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Fortune Tellers, Spies & Sales Pros All Use These 5 Powerful Cold Reading Techniques to Instantly Build Trust & Credibility
"The Psychological Secrets Fortune Tellers, Spies, and Sales Pros Use to Gain Instant Trust and Influence—And How You Can Too"
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Table of Contents
What is Cold Reading?
Cold reading is a phrase used to refer to a wide variety of psychological and conversational techniques traditionally practised by fortune tellers, magicians, mentalists, ‘psychics’ and spies. The goal of the technique is to make people believe you know more about them than you actually do. Cold reading techniques are useful for quickly building rapid rapport, trust and authority.
In this article we’ll briefly go over 5 of the most common, most powerful techniques for cold reading and you’ll be able to start practising these today.
5 Mind-Tricks to Make Anyone Think You Know & Understand Them
The Rainbow Ruse – Saying Opposite Things to Sound Incredibly Accurate
The Rainbow Ruse is a technique that makes a statement seem highly specific and insightful by covering both sides of a personality trait. This allows almost anyone to relate because it acknowledges contradictions within human nature. The statements are completely vacuous but that’s okay because most people don’t really think about the words they hear!
“You can be very confident in certain situations, but there are moments when you second-guess yourself, especially when something really matters to you.”
“You’re outgoing and sociable, but you also have times when you just need to be alone and recharge.”
“You often project strength and independence but there are times when things get to you and other people don’t realize.”
Why It Works
We are paradoxical creatures and people see themselves as complex, so statements that recognize both sides of their personality feel especially insightful.
We are self validating and automatically focus on what we believe is relevant to us and filter and/or forget the rest
Because it captures a dynamic range of behaviors, it seems like you’ve noticed their unique contradictions. It feels and sounds personal.
How to Use the Rainbow Ruse in Conversations
Blend Contrasting Traits – Always include both sides of a behavior (e.g., “You’re confident, but at times, you can be quite self-critical.”).
Use a Thoughtful Tone – Pausing before delivering the second half makes it feel like a careful observation rather than a generic statement.
Let Them Choose Which Part Fits – People will naturally focus on the side that resonates most and ignore the rest.
The Rainbow Ruse is one of the most effective ways to sound deeply insightful with minimal information. It acknowledges complexity, allowing anyone to relate while making it seem like you’ve uncovered something unique about them.
Shotgun Statements – Cast a Wide Net and Hit the Bullseye
Shotgun statements are broad, generalized observations designed to sound specific. You scatter a range of possibilities and let the subject latch onto what feels relevant.
Imagine you’re at a networking event and want to seem insightful:
“You’ve got a sharp mind and pick up on details that others miss, but sometimes, you hold back your thoughts because you don’t want to come across the wrong way.”
“Lately, you’ve been feeling a bit overwhelmed, not necessarily all the time, but there are moments when everything just seems like too much to handle at once.”
“There’s someone in your life you care about deeply, but at times, they frustrate you because you feel like they don’t fully understand you.”
MASSIVE PRO INSIDER TIP - You can reframe almost any statement on this page as a question. Not only will this make you more confident about trying these techniques but it makes the much more effective at creating rapid trust and rapport.