#137: So, How Much Can You Learn in 59 Seconds?

Introduction

Today, on the "People Skills" newsletter, we're showcasing one of our favourite video channels: "In59seconds".

If you don't know them, you're in for a delightful surprise.

So, let's give you 3 good reasons for taking a look.

#01. Just as the name suggests, all of "In59seconds" videos lasts just... well, 59 seconds! You don't get more micro-learnable than that.

#02. Second, presenter, Richard Wiseman, cleverly uses those 59 seconds to give you an interesting people skills hack that you can instantly try out for yourself.

#03. Third, "In59seconds" is a hugely popular site with 1.56 million subscribers and videos with up to 5 million views. Which means they must be doing something right!

So, we've selected a random selection of 12 "In59seconds" videos to give you a taster. Starting with...

01. The Secret of Instant Likeability

A few years ago, researchers from Harvard Business School carried out a remarkable study into likeability...

02. Persuasion Mind Trick: How to Impress in Meetings

Imagine that you are in charge of a company and are hiring for a new position. Here are the candidates. Without thinking about it too much, which one would you choose?

03. The Empathy Test

There's more to yawning than meets the eye. Research shows that yawning is contagious. So, when you see someone yawning, you will begin to feel like yawning...

04. Are You Naturally Creative or Analytical? Find Out in 5 Seconds...

I'd like you to clasp your hands together and keep them in that position for a moment. Some researchers see the brain as having two general modes...

05. How to Be More Creative in Seconds!

Let's find out if you're a creative thinker. You have just a few seconds to find out the number of the space occupied by the car in this picture...

06. How to Arrange Your Office

Take a look at these two shapes. One of them is seen as friendly and the other as unfriendly. Which is which?

07. Secret Persuasion Mind Trick

It's time to talk about the psychology of persuasion. A few years ago, researchers approached houseowners and asked them to place a huge sign saying, "Drive Carefully", in their front garden...

08. How to Achieve Your Goals

It's time for a quick visualisation exercise. Spend the next few moments imagining your ideal future, perhaps thinking about your ideal partner or your dream job. Go...

09. When Small Change = Large Effect

People often think that change involves a radical overhaul of their entire lives. However, there are lots of situations in which a tiny change has a surprisingly large impact...

10. When Bad Things Happen

Take a look at this picture. The man and the woman look a tad unhappy. However, rotate the picture around and they instantly cheer up...

11. How to Instantly Improve Meetings

Let's imagine that you're about to hold a meeting to make an important decision and you're in a hurry. Is it better to hold the meeting standing up or sitting down...?

12. The Power of Persuasion

Psychologists interested in persuasion have examined the impact of making an outrageous request and then following it up with a much more modest offer...

What Next?

If you have worked through each video in this newsletter, you will now have a great set of simple but powerful tips on how you act in different workplace scenarios.

Now's the time to build on what you've learnt.

With over 22,000 learning resources on our 6 websites, with 2 sites offering free downloads, you can now take charge of your own learning and apply what you have learnt in your work and day-to-day life.

With regular daily practise, reflection, and review, you will be amazed at how quickly the skills will become second nature to you which in their turn will increase your personal confidence.

Well done and good luck!