Comms Lab: Ethos, Pagos, Logos
Comms Lab: Episode 25
Ethos, Pathos, Logos – 3 Ancient Ideas to Build Trust and Connect
Aristotle was a clever dude.
There’s a reason why, even in 2022, his ideas are still relevant. In this video, we review 3 of his best: ETHOS, PATHOS and LOGOS. They were originally formulated as tools to assist public speakers to sway their audience, but with a little tinkering, I’ve been able to apply them to a much broader range of communication challenges.
These tools have helped me build trust, connection and influence. And I think they could do the same for you. Got feedback for me? Great! I’m always trying to make my videos better and more relevant. Let me know what you think in the comments section.
In this episode of Comms Lab, I explore the closest thing I know of to a Jedi Mind Trick, and it all comes down to a single word. We dive into the science of instant influence.
0:00 – Is it possible…?
0:46 – From Humble Beginnings..
2:40 – ETHOS – credible, qualified, competent
4:21 – PATHOS – connect at the level of emotion (empathy and validation)
6:03 – LOGOS – the logical argument (reasoning, facts, figures, examples)
7:28 – Aristotle’s Tripod
References
- Richards H. ETHOS, PATHOS, LOGOS – 3 Ancient Ideas to Build Trust and Connect
- Richards H. ETHOS: Leverage Your Skills to Build Trust… & Avoid the Pitfalls
- Richards H. PATHOS: Build Trust at the Level of Emotion
- Richards H. LOGOS: Leverage Logic to Make Your Point
Further reading
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Comms Lab
A path to highly effective communication skills
Hayden is an emergency physician at University Hospital Geelong and a senior lecturer at Deakin University, Geelong. He is somewhat obsessed with the science and art of effective communication, and in particular: difficult conversations. He believes that we can all get better at having difficult conversations, and that the process of learning to do so can be seriously fun.
Hayden is also an avid but terrible surfer, ad hoc gardener, and dad to two awesome kids. | LinkedIn |