Would you believe me if I told you that when I was working as a salesman, one of the most important training lessons I ever had was about how people learn?
If you prefer to watch a video, click on this link: Watch the video.
It’s true! People learn in one of three ways: through seeing (visual), through hearing (aural), and through touching (tactile). The percentage of people who learn these ways is as follows:
Visual learners – 65%
Aural earners- 30%
Tactile learners- 5%
I was (if I do say so myself) a very good salesman, closing in one call 35-40% of the time, and one of the reasons for that success was that I would discover by talking with the people which way they learned, and then take that approach with them when going through my “pitch”.
For example, since most people learn visually, I used what we call the “Talking Pad”. This simply means that whatever I said I also wrote down on a writing tablet for them to see. I became so good at writing upside-down, my penmanship was actually better that way!
If I found that they were better at listening, I would talk a little slower, and if they seemed to be that rare type who learned best by touching, I would use samples a lot and allow them to hold the material.
I also used terminology that fit their learning system: for visual, I would use terms such as “Can you see what I mean”; for aural, “Can you hear what I am saying”; and for tactile “Doesn’t this have a good feel to you?”
Yes, sales is all about psychology: one saying in sales is that you don’t sell the steak, you sell the sizzle.
So, nu? What does this have to do with God, or religion or spiritual things?
Everything!
Everything you know about God and messiah and the Bible has to be told to people, and whether they believe you or not, it is something you need to present to them in a way that they can understand you. Missionary work is sales- like it or not, that is what it is.
Shaul, that nice tent-making Pharisee from Tarsus, was an excellent salesman. He gave his customers what they wanted to hear, in a way they could accept it.
And what is really incongruent about missionary work is that we are selling something that everyone wants (eternal peace and joy), and we tell them it is absolutely free, yet so few are interested in getting it.
The problem with most people being visual learners is that it is so easy to paint a picture that they love, and they won’t go beyond learning what they see.
Pictures of people in heaven, pictures all over social media of Yeshua holding his arms open to you when you die, angels with wings protecting children, and so many other goody-goody, rose-colored glasses sort of pictorials of heaven and eternity.
YUCK! It is all wrong- we don’t go to heaven, our loved ones do not come to meet us when we die, and Yeshua is not standing at the pearly gates waiting to welcome you with open arms.
But 65% of the people seeing these pictures accept them as they are, and they do not go any further than that.
What we need to do to help people come to know God and accept Yeshua is to be able to teach using the way people learn, which means, first and foremost, asking questions. Too many people sell the steak, in other words, they talk on and on about what they know and how important this is for you to believe, otherwise you go to hell.
Sorry, but that won’t help anyone. All it will do is get those who are weak and easily scared to agree with you. But those types will accept what you say, then as soon as you leave, they will accept what the next fear-monger sells them.
The thing for believers who want to help people know God and messiah to do is to learn how the person you are talking to learns, and then approach them that way. It is always good to have some tracts with you, since most of the people will learn by reading, and also a prepared “spiel” that gives them the very basics for those who learn by listening.
When approaching those who learn by touch, well, that is a hard thing to overcome when talking about a spirit, so use terms that appeal to tactile things, like how it feels when you are touched by God, how being saved is like being hugged, and how knowing God is like having a warm blanket around you on a cold night.
We must overcome the pretty pictures all over the world in order for people to know the truth about God, messiah Yeshua, and salvation.
In fact, that is why I write a message then make a video, so that between the reading , watching, and hearing, I hit 95% of the people where they learn.
Maybe that’s why God said not to make any images of anything in the sky, on the earth, or in the water: he knew how easy it is for people to be taught lies and to twist his truth with pretty pictures that mislead people.
Thank you for being here and please share these messages to help this ministry grow. Subscribe to my website and YouTube channel, buy my books, and join my Facebook group called “Just God’s Word” (please make sure you read and agree to the rules).
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That’s it for today, so l’hitraot and Baruch HaShem!
