because there didn’t seem to be enough time to study. He had come to
the meeting to find out if TM could help by training him to need fewer
hours of sleep each night; the additional time could then be used for
study. It is interesting to note that the recruiters informed him as well
as the insomniac that Transcendental Meditation techniques could solve
their respective, though opposite, problems.
Still thinking that the three must have signed up because they hadn’t
understood the points made by my logician friend, I began to question
them about aspects of his argument. To my surprise, I found that they
had understood his comments quite well; in fact, all too well. It was
precisely the cogency of his argument that drove them to sign up for
the program on the spot. The spokesman put it best: “Well, I wasn’t
going to put down any money tonight because I’m really quite broke
right now; I was going to wait until the next meeting. But when your
buddy started talking, I knew I’d better give them my money now, or
I’d go home and start thinking about what he said and never sign up.”
All at once, things began to make sense. These were people with real
problems; and they were somewhat desperately searching for a way to
solve those problems. They were seekers who, if our discussion leaders
were to be believed, had found a potential solution in TM. Driven by
their needs, they very much wanted to believe that TM was their answer.
Now, in the form of my colleague, intrudes the voice of reason,
showing the theory underlying their newfound solution to be unsound.
Panic! Something must be done at once before logic takes its toll and
leaves them without hope again. Quickly, quickly, walls against reason
are needed; and it doesn’t matter that the fortress to be erected is a
foolish one. “Quick, a hiding place from thought! Here, take this money.
Whew, safe in the nick of time. No need to think about the issues any
longer. The decision has been made, and from now on the consistency
tape can be played whenever necessary: ‘TM? Certainly I think it will
help me; certainly I expect to continue; certainly I believe in TM. I
already put my money down for it, didn’t I?’ Ah, the comforts of
mindless consistency. I’ll just rest right here for a while. It’s so much
nicer than the worry and strain of that hard, hard search.”
If, as it appears, automatic consistency functions as a shield against
thought, it should not be surprising that such consistency can also be
exploited by those who would prefer that we not think too much in
response to their requests for our compliance. For the exploiters, whose
interest will be served by an unthinking, mechanical reaction to their
requests, our tendency for automatic consistency is a gold mine. So
clever are they at arranging to have us play our consistency tapes when
it profits them that we seldom realize we have been taken. In fine jujitsu
48 / Influence