15 Surprising Stories of People Who Use Psychological Tricks to Achieve Their Goals

We all might subtly be using psychological tricks to get our will done, or, have it used against us so that we subconsciously end up doing something the other person wants. From mediators wearing white to reassure others that they are here for peace, to deliberately yawning to see if the other person is empathetic or not, mind tricks aren't something everyone is aware of. Here is a compilation of such psychological mind games people played to achieve their goals.

• I'm a paramedic. When a patient is possibly faking unconsciousness, we have 2 tricks to determine if they're really unconscious or not.
  First, you can lightly brush their eyelashes with your finger. Their eyes will flutter if they're faking it. Alternatively, if they're on their back, you can lift their arm over their face and let it go. A conscious person will drop their arm away from their face.
  Finally, a trick to see if someone is faking a neck injury or neck pain. Put a thermometer in their mouth while checking their vitals, then ask them a yes or no question while looking them in the eyes.
  If you aren't looking directly at them, they tend to answer with a strained “uh-huh” or “nuh-uh,” but if you're looking directly at them, they will usually nod their head. Anyone faking the pain, can do this with ease. And yes, there are a lot of calls where people fake pain, illness, etc. for various reasons… © monkeybrigade / Reddit
• I love subtly making my coworkers like each other with very, very small manipulations nobody questions. Like telling them something they did well or what is great about them and adding, X thinks that, too. Doing the same thing with Y, telling them X said so.
  I know it sounds terrible, but I love it when they start to really act nicer to each other and become friendly over the time. You have to be very patient and don't rush it; keep it very casual and simple, just to leave a positive impression they get of each other. At one point it stops being a lie because they really say pleasant things about each other. © RumZombieBabe / Reddit
• Whenever you are negotiating, take long... very long pauses before you ask questions. It makes people vomit the truth. © wisejuan / Reddit

• In class, if it's a presentation where someone has to present without looking at notes or anything like that, some people forget what they're talking about, space out, freak out, and lose their train of thought.
  To counter this, nod your head at the end of each sentence they say, confirming what they're saying. They will somehow use this as a motivator, and 9 times out of 10 will keep presenting without fault. © onlyididn'tsayfudge / Reddit
• The door-in-the-face technique. The general idea is that you ask someone for a huge favor, which you're relatively confident they'll say no to. Then you ask them for a small favor.
  Subjects who initially refuse the huge favor have a much higher compliance rate on the small favor than if you just ask directly for the small favor or if you present both at once. If they end up saying yes to the huge favor, that's also good. © shrubberni / Reddit
• My youngest (4) got into the “why” phase a little while back. Read an article that said the best way to get them to stop was to ask them, “I'm not sure, what do you think?”
  It is a godsend. They answer their own question, you provide some feedback, “Sounds good to me,” and they immediately move on. It's awesome. © AD_Meridian / Reddit

• My friend and I did elevator experiments in college. We had both commented on how it’s odd how universally accepted elevator protocol is, and no one needs to tell you the rules. Don’t talk once the door is closed. Face the door. Don’t fart.
  We decided to see if we could carry on an innocent conversation while people got in, and it was extremely difficult to keep talking as we could feel the tension rise. Then we tried making small talk with strangers when they got on. Nope.
  Then, just for fun, we got on and faced the wrong way. That did make some people laugh, but most just got annoyed with our shenanigans. © Tthelaundryman / Reddit
• I teach throwing tomahawks at summer camps, anytime I see someone throwing left-handed, I always have a tomahawk to the side. If they miss/don't get it to stick, I always make a little show of, “Oh, you're using the right-handed tomahawks while being left-handed; here, try this one.” And they always throw better after that.
  Then the adults always come over after asking me what the difference is. © Gaamalii / Reddit
• I work in an office. When people stop by my desk and refuse to leave me alone, I will get up and refill my water bottle while they are talking to me. Instead of walking back to my desk, I walk them to theirs. They instinctively will sit down.
  Then I just sever the conversation and get back to work. © Electricpants / Reddit

• This girl I knew had a massive crush on a guy, who had a girlfriend. So every time she met him, like in a group or something, she would offer him his favorite snacks. She did this about 7–8 times and then stopped. But whenever he saw her, his face would light up.
  His girlfriend noticed it, got mad, and dumped him. They got together, and she made him happy, enough for him to propose. They have been married for 10 years and are one of the best couples I know.
• I worked with a guy that I absolutely could not stand. He wasn't even in our department but would spend his day walking by our area and reporting to our boss on everything we were doing or not doing. He spent more time doing that than whatever it was he was actually supposed to be doing.
  I got so tired of him that I decided to out-petty his pettiness by being sarcastically nice to him when other people weren't around. My tone was always so condescending and passive-aggressive. He eventually started telling people how nasty and unprofessional I was.
  When other people were around, though, I treated him like everyone else. Everyone started thinking there was something wrong with him. He even told HR and my boss that I was giving him menacing glances during a meeting, which I was, but no one could prove it. He made himself look bad each time he said something because no one else ever saw anything or noticed any bad behavior on my part.
  I did this for almost a year because it was so much fun, and it drove him crazy. People would always ask me what his problem with me was, and I'd always say I didn't know. © HumpieDouglas / Reddit
• If you want to really mess with someone, go up to them and ask them, “Hey, do you ever get that creepy Déjà vu feeling?” Then, like a week later, wear the same thing and ask them the same question. I’ve done this to so many people, and their reactions are hilarious. © Non-domestic-turtle / Reddit

• I have twin toddlers in their terrible twos. Getting them to do anything, especially routine, is a massive exercise in patience and restraint on my part.
  Recently, my aunt suggested a cool trick. Every time I feel a meltdown coming, I give them a choice instead of telling them to do it. For example, if it's time for a nap, and they don't want to sleep, I'd say, “Would you like chocolate milk before your nap or after?”
  For a nighttime routine, I'd give them a choice between toothpastes, or stories, or one hug or two tickles, etc. Most of the time, their little minds tend to simply focus on the choice, making parenting a lot easier for me.
• If you need to remember something, think about it while doing something noticeably unusual. This will pair the memory with the “something,” so that when it is noticed later on, it will trigger that particular memory. E.g. I need to take out the garbage before going to bed. Put your pillow at the foot of your bed. © Unknown author / Reddit
• My boss is quick to temper and can be tough to handle when he's angry. Recently, I met his wife and noticed something that I copied. Now, every time I go to his cabin, he talks to me in a calmer way. I'm not saying he's not raging anymore, but at least it's more bearable.
  My secret was simply to ask his wife what perfume she wore, and which was her favorite one? I started using the same perfume, and it clearly worked like magic. Something to do with olfactory memories.

Here are some hilarious conversations people had with those who don't know all that much, but are pretty sure about their convictions.