Philip Houston Quotes & Sayings

There's only a casual relationship between human behavior and logic. — Philip Houston

When she hears that, there are two paths Jan can take. One path is to immediately respond with resistance, in which case you'll need to go right back into your monologue. The other path takes you to your desired destination: the truth. In that case, you go straight into the information collection phase of your interrogation. — Philip Houston

All the lies that have ever been told or ever will be told fall into three categories, or strategies: lies of commission, lies of omission, and lies of influence. — Philip Houston

As you begin your information collection, it's vitally important for Jan to feel good about the path she's chosen, so that she'll be inclined to continue to share truthful information with you. Your focus, then, needs to be on rewarding Jan for her decision, and we've found that a simple thank-you is a very powerful reward: "Jan, thank you for that. That took a lot of courage." You'll also need to squash any urge to bask in your victory - far from haughty, your tone should be sympathetic: "I know that was very difficult, but you did the right thing. — Philip Houston

signs of deceptive behavior. With each admission, remember to avoid a deep dive into any one issue. Your best bet is to aim for little nuggets of information, so it doesn't appear that you're asking for a big data dump and an emotionally draining confession. Then, when you have all those nuggets and it's time for your deep dive, don't go back to the beginning - start with the most recent admission first. That's likely the most serious matter, because it's the one she tried hardest to conceal. Keep in mind as you're collecting those nuggets how essential it is to remain engaged. As we pointed out in Chapter 6, engaging the person you're interrogating is a vital element in coming across as sincere, which will in turn help you in your effort to persuade the person to share the information you're seeking. But we should make it clear that it's equally important to be engaged from the standpoint of ensuring that you don't miss any of those nuggets that are coming at you. — Philip Houston

THE BELIEF THAT PEOPLE WILL NOT LIE TO YOU. This is the main obstacle that Phil had to deal with in his encounter with Omar, who had already been vetted and whose veracity and good standing were unquestioned when Phil interviewed him. — Philip Houston

Human behavior isn't necessarily logical, nor does it necessarily conform to our expectations. What each of us thinks of as logical is a reflection of our own beliefs, and of our own moral compass. — Philip Houston

A lot crystallized in Phil's mind that day about how people lie. If the facts are not their ally, people have to say something that convinces you, and the best thing they can say is something that's true or irrefutable. — Philip Houston

Tea Party member and former U.S. Senate candidate Christine O'Donnell appeared on CNN's Piers Morgan Tonight on August 17, 2011, to promote her book, Troublemaker: Let's Do What It Takes to Make America Great Again. O'Donnell ultimately walked out before the interview was over because there were only certain parts of her book that she wanted to talk about, and Morgan refused to restrict his questioning to those parts. — Philip Houston

Truth only reveals itself when one gives up all preconceived ideas. - Japanese proverb — Philip Houston

I'm guilty as sin, but hopefully I can persuade you otherwise by showing you something that's truthful and that casts me in a halo-like light that will convince you that someone like me could never do what I'm being accused of doing. — Philip Houston