‘Belief Echoes’ Can Kill Your Strategy and Vision

Once negative information is stated, it never really goes away

Have you ever had people completely misinterpret your company’s growth strategy or vision statement? They start negative rumors about your plans, and then you struggle to correct their misinformation.

For example, say you’re launching some new technology strategy and word gets around that this technology will cause layoffs. Now, the truth is that your strategy will actually create jobs, but no matter how many times you correct the misinformation, people still don’t feel comfortable with your strategy.

Well, I just came across some interesting research that explains why this happens. There’s a professor at George Washington University named Emily Thorson and she’s been studying something called “belief echoes.”

Here’s how it works (stick with me, it takes a minute to explain).

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Comments

To guru or not to guru?

Yes Mr. Murphy, you're right; may be you're a descendant of the apparently negative guru Mr. Murphy, but this is redundant. The fact is, that the more shadowy or smoky words gurus speak, the more they're listened to. There's all evidence that people don't like simple words, thoughts or facts: once, John Steinbeck wrote of one of his characters that he was so simple that he had to be very deep, too, and for this fact he would not be believed. And it's not only about negative information: propaganda works both ways. Thank you.