Believing is not a two-stage process involving first understanding then believing. Instead understanding is believing, a fraction of a second after reading it, you believe it until some other critical faculty kicks in to change your mind. We also have the tendency to believe first and ask questions later.

The problem is that a lot of the information we are exposed to is actually not true, and some of it is vital for our survival. If we had to go around checking our beliefs all the time, we’d never get anything done and miss out on some great opportunities. Yes, we will often believe things that aren’t true, but it’s better to believe too much and be caught out once in a while than be too cynical and fail to capitalise on the useful and beneficial information that is actually true.

The harsh truth is that it’s a basic human failing that we are all too quick to take things at face value and too slow to engage our critical faculties.

In a professional sales situation, confirming a client’s understanding during probing for problem or results impact and evidence, by listening and listening for their listening, goes a long way to establishing their believing in you. This is reinforced when a common understanding is reached when issues are prioritized. In addition, when given the opportunity to present an exact strategy to resolve their explicitly stated challenge, their acute understanding, when confirmed, goes a long way to their believing and accepting your credibility.

via Why You Can’t Help Believing Everything You Read — PsyBlog.