“Mr. J.P.  Morgan,” you might remind him, “when asked the basis upon which he loaned money, replied, ‘Character, principally.’  I offer you the security that Mr. Morgan considered most important.  You know my reputation is good.  You perceive that my plan is sound, and that I have thought it out thoroughly.  You do not expect me to lose money.  I have proposed to protect you as fully as possible by agreeing in advance that I will take no step until after your approval has been given.  Therefore, in addition to my character, I am offering you the security of your own mature, sound judgment on all operations.

[Sidenote:  A New Idea Of Security]

“Don’t you believe that my squareness, guided by your advice, would secure you?  I have applied for a loan of only ten thousand dollars.  You will absolutely control the expenditure of the money.  You know, therefore, that at the worst I could not have a large loss.  I have offered you life insurance to protect you against the possibility of my death within the next five years.  It is altogether improbable that I should have a loss of as much as a thousand dollars in the new business.  Certainly you have sufficient confidence in my ability and integrity to believe that I could and would repay you a thousand dollars with interest before the expiration of five years.  I expect, and you expect, that my venture will prove successful.  I have planned a sound business enterprise, free from the dangers of speculation.  With the cooperation of your judgment, your loan would be a secure investment.  I believe you are now convinced of that.”

[Sidenote:  Reaching Heart Through Mind]

Notice that the objection is dealt with powerfully; yet there is no appeal that is aimed away from the prospect’s mind.  For this very reason his sympathy with the proposal is likely to be stimulated. Such salesmanship often has the effect of enlisting the heart of the other man after removing the objection of his mind.

[Sidenote:  Objection on Emotional Basis]

Let us assume now that the prospect refuses to make the loan to you because he has been imposed upon before by some one he has backed.  He may really want to lend you the money, but his heart has been so embittered by his previous experience that he turns a deaf ear to your proposition.  His opposition is based chiefly on feeling.  His heart, not his mind, is at the bottom of his refusal of your request for a loan.  He would not be reached by the appeal that would be effective with the man in the first example.  This second prospect should be addressed something like this: 

“The experiences you have had hurt you, principally because they have made you lose faith in men.  This, not the money involved, was your greatest loss.  So long as you have only those experiences to think about, you will be unable to get back your former belief in human nature.  You would like to recover it.  You would be happy to feel that the men who abused your confidence were exceptions, and not the rule.