How to manage people - developing a skill for all occasions

What is “manipulation” and where is it taught?

Let's first figure out what it means to manipulate people. In psychology, manipulation is understood as the process of socio-psychological influence on a person in order to influence his behavior or change his worldview.

This influence is usually hidden. A person, as a rule, does not understand that he performs some actions not of his own free will, but at the will of the manipulator. For example, we are daily influenced by social standards, advertising, political propaganda and agitation, and criticism. Under their influence, most people make appropriate decisions and behave in the way that manipulators need.

The victim of manipulation does not suspect that she is being influenced. She commits actions against her own will and desire. The goal of the manipulator is always to obtain the desired result.

However, these goals are not always bad or selfish. For example, using hypnosis, psychologists help people cope with difficult psychological conditions. Parents influence the child for educational purposes, the teacher applies manipulations to the students so that they learn their lessons.

The art of managing people will help you not only achieve your goals, but also avoid conflicts, recognize the tricks of manipulators and protect yourself from them. Where can you learn this skill? There are 2 ways:

• trainings;
• books.

On the Internet you can find a huge number of trainings that promise to teach you the art of managing people and how to protect yourself from manipulation. Such trainings, of course, are not free. But they will give you unique knowledge and techniques that other trainers do not have. And hurry up! After all, there is only one place left (either registration closes in 2 days, or the 40% discount is valid until tomorrow)!

Most often, this kind of manipulation is used in advertising training that is designed to teach you how to protect yourself from manipulation. How this works is that the user is told the unique value of the knowledge that he will receive in the course, and then he is limited in time to think and make a decision. You're already interested and, of course, you don't want to miss out on the last spot or day or discount.

As a result, you make a purchase. The manipulator achieved his goal. But whether you will get the cherished and promised result is not a fact!

Information on managing people is also contained in special books. Some books can be read for free online. Others will have to be looked for on the shelves in a store or library. Here are examples of such books:

• Sigmund Freud “Analysis of the Human Self and Psychology of the Masses”;
• V. V. Shlakhter, S. Yu. Kholnov “The Art of Dominance”;
• V. P. “The art of managing people”;
• Henrik Fexeus “How to read and control other people’s thoughts”;
• R.V. Levin “Mechanisms of manipulation. Protection from foreign influence.”

Is only theoretical knowledge enough to successfully apply it in practice and psychologically influence others? Or does the manipulator still have to possess a certain set of qualities?

Blackmail.

Another method of manipulation is most often used with direct influence, and (don’t be afraid of the word) is not necessarily illegal.

A primitively moronic example. The girl says to the guy: “Until you go to my store for a gold ring, I won’t give myself up to your good ones.” “golden ring” - can be easily replaced with whatever the girl wants, depending on each specific case.

Another example of blackmail, but this time illegal: The city administration tells a businessman: “if you don’t sell the store of your own free will, we’ll put a bunch of checks on you from various authorities, and they’ll find something to dig into.”

We even blackmail children: “Until you eat the soup, I won’t give you chocolate.”

It is very effective when it is not illegal, however, you almost immediately fall in front of the one you are trying to manipulate.

Characteristics of the manipulator

Among public figures, manipulators to one degree or another include politicians, public figures, famous bloggers, and pop stars. Each of them pursues their own goals (to achieve victory in the elections, to gather a full house, etc.).

Many achieve success by influencing others. All manipulators have the following qualities.

1. Knows how to convince . The manipulator is firmly confident in his position and can easily convince other people. Or, knowingly deceiving the “victim,” he will use all his acting skills and again convince her that he is right. If you want to become a leader, develop the gift of persuasion.
2. Charismatic . This is the ability to create a positive atmosphere around yourself, win people over, conduct a conversation correctly and ultimately get what you want. It's great if you are a naturally charismatic person. If not, don't be upset. We have already prepared an article for you on how to develop charisma.
3. Eloquent . Most famous speakers are manipulators. Watch their performances and pay attention to how they address the audience, how they behave on stage, and how the performance itself is structured. One way or another, every speaker strives to “sell himself,” his product or service, using various psychological techniques.
4. Well versed in human psychology . The manipulator, first of all, evaluates the potential victim from the psychological side. He studies her strengths and weaknesses and assesses her emotional state. Having found a weak spot, he will hit it exactly there to achieve the desired result. At the same time, the manipulator will not risk getting involved with a strong, self-sufficient, harmonious and psychologically stable person.

As you can see, before you start studying methods of managing people, you must first study yourself, your strengths and weaknesses, work on charisma, eloquence and improve your knowledge in the field of human psychology.

Pride.

As in the previous method, the ego is also affected here, however, in a slightly different way.

First option. The most primitive: “Will your pride really allow you to do this?” What to do, set it yourself.

Second option. From TV, for example. “For some NATO to try to prohibit us from fighting with Georgia? Where is the pride of the Russian people? After all, we are right." And the people: "Aaaaaaaa." “What if our guys messed up there too?” “What are you doing? So that WE MAKE A MISTAKE? Proud and honest(!?) Russian people...”, etc. (ps in the example I’m not hinting that this was the case, I don’t even think so. But theoretically, such an option is possible. Would we have noticed?).

Third option. Make a person (a subordinate, for example) proud of himself. It sounds ridiculous, but that's essentially how it is. For example, make your subordinate believe that he has achieved great profits. It is advisable that he also tell everyone about this. And then stupidly steal the money by framing him, making him guilty.

Who would suspect you if he already told everyone everything? Played on his pride.

The example is not from the moral framework, but it is quite real, so do not “accidentally” become such a subordinate.

Methods of psychological influence

There are a large number of methods of influencing human consciousness. They can all be combined into 3 groups.

1. Suggestion.
2. Influence on emotions and points of influence.
3. Techniques of intellectual influence.

Suggestion

Hypnosis is the most effective method that has a direct effect on the human psyche. The specialist introduces a person into a narrowed state of consciousness, when it is possible to easily control his behavior and instill some thought or attitude.

This method helps to cope with human psycho-emotional disorders. Only professionals with extensive experience should use this technique solely to help a person, instill in him the correct attitudes and bring him out of hypnosis without harm to the psyche.

Another interesting method of influencing consciousness is neurolinguistic programming (NLP). It allows you to manipulate people using words, gestures and facial expressions. NLP is based on knowledge from the field of psychotherapy, linguistics, and programming.

Despite the fact that the scientific community criticizes this method of influence, such techniques are successfully used and allow one to achieve the desired result. In particular, make a sale, successfully negotiate, obtain secret information from an intractable person, get a promotion at work, win over other people, etc.

Impact on emotions and points of influence

The psychology of managing people in general is based on managing a person’s emotions and physiological needs. In this case, it is enough to simply evoke a certain emotion in a person, which will push him to take the action you want. I will describe the basic emotions that are usually influenced by a manipulator.

1. Fear . Many manipulators use this convenient emotion. They simply intimidate people. They convince him that he will either be punished or lose something dear if he does not do what is required of him. For example, many parents often threaten their child by putting him in a corner or taking away his favorite toy if he does not obey them. Or another example - the manager intimidates employees by saying that he will not give them a bonus if they do not fulfill the plan. This is a rather primitive method of influence, as a result of which the victim will hate the manipulator.
2. Greed . In this case, no special talent of influence is needed. The manipulator simply convinces the victim that she will receive something very desirable, something she has long dreamed of, if she performs a certain act. Many managers use this at work. In particular, they promise employees a double bonus for exceeding the sales plan.
3. Vanity . Self-confident and vain people are practically helpless in the face of flattery, praise, and the approval of others. Simply praising them is enough, and they are ready to make a rash purchase or an illogical act.
4. Envy . Many people are affected by this vice. Activating this emotion is quite easy. The manipulator several times points out to the victim something good that the other person has, but the victim herself does not. And now she compares herself with that other person and begins to think in the direction the manipulator needs.

In addition to these basic emotions, each of us has certain points of influence.

1. Needs . We all strive to satisfy our basic needs in physiology, safety, and we also have ambitions, which are expressed in the desire for career growth and monetary income. Marketers skillfully use this when creating advertising. It is their tricks and correct presentation of information that encourages most people to buy advertised goods and services.
2. Weaknesses . It is rare to meet a person without flaws, addictions and shortcomings. Therefore, manipulators love to play on human weaknesses. For example, excitement, excessive curiosity, self-doubt, superstition and others.
3. Guilt . A person who cannot get rid of feelings of guilt is the favorite victim of many manipulators. Feeling guilty, the victim agrees to everything that the “puppeteer” offers her. For example, some older people blame their adult children for completely forgetting about them. Although children call every day to inquire about the health of their parents, and always visit them on weekends. Unjustified feelings of guilt can prompt the victim (in this case, children) to move in with their parents. But, as a rule, this does not make it any easier for the manipulator. He begins to look for other reasons to blame the victim.

Care.

Yes Yes Yes. I washed the dishes instead of my wife and even made the bed. Then he kissed her and said that I loved her. I carried him around the apartment in my arms a couple of times and said: “Zai, I’ll go with the boys today and drink beer in the sauna?”

Second example. Again on the box: “Pensions will be increased by 500 rubles.” People: “Hurray, what a good state we have.” And on another channel: “We are raising the transport tax...”. People: “Goats, goats. Okay, at least they raised pensions.” I, of course, have been too specific here, but this is even better, since it’s closer to reality.

Attention! If they start caring about you, keep your eyes peeled! In reality, in most cases they are trying to manipulate you. And if it is easy to recognize the manipulation of people who have never cared about you, but then suddenly started, then it is much more difficult to recognize when this is done by a loved one or even a person who loves you.

You can also recall the famous advertising slogans: “We care about you.” And between the lines there is scribbled: “the main thing is, buy, buy.”

A significant advantage of this method is that, even after realizing that you manipulated him, a person is still in a positive mood in most cases, since he is already softened by the care that you showed before. But there are exceptions here, too, so you shouldn’t obviously rely on mercy in case of an error.

Techniques of psychological influence

I have selected several techniques and techniques for managing people that are quite easy to master. Many manipulators use them unconsciously. So, by studying these techniques, you will not only learn how to influence others, but you will also be able to protect yourself from provocations and manipulation by other people.

Limiting selection

Do you want to force a person to make a choice in your favor? Then offer him a limited number of options (for example, 2 or 3), each of which will be beneficial to you. Man by nature is designed in such a way that he does not like to complicate his life. Therefore, he will not come up with anything himself, but will choose one of the proposed options.

Showing gratitude

To motivate someone to do you a favor or share valuable information, you need strong motivation.

A gift or a compliment perfectly fulfills her role. Many of us have been familiar with this control technique since childhood, when we heard from our parents: “Come on, you put away the toys, and I’ll give you candy.” And since in my childhood sweets were rare and were given out only on holidays, I rushed to put things in order at the speed of a cheetah, just to receive the promised sweet gift. For adults, such “candy” is bonuses, getting the desired position, etc.

Demanding more

To use this technique, first ask the person for much more than you actually need. Or, for example, ask him to do something very unusual, which he will definitely enjoy.

After a little time, contact him again with a request. But this time, ask for what you really need. This time the “victim” will agree, because the person will be embarrassed to refuse you 2 times in a row, and your second request will seem much easier to him than the first.

State of stress or absent-mindedness

Managing a person who is under stress is very easy. In such an unstable emotional state (depression, fear, depression, despondency, prostration), it is easy to suggest anything to a person. It doesn't matter to him what to believe, he needs hope. Unfortunately, many scammers take advantage of this. In particular, gypsies love to manipulate people who are not in the best frame of mind.

If you want to get a positive response from a person, but you understand that in a calm environment he is unlikely to agree with you, then create special conditions. In noisy places, in crowded places, or when a person is in a hurry, he makes decisions very quickly, without having time to weigh them and think carefully about them. In such conditions, you are more likely to achieve your goal.

Mirroring

Do you want to please another person? Then carefully copy his gestures, facial expressions, and manner of speech. Psychologists have proven that this technique works on a subconscious level and is effective in most cases. People are subconsciously drawn to those who are similar to them.

To continue learning techniques for managing people, I recommend that you watch the following video.

Sarcasm.

Sarcasm hurts. This is, in principle, its main purpose - to “hurt”. Several times he “hurt” and made the person angry.

Sarcasm is easy to spot. It is much more difficult to understand his goals.

Leaders, for example, very often use sarcasm to raise their self-esteem at the expense of others, especially if they cannot respond adequately. As a result, those around you, oddly enough, believe the leaders (a person who has convinced you many times about little things, even indirectly, for some reason inspires trust. Should he?).

Very often, sarcasm is used to make a person change his mind. You can say: “There is a risk of killing this patient,” or you can: “There is a risk that if something goes wrong, your drug will eat the patient from the inside, eating all his organs.”

This is an example of crude sarcasm. Alternatively, you can say it another way: “Ha. What a cool reputation you’ll have later: a doctor who killed a patient with aspirin.”

I will also add that sarcasm is a kind of art that needs to be honed in practice. It’s better to start with light irony that won’t offend anyone. Further more.

Another everyday example. Let's say you quit drinking. You came to some feast, and someone said to you: “Why are you so sober, like a fool?” or “Let’s drink, why are you like a woman?” Many people easily succumb to such manipulations. (weaklings, really)

The disadvantage of this method is that it is, in principle, quite difficult to learn.

The plus is the powerful effect. Sometimes people simply have nothing to answer and they have to do as you directed them.

I'll repeat it again. To learn, you need to practice and try.

The concept of manipulation in communication

We encounter manipulations in communication every day: in the family, at work, when communicating with friends or strangers.
Manipulation can be called one of the most common types of communication. It is needed for a psychological effect on a person.

Definition 1

Manipulation in communication is a means of control, the ability to control the feelings and behavior of an individual.

The process itself consists of a subject (manipulator) and an object (the recipient of its action). Moreover, the latter is not informed about the intervention in his personality at the psychological level. Therefore, such an impact on people (or a group) often has a condescending or dismissive connotation.

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In communication, psychological manipulation can be encountered at various levels: in a private discussion, in a family, in a team. They can be used both for creative purposes and to demoralize a person. The goal that the manipulator strives for plays a significant role in this. The techniques with which the manipulator intends to influence are also significant.

The art of manipulation

Dexterity of mind, cunning is nothing more than the ability to manipulate different meanings hidden in the same word, to play with contradictory properties and meanings of objects and events.

Aron Isaakovich Belkin

In this life, sometimes you can meet very skillful manipulators who know how to cloud people’s heads so much that one can only marvel at their skill.
And involuntarily there is a desire to understand exactly how they do this - how they manipulate the people around them and achieve great success in this matter. And success in this matter, I tell you, is worth a lot. History shows us that in this world it is the most cunning who survives, who, thanks to his cunning, turns out to be more flexible, adaptable, dexterous, more adequate and generally stronger than others. But people are not born cunning - they become that way. And if you, dear readers, just like me, are interested in learning about how exactly they become like this and what the art of manipulation inherent in cunning people consists of, then I advise you to carefully read this article. In it I will share with you my knowledge and thoughts on this matter. Let's start with the fact that we have all been and continue to be periodically exposed to someone's manipulation. This is a very common phenomenon in our lives. And even if we don’t see and understand all the manipulations, we still figure out some of them, so we have an idea of ​​what it is. There is nothing complicated here. Manipulation [psychological manipulation] is a hidden psychological influence on a person in order to induce him to take some action or force him to abandon it. In other words, this is not a direct or explicit command to a person, but a hidden one. And it is in her secrecy that her strength lies. The art of manipulation begins with the art of hiding one's true intentions and commands. Let's be honest, this is not always easy to do, especially when dealing with smart people. But since we live in a very complex world, in which it is often difficult to separate truth from lies, if you want, you can disguise anything, any intentions and goals, and anyone can be confused in this way. That is, anyone can be manipulated. And any information can be disguised.

Let's now think about how this can be done - how to disguise the truth. Since I have been studying such important things as manipulation and thinking for a long time, I can say that it all starts with understanding how a person thinks. And a person usually thinks in templates - his brain often completes the picture of what is happening on its own, instead of studying the situation as if it were completely unfamiliar to him, as, for example, real scientists or very good detectives do. And since a person likes to think in stereotypes, because it is very easy, his brain begins to deceive itself. He begins to see pictures in his head that are easier for him to see, and not those that exist in reality. For example, if we see a person running away from someone, we can immediately assume several options for why he is doing this. We don’t know what’s really happening, but we assume one way or another. That's what usually happens, right? And if someone gives us a hint, for example, by shouting: “Stop the thief!”, then we will immediately decide for ourselves, looking at the running person, that this is a thief who has stolen something and is therefore running away, and perhaps we will help detain him . Thus, we will react to the pattern that has arisen in our head and obey someone else's command on an unconscious level. But the person running away may not be a thief, but, say, a victim of a robbery or someone who is simply running and not running away. And without knowing it, we will be doing a service to the real criminal. We will do this not because we were misled, this is a secondary factor, but because we will obey our own imagination, in which the running man will be a thief, thanks to a hint from the outside. We will not think much about this situation the moment we take hasty action in response to information from the outside world. We will react reflexively, with little or no involvement of our conscious thinking. Because it's easier and faster. Thus, the truth can be hidden behind one or another pattern, which can be simply evoked in a person with the help of certain clues, both in the form of words and in the form of various scenes that he will observe. And then his lazy mind will decide everything in advance - he will quickly draw a suitable picture from the past in a person’s head and the person will react precisely to it, and not to what is happening in reality.

You see how simple it really is - you just need to help people not think, and they will perceive your information the way you want. If only it coincides with the templates they already have, which their brain can easily substitute for this or that situation, reminiscent of situations from the past or from a person’s imagination. Skilled manipulators feed their victims various patterns of perception of certain situations and thus help them perceive reality, as if automatically, without thinking about it at all.

And in order to give a person a hidden command, you just need to push him to the desired patterned situation in which he is used to acting in a certain way. To do this, manipulators create the illusion of reality, and the victim reacts to it. This can be an illusion of fear or an illusion of pleasure, or any other illusion aimed at a person’s instinctive reactions. We know the simplest human reactions - a person runs away from danger, but reaches out to pleasure, and so on. Once a person creates the illusion of some situation, he will then immerse himself in it and behave in accordance with it. It’s impossible to count how many manipulation techniques are built on this. The only thing that makes life difficult for manipulators is the unpredictability of the behavior of some people. Man is a complex being; in addition to his innate instincts and reflexes, he also has a subconscious, in which the experience of his entire life is layered in a certain way. These experiences cause a person to behave in a certain way in various situations. And since this experience is different for everyone, people behave differently. Thus, different people can react in different ways to fear and other feelings that arise in them. Therefore, in order to successfully manipulate a person, the manipulator must first study him in order to learn about certain patterns of his behavior. This is also the art of manipulation - the ability to read people. When you understand who is in front of you, you can draw a corresponding picture for this person in order to induce him to take some action you need, or, conversely, to inaction. And manipulation, by the way, can be both for good and for evil, depending on the goals of the manipulator.

Let's now think about what hidden commands that we can send to other people give us [as manipulators], and what benefit they can have. And the benefits from them are great. They allow us to overcome a person’s protective psychological barriers, with the help of which he critically perceives information from the outside world and can resist it. You've probably met very stubborn people in your life who will never listen to other people's advice and recommendations, no matter how useful they may be, and will always do everything their own way, no matter what harmful consequences this may lead to. Have you ever wondered why people behave this way, why they are so absurdly stubborn? And the whole point is in their protective psychological barrier, which performs many, both useful and harmful functions, depending on a person’s ability to manage this barrier. Our very nature is ingrained in us that we cannot trust our own kind. And if in life we ​​happen to encounter betrayal, deception, or aggression from other people, then this attitude takes root in us even more strongly. And then try to tell the person that you, for example, wish him well and want to help, when many people told him this before you, and then cynically betrayed him. He won't believe you. But with the help of a hidden command, with the help of a veiled message, you can convey the necessary information to a person and, with its help, encourage him to take certain actions. For example, you can push a person to a useful thought without voicing it to him, so that he thinks that it is his thought and not yours. Then he will accept it and respond to it appropriately. So, it seems like this is manipulation, but it can be very useful if the manipulator has a good goal. And art here can be called the ability to adapt to a person and, as I said above, create for him the necessary illusions that will activate certain patterns in his head and launch a behavior model that is adequate to these patterns.

Do you know what is the most interesting thing in our world? The fact that in it reality is sometimes impossible to distinguish from fiction. And in general, the world we live in is mostly fictional. Rules, laws, traditions determined by our culture - all these are man-made things that largely determine our behavior, life goals and values. And you can always come up with something new that people will believe in and act on. For example, fashion is a good way to encourage people to buy and use certain things. Or you can interpret in a certain way what has already been invented, as, for example, this happens with religion - which can be interpreted in different ways, which in particular is done by numerous religious sects. There is one God, but there are many religions. So there is a lot of room for manipulation.

However, it’s not just about our fictional world. Cunning, deception, manipulation are, in many ways, innate abilities that a person needs to survive. Pay attention to nature - how much cunning and deception there is in it. In it, even predator plants lure their victims by cunning, and there’s nothing to say about camouflage and throwing their eggs into other people’s nests. Manipulation, cunning and deception are all properties of the adaptive instinct. Living organisms need to survive by any means necessary. In addition, the strongest survive, and this is a more flexible, more adaptable, and more, let’s say, universal organism. So the ability to manipulate others must be respected. And develop this skill in yourself so as not to be in the last role in this life. When manipulating someone, you play with reality in order to achieve what you want, and do not try to behave according to some conditional rules that are not followed by all people and not always. The same laws can be interpreted in different ways, depending on the situation and the ability of people to use them. And as you know, our human laws and rules are far from perfect. You can always bypass them. And this must be done when necessary. And if we talk about the laws of nature, they are quite diverse - they can manifest themselves in many ways. Therefore, human cunning has unlimited potential, both in the conventionally real and in the apparently fictional world.

So, as I said above, the art of manipulation lies in the ability to create virtual, imaginary worlds and convince others of their reality. This is the basis of any manipulation, any deception, any cunning. But for this it is necessary to abandon ideas about truth, truth, reality, as fundamental things. You yourself need to learn to live in an imaginary world in order to be able to create such worlds and inspire others with their truth. This is not difficult to do if you understand that no matter what this world actually is, it will still be the way we imagine it. You see, the final picture of this world appears in our head, in our brain. It is in it that all our worlds, both real and virtual, are created. And the eyes, ears and other sense organs only transmit nerve impulses to the brain, which it then transforms into a certain coherent, holistic picture of reality, into certain images and concepts. This transformation of signals into a finished picture of reality is influenced not only by stimuli from the outside world, but also by a person’s previously existing ideas about these signals. These are the same templates that I wrote about above. But these patterns can be raised in a person’s memory in different ways, including with the help of words. It is not at all necessary to reproduce a situation entirely in order to convince a person of its reality; it is enough to reproduce the most significant moments of this situation, or even just its minor elements, and then the person’s brain itself will complete the necessary details of the whole picture and believe in its existence in the present time. This is why words can sometimes be taken as seriously by a person as the situation itself. Therefore, what we see, hear and feel is no less, if not more important for us than what we see, hear and feel. That is, reality and the idea of ​​it are equivalent for people. The magic of persuasion is built on this, which simply allows people to see, hear and feel what the magician - a specialist in suggestion - inspires in them. You see the sun, and the magician explains to you what exactly you see - what it [the sun] means, what is the meaning in it, what powers are contained in it, where it came from, how it affects our lives, and so on and so forth. That is, it paints a picture of reality in your head. It gives meaning to the image you observe. And manipulation here will be any hidden message to a person, calling him to action.

This is not just the art of manipulation - it is, one might say, the secret of manipulation, its basis. Explaining to people what they perceive through their senses is a very, very important point in this matter. Learn to give the meaning you need to various things and phenomena in this life and instill it in people, and you will gain power over them. Most people, in most situations, need explanations for most things. They want to understand what they see, hear, feel. They even want to understand what they know. We all need this, it’s just that many of us need other people’s explanations, not our own speculations. And this need of people for an external source of explanation makes them very vulnerable to the most sophisticated manipulations. I call this method of influencing people magic, because it involves the creation of images and concepts in a person’s head out of thin air. And I must say that the modern world is full of such magic. Take, for example, the fashion I already mentioned - does anyone ask you what you consider fashionable and what is not? You are simply told that such and such things have become fashionable this season and you begin to appreciate them accordingly, even if they look terrible. Fashion creates a virtual [imaginary] reality and convinces others that this reality is more important than the reality that they themselves see or try to explain. And given that most people are suggestible, it becomes obvious that anything can be suggested to them.

The world is very complex and at the same time very simple. It is complex in itself, but simple because we can have a fairly simplified model of it in our heads. As Newton once said: “Nature is extremely simple and harmonious in itself.” And from the point of view of some physical laws, this is indeed so. But here we must clarify that nature can only be simple in our understanding of some of its laws, which we can formulate in a certain way. But in reality, nature is infinitely complex - it cannot be studied completely and completely known. This means that the possibilities of manipulation as a way of creating numerous imaginary worlds are limitless. You can come up with anything and put it in any package you want - be it religious, even scientific, even everyday, there are a lot of options. The main thing is to instill in people the reality of virtuality, giving appropriate meaning to what is and/or what is not. This is what all those people and organizations do that seek to subjugate other people without the help of violence and without any cooperation. This, it should be noted, is a great art - inventing for people the world in which they live and convincing them of its reality.

There are many different centers in the world where specialists of various levels work on sophisticated ways of manipulating people. They do this in the same way as scientists of different profiles work on new types of weapons. After all, manipulation is also a weapon, and a very powerful one at that. You can build rockets, tanks, airplanes, warships, but all this high-tech “hardware” takes on meaning only thanks to a person, or rather, what is in his head. And this is exactly what manipulation is aimed at. They can control a person, who in turn controls weapons and iron. And in general, manipulations can have different goals - economic, political, ideological, etc. This is a way to motivate people to take the necessary actions. You can force people to do something, you can bribe them with something, interest them so that they do something for you for some benefit, or you can use covert influence [manipulation] to force them to do something for you. Then there will be no need for violence or bribery.

So whether we like it or not, there will always be people who want to get into our heads in order to influence our behavior through it. And if some of them, for example, conscientious psychologists, do this in order to help people get rid of some problems, then others - I call them predatory people - do this solely for the sake of their selfish interests. This is how it was and how it will always be. As long as human nature is what it is, he will seek gain in a variety of ways, including those that cause harm and suffering to other people. And manipulation is just one of the tools to influence people that anyone can adopt.