Rovers Bay

Seduction isn’t always sexual. Lenin, Mao, and J.F.K. were all famous seducers of the populous. Similarly, advertisements seduce children into wanting candy and toys, infomercials seduce insomniacs into buying a “Shamwow!” and technology seduces everyone into addiction to instant gratification. If you want to have the same power as a Casanova or a Cleopatra to catch others in an irresistible web of psychological power, you can develop that skill.

No matter whether you are bold or shy, intellectual or sensual, ugly or beautiful, you can find the seducer within you. When you do, you will find that people gravitate toward you and seek your approval, thus your network of influence starts to grow by leaps and bounds. The methods of seduction are many and complex, and excellent books have been written on the subject, so I am not going to try to go into depth here. I simply aim to put forth some of the overarching principles of seduction that men and women can all use in their daily lives, and in business dealings, to build success.

First, choose the right victim. Not everyone can seduce everyone. You have to know your own strengths and find a victim that lacks those qualities. You may be Obama addressing a nation starving for change, you may be Cleopatra offering exotic treats to a bored Antony, or you may be Apple inventing desktop icons for a population overwhelmed by abstraction, but in any case you must offer your observer something that he or she distinctly lacks.

Second, you must approach indirectly. If you go on the attack right away, your potential victim will put up defenses that will make the seduction much more difficult, or perhaps impossible. You must make it seem like it was the other person’s idea to get together with you. Overbearing commercials that extol the virtues of a product time and time again are not as effective as those that go for the emotions, charming you with the honest smiles of children and somehow making you feel all good inside about oreo cookies or fruit rollups or whatever it is.

Third, be coy! Send mixed signals. Be both tough and tender, both spiritual and earthy. Be difficult to figure out. Enigma and a sense of inherent contradiction will create an aura of complexity about you that peaks people’s interest and makes them seek you out. An aggressive, high-net-worth executive projects confidence and savvy all day, but in the odd moment she might show a sensitive side, giggle over a joke. That’s when the public’s fascination with her begins.

Appear to be the object of desire. As advertisers know well, an appearance of success builds a cult of personality (or product) and tends to attract others, all vying to be the object of attention. Those kids in high school that seemed so unattainably cool? What made them cool was simply the illusion that they had absolutely millions of friends. Those who are unattainable are always the most sought after.

Finally, seducers build a need in others by stirring their anxiety and discontent. Is this amoral? You bet your boots. Advertisers and politicians love to work this angle, promoting the notion that women aren’t pretty enough without makeup, your home is not safe enough without a security system, or the nation is at risk of certain economic meltdown without a certain person in power. It is an insidious technique, but it works wonders, so if you need to exert influence over someone find out what they are insecure about and stir that pot just a little. Then offer yourself as a cure for their ills. Oh, it’s awful, but people do it all the time.

There are countless other techniques used in seduction, which is very close to brainwashing actually, so use them when you need to, but most of all, now that you know them, be aware of the signs that a seduction may be coming your way.