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| PolySkeptic (Photo credit: Wikipedia) |
Previously I've highlighted 5 secrets of expert bullsh**ers (and scammers) based on article from Psychology Today. Most scammers know not to take on the skeptics directly, because skeptics are NOT vulnerable to the 5 secrets.
Secret 1: Skeptics are NOT afraid to challenge Scam Leaders
Sheeple are afraid to challenge the leaders. They will either clam up or just "go along with the crowd" even when they don't really agree with the leader.
Skeptics are not afraid to challenge the leader for answers. If they don't get an answer, they'll find a way to get an answer. They are very much like scientists... devising ways to get at the data to analyze.
Secret 2: Skeptics do NOT accept tales told at face value, but always seek verification
Sheeple are easily impressed by titles, alleged experience, and even association with titles or alleged experience. MLMers thus often claimed "top rank in multiple companies", "decades of experience", and so on. Or have hired the biggest lawyers or associated with the biggest companies.
Skeptics never accept titles or experience at face value, but instead, figure out how such titles and experience are earned (or faked). Skeptics know having X years in an particular industry doesn't mean much. And titles and degrees can be faked. Even hiring of lawyers can be faked. Skeptics prefer to see proof, not "I told you so".
Secret 3: Skeptics regard arrogance as an act
Sheeple are impressed by people with confidence, "natural leaders" and some such. So much so, some MLM coaches advocate "fake it till you make it", i.e. simply "pretend" to be arrogant and after you do it for a while it'll be second nature.
Skeptics, on the other hand, don't let attitude and/or personal likes dictate their impression. Thus, acting arrogant doesn't impress skeptics at all. Skeptics also know about the "fake it till you make it" technique and are not impressed by it.
Secret 4: Skeptics see through bogus claims of esoteric knowledge or techniques
One way to draw in sheeple is to promise them money, power, and such through some sort of secret knowledge. Indeed, that's why self-help book industry had taken off. They all claim to solve some problem for you, from finding love to finding confidence. And most scammers will claim to offer you riches, if you'd only pay him. Most financial scams claim esoteric knowledge, such as foreign exchange, bridge financing, special fund, and some crazy secrets.
Skeptics on the other hand, is far more realistic, not believing in this sort of esoteric knowledge until they see some proof, and having seen many scams before, are skeptical of such claims of esoteric knowledge.
Secret 5: SKeptics see through the attempts at delaying the inevitable
Sheeple can often be appeased through promises, and scammers will often delay the promise by claiming some sort of problem, like "banking problem", "computer problem", or some other such bogus excuses that are impossible to corroborate. Through repeated delays, the sheeple can be kept on the hook almost indefinitely.
Skeptics, on the other hand, want answers, and take the lack of answers as signs that there are no answers that won't be incriminating in some way. I.e. "absence of an answer is in itself an answer." Evasion does not work on skeptics.
All in all, skeptics are the nemesis of scammers because none of their 5 major techniques work on skeptics.
To avoid getting scammed, you need to know these five techniques and how to counter them. Then you'd be a skeptic.
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