Few students think they will ever give a persuasive speech, but they admit that they are likely to be asked to introduce new products, convince others to use new methods, and talk with fellow workers about complying with policies and procedures. All of these efforts are simply variations of a persuasive presentation. In this chapter you will first learn what persuasion is. Then you will learn how to prepare a persuasive presentation, when to use some strategies of persuasion, and how persuasion can be perceived differently in cultures and co-cultures. Because persuasion is perceived with suspicion in our culture, you will explore some ethical problems related to persuasion. Finally, you will learn some ways to protect yourself from unwanted persuasive efforts; in other words, you will learn some strategies for resisting persuasive appeals.