Marci Copeland
Leadership Book Report
BUSI 1200 Section 602
Thank You for Arguing: What Aristotle, Lincoln, and Homer Simpson Can Teach Us About
the Art of Persuasion by Jay Heinrichs
Summary
When you hear the word argument, what thought comes to mind? Most people think of
argument as a fight or heated discussion between two people, however arguments are used every
day in business and political settings to persuade others to their way of thinking. “The basic
difference between an argument and a fight: an argument, done skillfully, gets people to want to
do what you want. You fight to win; you argue to achieve agreement” (Heinrichs 17).
The author captivated you with his personal stories as well as presenting clear examples
from Aristotle, Marcus Cicero, Homer Simpson, and many more to provide examples of making
a good argument no matter what the situation. Be sure to use the defensive tools such as the
correct tense when presenting your argument and make any changes as you are presenting to win
over the audience and get your point of view across. Incorporating the “three most powerful
tools of persuasion: Argument by character, Argument by logic, and argument by emotion” will
provide arguments that will win over your audience and often times make them believe they
have won (Heinrichs 38). These powerful offense argument tools that were provided by
Aristotle and are the main focus in the book are also known as logos, ethos, and pathos
(Heinrichs 39).
“The tools of logos let you apply facts (if you have them), values, and attitudes to a
particular problem” (Heinrichs 130). Logos or logic is important for a strong foundation to build
your argument around in the attempt to persuade your audience. Beware, however of what is
considered “bad logic” (Heinrichs 145). According to the author, there are actually “seven
deadly logical sins”, but he condensed them to three to only include, “bad proof, wrong number
of choices, and disconnect between proof and conclusion” (Heinrichs 146). Logic can persuade
your audience, however if you utilize information that doesn’t support your argument,
contradicts your argument, or is wrong, your audience will not be persuaded and your argument
will fail.
By utilizing ethos or character in your argument you are making the audience think you
have common viewpoints, ability to solve any problem that comes about, and portraying a
selfless attitude. In turn, your audience will believe what you are telling them in your argument
and will be effective in persuading them to your point.
Sparking the emotions or pathos of your audience will often persuade the audience to
your argument. Utilizing personal stories, adding humor, and passion to your argument is
important in presenting an argument that’s believable. Often times the author utilized personal
stories of his son, daughter, and wife to give examples of how he persuaded them or won an
argument, which can be utilized in more formal settings such as a business proposal or political
setting.
You must utilize the offense tools and defense tools to persuade your audience to your
argument. Connecting with your audience, getting to know them, getting you audience to
believe and trust in you is important for you to be successful in getting your argument across to
your audience and persuading them to your point of view.
Leadership
To get their point across or reach their goal, leaders often use persuasion to bring others
to their point of view. A good leader uses logos or the facts to support decisions they make and
presenting them to others persuading them of supporting the decision. Also, a key to leadership
is a selfless attitude or ethos, where the priority for the leader is their concern for the company
and employees, not of concern for themselves. Leaders often maintain control of situations for a
set outcome. This book illustrates how using logos, ethos, and pathos in an argument will help
you maintain control winning over your audience, which I believe can also be used by leaders to
win over their managers, employees, and clients/consumers. An effective leader knows the right
timing of when decisions should be made and presenting them at an appropriate time the same as
a good persuader. Also, leaders are responsible for comparing the pros and cons of situations to
make decisions. Leaders utilize some of the tips shown in Thank You For Arguing, such as using
the correct tense, values, character, emotions, and goals in making decisions.
By incorporating the tools presented in Thank You For Arguing, a leader can become
more effective by following the tips provided that start with a good foundation and structure to
be effective in getting your point across and accepted by others. Different leaders were shown as
powerful examples, some as effective leaders while others were ineffective. This helped to
showcase and place the spotlight on the skills utilized by effective leaders.
Conclusion
Thank You For Arguing provides tips in the art of persuasion. The tips described are
useful for business leaders, political leaders, even personal discussions. However, one thing I
disagreed with the authors statement, “Don’t apologize at all.” (Heinrichs 253). The author
wants you to own up to a mistake but not actually state that they apologize for making the
mistake. I disagree, I think it shows character and sincerity to apologize and own up to a mistake
and state any action put in place to avoid the same mistake in the future. This shows more
character of the person that made a mistake, after all we are only human. To me an apology is
also a sign of respect for the leader and the company.
The most important point I took from this book was the use and importance of using
emotion when trying to argue or persuade a point. Examples provided by Aristotle, showed how
effective different emotions or bringing out different emotions from people can affect the
outcome of your argument. The use of storytelling evokes emotion, resulting in the audience
feeling strongly for or against the argument depending on if the proper emotions were aroused.
I would recommend Thank You For Arguing. This is a useful tool, whether in business or
personal to learn how to persuade others to your point of view. It provides you with some dos
and don’ts, and how to try to correct yourself during your argument if things are not in your
favor. This is a good book for future leaders to read that can incorporate things learned into their
management style.
It provides good tools from Cicero for organizing and delivering a
persuasive speech. This can be useful for leaders not only in an organized meeting but also as an
example, when meeting with employees to incorporate changes, the same tools and
organizational structure can be used as illustrated in Thank You For Arguing. Many examples
from Winston Churchill, Michael Dukakis, President Obama, and The Simpsons helps you to
relate and see how to argue a point. This is an important feature that helps us to relate and
incorporate these tools into our everyday and business environment.
Works Cited
Heinrichs, Jay. Thank You for Arguing: What Aristotle, Lincoln, and Homer Simpson Can Teach Us
about the Art of Persuasion. New York: Three Rivers, 2013. Print.