larger home 'so my family can grow up comfortably and my children can avoid living in a bad neighborhood' - coach must use those exact words when making requests
Align your incentives with the other person's by finding where your future success and their future success intersect and overlap
Eben explains that if you help a business owner grow their business, they'll keep hiring you and might hire you for their team - creating shared future where both parties win
A person's motivator acts like a tractor beam pulling them into the future - connect everything to what they want and want to avoid
Eben describes incentives as invisible tractor beams that help people have the thoughts, make decisions, and take actions that get them closer to their desired outcomes
People will only do something in the real world that they've first seen themselves doing in their minds - get them to imagine the future outcome
Eben advises saying 'imagine a future where this outcome is happening' or 'tell me about what will happen when this happens' to increase persuasiveness
Most people can't figure out what things are worth - help them translate value into terms they understand using their private currency
Eben explains that people are horrible at figuring out value and only think in terms of money, but each person has their own private currency that's valuable in particular situations
Use 'reducing to the ridiculous' to make large investments feel manageable - break down big numbers into small daily amounts
Eben gives real estate example: $50,000 extra for perfect home becomes 'Is it worth $9 a day - the cost of two cups of coffee - to get the home you really want?'
Frame high-priced programs in hourly terms to demonstrate value - $1,997 for 100 hours of training equals $19.97 per hour
Eben shares his actual sales video approach: '$1,997 course with 100 hours of training equals $19.97/hour - would you hire me for that rate?' showing it's a bargain compared to 15 minutes of his time
Have a bigger vision for the other person than they have for themselves - this is one of the most persuasive and inspiring things you can do
Eben credits Jay Abraham with this insight and explains that when you can see a bigger vision for someone and tell them about it, it becomes incredibly inspiring and persuasive
Incentives are the hidden drivers behind all thoughts, decisions, and actions - understanding them gives insight into persuading ourselves and others
▶ 1:31The anticipation of getting something is more motivating than actually receiving it - getting kills wanting
▶ 3:25To prevent buyer's remorse, keep persuading after the sale by adding value, surprises, and bonuses to customers' lives
▶ 5:13The best persuasion trick is aligning incentives - making sure everything about your influence efforts connects with what motivates the other person
▶ 5:51Visual alignment with goals creates powerful motivation - putting your face on your desired outcome image and displaying it everywhere keeps you aligned with your incentive
▶ 6:40Drill down to discover the exact specific motivation behind general goals - don't be satisfied with surface-level answers
▶ 8:59Use the client's exact words when reconnecting them to their motivation - if they say 'so my family can grow up comfortably,' use those precise words repeatedly
▶ 11:26Align your incentives with the other person's by finding where your future success and their future success intersect and overlap
▶ 13:17A person's motivator acts like a tractor beam pulling them into the future - connect everything to what they want and want to avoid
▶ 14:46People will only do something in the real world that they've first seen themselves doing in their minds - get them to imagine the future outcome
▶ 15:52Most people can't figure out what things are worth - help them translate value into terms they understand using their private currency
▶ 16:31Use 'reducing to the ridiculous' to make large investments feel manageable - break down big numbers into small daily amounts
▶ 18:08Frame high-priced programs in hourly terms to demonstrate value - $1,997 for 100 hours of training equals $19.97 per hour
▶ 19:05Have a bigger vision for the other person than they have for themselves - this is one of the most persuasive and inspiring things you can do
▶ 20:47Scroll for more
Claim: “Focus on the product or service features when selling”
Reframe: Focus on aligning with the customer's deepest incentives and motivators
Claim: “Getting what you want is the most motivating part”
Reframe: Anticipating getting something is more motivating than actually receiving it
Claim: “Stop selling once the customer buys”
Reframe: Keep persuading after the sale by continuously adding value to prevent buyer's remorse
Claim: “People understand the value of what they're buying”
Reframe: Most people can't figure out what things are worth and need help translating value into their terms
“The best trick I've ever learned for persuading, for selling, for marketing, for getting customers, and it's aligning. Aligning the incentives and making sure that they're all lined up and they stay aligned.”
“Getting kills wanting.”
“We're really horrible at figuring out the value of things.”
“Have a bigger vision for the other person than they have for themselves.”
“A person will only do something in the real world that they've first seen themselves doing in their minds.”
How To REALLY Motivate & Inspire Yourself (and Others)
The secret to charging premium coaching fees isn't better techniques - it's helping clients see a transformation vision so compelling they'd trade almost anything to achieve it.
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Discover why customers will pay twice as much to escape pain as they will to gain pleasure, and how to ethically use this knowledge to create irresistible offers.
Understanding Prospective Customer
The sales technique that gets prospects to open up about their deepest fears and buying triggers—completely changing how you approach one-on-one presentations.
Coaching Strategies
Focus on the client's next emergent level, not their next step - ask what transcends their current identity, roles, and everything they're up to in life
Eben distinguishes between progression (next step) and transformation (next level upward and outward that transcends current sense of identity)
Create a Transformation Vision (TV) in the client's mind - if they can see what's possible, the sales pitch becomes simply asking if they want to bring that into 3D reality
Eben interviewed Mary Morrissey and they discussed how once clients have their personal 'TV' (transformation vision), the sales pitch is just 'would you like to make that real now'
Humans are approximately twice as motivated by fear as they are by desire, making fear-based motivation significantly more powerful for driving purchasing decisions
Scientific research shows people are willing to do or pay twice as much to get away from something they don't want to have happen versus getting something they do want
The most effective approach is to attract customers by helping them escape their fear first, then once trust is built, introduce positive improvement opportunities
Most money is made selling information products and coaching to help people escape fear and get out of pain, which is where the beginning of relationships are formed
