One number, not five
Nobody has ever changed their mind under a pile of statistics.
A single fact, chosen well and said plainly, lands. Five facts feel like being buried and trigger the urge to dig out. Pick the one number that would have changed YOUR mind, say it, and let it sit.
Instead of
Well, there's a 2019 study, and a meta-analysis, and the ONS data, and…
Try
One number stuck with me: it's a third of the budget, not half. That's what changed my view.
Try it today
Prepare one fact for the argument you know is coming this week. Just one.
The science
The 'less is more' effect in persuasion: adding weak arguments to strong ones dilutes them (Weaver, Garcia & Schwarz, 2012, 'The presenter's paradox').
Where you'd actually use it
- 🏛️ Politics & SocietySomeone is arguing that disruptive protest is counterproductive. Whether you agree or not, your job is to give the other side its …
- 🏛️ Politics & SocietySomeone at the table has just made the case for tighter immigration in one sentence, and it's a sentence half the room agrees with…
Next lesson
- 🪧 Signpost out loud'First… second…' is not for you. It's so they can follow.
- 🔍 Spot the fallacy — name it gentlyYou don't need the Latin. You need the pattern.
- 🎒 Know whose job it is to prove itThe person making the claim carries the bag.