NA
You have seen this before. Two people say the same thing in a meeting. One lands. One does not. It is not intelligence. It is timing.
Influence inside modern organisations is shifting. In environments shaped by information overload, hybrid work, declining institutional trust and increasingly sceptical stakeholders, traditional models built on authority and pressure are becoming less effective. The real advantage is no longer what you say, but how a moment is shaped before you speak.
Australian communications strategist and writer Jeff Purser explores this his newly released guidebook ‘YES YES YES: The Playbook of Persuasion’. Drawing on more than two decades working across elite sport, media and entertainment — including senior leadership roles connected to the Olympics, the South Sydney Rabbitohs and Optus TV — Purser documents a recurring behavioural sequence he observed inside leadership environments, suggesting effective influence is less about controlling outcomes and more about recognising the emotional journey people move through when forming decisions.
‘YES YES YES’ centres on a framework that consists of two interconnected concepts Purser believes underpin human persuasion: the Five Heartbeats and the Ten Masks.
The Five Heartbeats — Pulse, Build, Pause, Flow and Sustain — describe the emotional rhythm through which attention ignites, trust strengthens, and commitment settles. The Ten Masks represent the distinct modes of presence people instinctively adopt as influence moves through these emotional stages. Influence succeeds when behaviour matches the moment, or within Purser’s model, when the mask matches the heartbeat.
The Masks include:
• The Firestarter: Creates momentum through clarity and decisiveness
• The Siren: Captures attention through restraint and controlled presence
• The Architect: Builds trust through preparation and structural clarity
• The Oracle: Identifies emerging shifts and speaks at pivotal moments
• The Mirror: Builds connection through deep, authentic listening
• The Keeper: Strengthens trust through consistency and reliability over time
• The Dancer: Adapts fluidly while maintaining composure and direction
• The Reframer: Changes perception by revealing new ways of viewing challenges
• The Sculptor: Strengthens outcomes by removing unnecessary complexity
• The Witness: Creates impact by observing moments fully before acting
Throughout his career, Purser noticed these masks and heartbeats appearing consistently across vastly different settings — from sporting teams rallying behind leaders, to entertainment projects capturing audiences, to executives shaping organisational direction. The framework maps how individuals and leaders shift between different forms of presence as interactions progress, or even own different persuasion skillsets, and reveals why some conversations, performances and leadership moments resonate deeply while others fall flat.
Jeff Purser, author of’ YES YES YES: The Playbook of Persuasion’ says: “This book began as something completely different. I was writing a short book for my children teaching them the key lessons of life I’ve learned over the years. Once I finished that, I started to think about the lessons I’ve accumulated over my career and it inspired me to write ‘YES YES YES’.
“What I’ve uncovered through writing this, is that behind every yes is a love story, and as a result, influence rarely comes from pushing harder or speaking louder. Persuasion really follows the similar beats as seduction. It emerges when people intuitively align with emotional timing and presence. When those elements are right, decisions seemed to rise naturally. In today’s pressurised world, influence is now about taking a gentler, more empathetic approach.”
As a starting point, Purser shares three foundational observations for understanding influence in modern environments:
• Don’t chase attention — create conditions for it: In environments saturated with information, influence often begins through curiosity, restraint and emotional awareness rather than volume or urgency.
• Less information can build more connection: Overloading people with messages can trigger resistance. Allowing space for reflection often strengthens engagement and trust.
• The strongest commitment emerges without pressure: Lasting decisions tend to form when individuals feel clarity, autonomy and emotional safety within the interaction.
Purser concludes: “Persuasion and seduction do not share language. They share timing. You build attention. You create tension. And then you release it at the right moment. That is why some conversations move people, and others do not. In many cases, people are not communicating badly. They are just moving at the wrong moment.
“YES YES YES isn’t meant to be an instruction manual on persuasion that you need to memorise,” he continues. “You are meant to feel your way through it. If one chapter speaks to you, or one mask really resonates, dive deeper into it and let it inform how you show up as a leader at work or in your community. Just like persuasion, it’s meant to serve as an observation on human behaviour and how you can gently shift with it, rather than something to rigidly follow.”
‘YES YES YES: The Playbook of Persuasion’ is available now through jeffpurserproductions.com.
About us:
Jeff Purser is a Sydney based communications strategist, producer, and commercial director with more than two decades of experience spanning sport, media, and entertainment. He has held senior roles with the South Sydney Rabbitohs, Optus TV, and the Olympic Games, and has produced the feature films Fat Pizza and Cedar Boys. Alongside his creative work, he has advised senior executives at major media organisations including News Corporation and Nine Entertainment. YES YES YES distils his experience shaping attention, trust, and choice into a modern playbook for persuasion.
Contact details:
Meriha Beaton at [email protected]
