| A Mega-Frame is like the ornate framing that | | | | most people in western worlld. They are anchors |
| surrounds a picture or painting. It encloses and | | | | for the aspirations of our communities and few |
| defines information. Amateur and professional | | | | individuals would venture to challenge them. Each |
| artists deeply appreciate the value of framing: the | | | | person will have his or her own personal |
| right frames will enhance their pictures - the | | | | interpretation of what they mean, however, in all |
| wrong frames will devalue them. Many an artist | | | | but a few cases, the feelings people associate |
| has created works that have not become truly | | | | with the words will be positive ones.Virtue |
| expressive or beautiful until they have been | | | | mega-frames educe unconscious acceptance of |
| enclosed in the right frame.Framing has a long and | | | | the content in which they are wrapped. They add |
| rich history. The Sophists of ancient Greece were | | | | immense power to your presentation because |
| masterful framers and re-framers. Aristotle | | | | most people embrace them as self-evident truths. |
| coined the word "atechnoi" to describe it. One of | | | | Review the following opening sentences and |
| ancient Rome's greatest orators, Cicero, elevated | | | | notice how a strong virtue frame helps the |
| frames ("statis") to an art form. His speeches are | | | | speaker evoke powerful emotional responses to |
| still studied by students of influence and | | | | support her case:"This is not an issue about |
| rhetoric.Mega-framing describes Strategic or | | | | governments resuming private land to subdivide |
| psychological framing and underpins the art of | | | | and on-sell. This is an issue about freedom. |
| managing perception. It takes in the 'big picture' | | | | Freedom from the greedy intentions of |
| rather than detail. It may be an overarching | | | | bureaucrats who want to fund their grandiose |
| theme that enjoins or describes the detail in your | | | | projects by robbing you of your birthright; |
| presentation, or it may link all your points to a | | | | freedom to live your life on a piece of rural |
| lesson, a purpose or a moral.Mega-frames are | | | | Australia without fear that the land of your labour |
| powerful because they allow you to enclose your | | | | can be snatched from you; freedom from the |
| message within a framework of higher intentions, | | | | whims of fat-cats who live hundreds of miles |
| virtues or a big-picture concept generally | | | | away, never having experienced life in a close |
| understood or held to be true by most people. | | | | rural community.I know that, as small landowners, |
| This is termed frame alignment, and it refers to | | | | you value freedom above all else. Why else would |
| the linkage of a message to a set of common | | | | have you chosen to build your life here, free from |
| interests, values or beliefs, so as to position a | | | | all the contaminations of big-city life? Now is the |
| speaker and audience as one.In selecting a | | | | time to fight for the justice of your cause; to |
| mega-frame, your aim can be to link your total | | | | fight for your freedom; to send an unequivocal |
| presentation to one major idea, high principle or | | | | message to those who would destroy your |
| key value.Every society is rooted in deep sets or | | | | community forever.And know that your calls will |
| clusters of ideals. In western society, for example, | | | | be heard by many decent-minded country |
| we 'believe' in democracy. From that belief comes | | | | Australians. They will help you in your fight, |
| a raft of 'virtues', represented by abstracts such | | | | because they know that you must never, never, |
| as Freedom of Speech, the Right to Choose, | | | | never, give in to bully boys from the big city, |
| Respect for Individual Rights, Freedom of | | | | who, like common thieves, would take your |
| Movement, Equity in Society (in some quarters), | | | | freedom from you. They know that the price of |
| and so on.The key is to establish a legitimate | | | | giving in would be their freedom too."In everyday |
| association between your idea/message/proposal | | | | life, you unconsciously assess information through |
| action and a universal virtue or value. Examine the | | | | the filters of your values, beliefs, decisions and |
| following words and see if you can detect a | | | | attitudes. Emotions, or feelings, erupt from the |
| "virtue" in them. Put them into a sentence, | | | | filtering process and drive action. It's a natural |
| internalise them and notice the emotional | | | | process and stepping up to virtue mega-frames |
| responses they bring about.- goodness - health - | | | | taps into that process. It allows you to filter your |
| love - peace | | | | message through the core values, beliefs and |
| - choice - dream - happiness - fairness | | | | embraced virtues of your audience.(c) 2006 |
| - liberty - vision - truth - justice | | | | Desmond GuilfoyleDesmond Guilfoyle in an award |
| - rights - honesty - opportunity - ethics | | | | winning commentator on influence, persuasion and |
| - safeguard - success - strength - prosperity | | | | charisma. He has written three books on those |
| - freedom - righteousness - self-control - family | | | | subjects and his book 'The Charisma Effect' has |
| - safety - purity - empowerment - compassion | | | | been published in seven languages around the |
| - protection - relief - scientific - respectThe | | | | globe. |
| above words represent values embraced by | | | | |