The Power of “Three”​ in Public Speaking — Own the Crowd

The following article is an excerpt from Wes O’Donnell’s new book “Own the Crowd” currently available at bookstores nationwide.

Marketers, advertisers and speechwriters understand the power of the number three. If you absolutely, positively want something to stick in audiences’ heads, put it in a sequence of three.

It’s no accident that the number three is pervasive throughout some of our greatest stories, fairy tales and legends.

Three is a “magic” number, historically. Besides the fact that it is the first odd-numbered prime number which gives it the power of indivisibility, many of the world’s oldest religions weave three into the very fabric of their worship: Christianity — the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit…

Or in Hinduism, offering prayers to three rivers: Ganga, Yamuna and Saraswati whose confluence is known to be ‘Triveni Sangam’ and sacred. The number 3 is also a symbolic depiction of Ohm in Hinduism.

Psychologically, our brains have become adept at pattern recognition as a key survival mechanism. The process of pattern recognition involves matching the information received from your senses, with information already stored in the brain.