The Ben Franklin Effect

Imagine you beamed at a stranger and, in turn he enthausiastically traded smiles with you.

In our heart of hearts, we all desire to be instantly favoured by our peers. I am here to share with you the lesser known “Benjamin Franklin Effect” and it’s all about a counterintuitive bit of advice that can make others look upon you more favorably because no one likes to be a mooch.

In his renowned autobiography,The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin, Franklin details an instance when he wrote to a political rival and asked to borrow a rare book in his possession. The rival sent it across to him. A week later, Franklin sent a thank you note to him along with the book.

Rivals of the past were pals for life later by this simple gesture of seeking favours.

He that has once done you a kindness will be more ready to do you another, than he whom you yourself have obliged.

In a2014 study, participants in the U.S. and Japan were studied while working on various projects. They found that participants ended up liking a person more when that person asked for help completing their project than when they didn’t. And similar results were found in a previous1969 study.

The favours could range from borrowing a pen to asking someone to lend her perfume for your date or seeking recipes from a your next-door neighbour and even some homework help from the class topper.The psychologist behind this study, Yu Niiya of Hosei Univer..

The psychologist behind this study, Yu Niiya of Hosei University in Tokyo,is of the opinion that the Ben Franklin effect isn't a result of cognitive dissonance. Instead, she says it happens because the person being asked for help can sense that the person asking for help wants to get chummy with them and in turn reciprocates the liking.

Regardless of the specific mechanism behind the Ben Franklin Effect, the bottom line is that asking help should not make your hands-legs swell. In fact, you can deploy your requests for help strategically, a la Franklin, to win over rivals, haters and even strangers. As you drop this great skill in your utility build I wish you luck as you venture to harness the power of the 'Ben Franklin Effect'.