University of Minnesota - UMN Executive Leadership Insights
Former CIA Officer Will Teach You How to Spot a Lie
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Former CIA Officer Will Teach You How to Spot a Lie

Susan Carnicero
Digiday, 2016
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People lie all the time. Those who say they never lie, well, they’re lying. People tend to lie around 10 times a day, mostly to be polite or to avoid an uncomfortable conversation. But lies can be more consequential, so it matters if people are lying to you or telling you the truth. If you manage a business, you need to know, for example, if a job candidate is lying or if an employee is cooking the books. As former CIA officer Susan Carnicero explains in rollicking, hard-boiled commentary in this Digiday video, you can spot clear signals that can reveal a lie.

Summary

Knowing whether someone is lying matters.

People lie as a matter of course, and people lie back to them. Though most people would deny it, they typically lie about 10 times a day. Most of their lies concern small, day-to-day things.

Not all lies are trivial. Some are large and consequential. In a business context, you need to know whether a person is telling you the truth. If you’re managing a business or working in retail, you may be interviewing a candidate for a job or questioning a worker about theft.

To identify deception, notice a person’s timing and “behavioral clusters.” 

To identify when people are avoiding the truth, scrutinize their responses to specific questions, rather than broadly reflecting or philosophizing about them. Focus on whether someone’s behavior and words actually respond to your question or might be caused...

About the Speaker

A former security specialist with the Central Intelligence Agency, Susan Carnicero holds a master’s in forensic psychology and education.

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