GA 644 | Defining Propaganda with Owen Fitzpatrick

Most leaders assume that the right argument, delivered clearly, will change minds. Owen Fitzpatrick has spent 30 years studying why that assumption is wrong. A psychologist who has worked inside some of the world’s most extreme propaganda environments, from North Korea to Rwanda to his own teenage years, Owen brings a framework to this conversation that reframes how belief actually changes. The implications for anyone trying to lead a continuous improvement effort are hard to ignore.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• What the purpose of life being “defeated by greater things” reveals about continuous improvement (3:37)
• How a single question changed the trajectory of Owen’s life and work (5:00)
• Why the inner critic is the wrong label for what actually holds people back (9:18)
• How propaganda works in three parts and why it mirrors what happens inside our own minds (14:35)
• Why naive realism is the single biggest obstacle to influencing anyone (22:43)
• How recognizing inner propaganda as propaganda changes the way your brain processes it (28:55)
• Why logic comes last when beliefs actually change (33:40)
• How the three conditions of belief change explain why great arguments still fail (35:12)

“Being right is not enough. Having the facts, having the data, having the information, table stakes, you need to have that. But it’s not enough to be persuasive.” – Owen Fitzpatrick

Keep Learning

If Owen’s point that buy-in requires more than logic resonates with how you lead change, the School of Leadership builds the skills that close that gap.
Learn More About School of Leadership at https://www.gembaacademy.com/leadership

Podcast Resources

• Owen on LinkedIn
• Owen’s Website
• Owen’s Newsletter

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What Do You Think?

How do you define propaganda?

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