Do you make your own decisions?

To what extent do you make your own decisions, and to what extent are your beliefs and your behaviour influenced by how you see other people around you acting? This rather deep philosophical question was the theme of the last meeting of the London Business Book Club, an exciting new group organised by Catherine Crawley. As reported elsewhere, the guest speaker at this meeting was Mark Earls, author of HERD: How to Change Mass Behaviour by Harnessing Our True Nature.

Mark has had a successful career in the advertising industry, but this book challenges some fundamental assumptions that advertisers – and in fact that all of us – make about human nature. It’s generally accepted that the way to get people to buy your product or vote for your candidate is to provide the most persuasive information in the most suitable way, and then rely on the individual to make a rational decision in your favour.

We all know that we can be influenced by others to some degree, but we tend to think of “mob behaviour” as something purely negative, and generally marginal, and so we warn our children and ourselves to stay away from “bad influences”. Surely, we feel, when it comes to important decisions, we will act independently and rationally.

Mark Earls doesn’t agree. The idea of the completely independent individual is a cultural artefact peculiar to the Northern European Anglo-Saxon tradition, and even rationality itself is an illusion. Humans are a social species, far closer to our chimpanzee cousins in our behaviour than many of us care to admit. What we see others doing has a profound effect not only on what we do, but also on what we believe. Earls cites Barack Obama’s election slogan of “Yes we can” as a way in which people were encouraged to think of themselves as part of a social community, and as a result develop much stronger loyalty to the cause than would have been the case if they had seen themselves merely as supporters of a political candidate.

On a larger scale, it is our ability to co-operate in large groups that has powered our evolution. If Mark Earls is right, and it is difficult to read this well researched book without agreeing with him to some extent, then anyone involved in communication and marketing needs to re-examine every one of their assumptions. If you want a new insight into human nature, and in particular if your business depends on influencing behaviour, then you really must read this book.

Having your fundamental beliefs about human nature challenged by someone as competent and persuasive as Mark Earls could have been a disturbing experience. But in the warm and supportive atmosphere of the Book Club it was challenging, exciting, and enjoyable, and I think everyone who was there would agree.

I am certainly looking forward to the next Book Club meeting, scheduled for Wednesday 9th September, when the speaker will be Jonathan Salem Baskin, author of Branding Only Works on Cattle. There are more details on the London Business Book Club’s Facebook page.

By the way, one of the ways Catherine wants to make this book club special is to encourage people to bring a business book with them and swap it with others. She is quite clear that these swaps are loans, and that you would get your book back at the next meeting. So I hope you’ll come along to the next meeting. I may even lend you my copy of HERD!