For the first 6 years of my career, I had the privilege of teaching psychology to over 1,400 high school students.

Here are 27 things that I taught them (that I now directly apply to writing and marketing) that helped me 4x my income.

They're worth a read.

First, a fair warning:

Elements of psychology, such as cognitive biases, are powerful things, not to be trifled with.

These are not toys.

Please use them for good.

Chaotic good, if you must.

Don’t be evil.

The Sunk Cost Fallacy

Once humans invest something (time, capital, emotion) into a project, they are more likely to finish it.

Wonderful if what they are finishing will help them (like an online course).

Awful if it prevents them from letting go (a failing business).

The Generation Effect

Things are better remembered if they are generated from your own mind, versus read, heard, or seen.

Researchers still debate why this is.

Wonderful because what we do know is that it leads to better recall and recognition.

Is there a downside?

Loss Aversion

Humans tend to prefer avoiding a loss, versus acquiring something new.

We will do more work to prevent losing $100 vs make $100.

Wonderful when we use this effect to offer trial periods and rebates.

Awful when we use it to create fear that drives a purchase.

That's all for today.

I'll be tweeting a few of these every day for the next week or so (adding to this thread - maybe bookmark it?)

Follow me if you want to keep getting these in your timeline, as well as improve your writing, marketing, and SEO.