Being persuasive is often a function of being (or at least appearing) trustworthy. The more people trust you, the more likely they are to listen to your words and do what you want. To that end, the HAIL method can guide you.

Sound consultant Julian Treasure explains the four principles of the HAIL method: Honesty, Authenticity, Integrity and Love. While it may sound cheesy, these four ideas all have a direct effect on how trustworthy you come across and, as a result, how persuasive you are:

The H is honesty, of course, being honest in what you say, being straightforward. The A is authenticity, just being yourself. A friend of mine described it as standing in your own truth, which I think is a nice way of putting it. The I is integrity, keeping your word, actually doing what you say and being someone that people can trust. And the L is love. I don't mean romantic love, but I do mean wishing people well, for two reasons. First, I think absolute honesty is maybe not what we want. I mean, my goodness, you look ugly this morning. Maybe that's not necessary. Tempered with love, honesty is of course great. But when you really wish someone well, it's also really hard to judge them at the same time. I'm not even sure you can do both at the same time.

Of course, this isn’t revolutionary news. The more authentic and honest you are, the more people are willing to trust you. That’s how trust works. But putting your conversations, speech, and behavior through this filter can help you stay on track.