Three Is a Magic Number
It all comes down to the way we process information.
Welcome to the eighth lesson of The Persuasive Presenter course. As always, there’s a quick video introduction followed by a deeper dive in text.
And as a bonus, I got a much needed haircut. Samantha is definitely happy about it.
Watch, read, and let me know what you think in the comments.
You see the Rule of Three used all the time across diverse areas of life.
Why?
Because information presented in groups of three is better remembered than information presented in other item clusters.
For example:
“life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness”
“government of the people, by the people, for the people”
“Friends, Romans, countrymen”
“blood, sweat, and tears”
“location, location, location”
“Father, Son, and Holy Spirit”
“faith, hope, and charity”
“mind, body, spirit”
“stop, look, and listen”
“Sex, Lies, and Videotape”
“I came, I saw, I conquered.”
The United States Marines are big believers in the Rule of Three when it comes to getting things done and keeping people alive. The Corps apparently experimented with a rule of four, and retention and effectiveness took a nose dive.
If you want something stuck in someone’s head, put it in a sequence of three.