Dealing with Resistance – An Effective Example

I was summoned to appear for Jury Duty today and was pleasantly surprised when the experience resulted in an effective example of communicating with an audience full of resisters. 

After the 30 or so of us signed in with the Court Clerk, we were shown a video.  I admit to bracing myself for something preachy and boring. However, 30 seconds into watching “The Colorado Juror” I was digging in my bag for a pen and paper to capture notes on how good the video was!  I thought it was an effective example of the order in which to cover points when dealing with a resistant, skeptical, or hesitant audience.

#1: Start with empathy for the emotions people are feeling.

The video started with clips of four past jurors talking about how anxious and annoyed they were when they received their summons.  As people chuckled and nodded along, the tension in the room started to dissapate.

#2:  Appeal to a sense of purpose

Following the four clips, the narrator said, “I’ll bet you are thinking that someone else with less important things to do should be here instead of you.”  This got a good laugh as we all realized that we all thought our agendas were more important than everyone else’s. After empathizing, the narrator then came on to say, “We know you might not be thrilled to be here, but you are playing an import part in the process that makes our country great.”  The video went on to talk about the role that juries play in giving people a fair trial and how important each juror is to the process.

#3: Provide details of the plan.

Only after relating to what people were feeling, and appealing to a higher purpose, did the video go inot the nuts and bolts of how the process would work.  This stage a) gave the jurors information about the types of juries, the selection process, etc. and b) helped us know what to expect for the rest of the morning.

What struck me most was the fact that if the information in this video had been covered in a different order it would not have been nearly as effective.  Whoever wrote the script realized that starting with emotion, then moving to purpose, and finally getting into details/plans/information would fit the psychological state we jurors were in. If the video had started with information – I have no doubt that we would have rolled our eyes and felt unappreciated. 

All in all, a great example of how a well crafted message can turn resisters into supporters.

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