Even if it wasn’t so much “manipulative”.
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Back when I was preparing to propose to my now-fiancee, she figured out very fast exactly where and how I planned on proposing. I didn’t want to change my plans, so I lied my ass off for the next month to convince her that
- There was no way that I could propose on that date because the ring was still in Canada/Michigan/Guam/Pennsylvania/Kansas/Indiana/etc.
- Even if I did, I can’t do it where I wanted to because she’s expecting it now and I am adamant that she be surprised
Kept all my plans the same, had the ring the whole time, everything went according to plan. She was completely suprised!
That said, the stress of keeping a secret for so long apparently wore my immune system down. An hour after putting my ring on her finger, I was suddenly nauseous, exhausted, a bit dizzy, and running a high fever. So now she has extra proof that I will never lie to her.
My wife knew I was going to propose because we went ring shopping together. However, she didn’t know when the ring was to be delivered and so didn’t know my plans. The night I did propose, I took her to a fancyish restaurant; she told me later that she was trying to figure out where I was carrying the ring.
I wasn’t, though. Before taking her to the restaurant, I had consulted a mutual, female friend who said that my wife would be expecting it and I should propose when we got home.
I did so, but before I did, she went upstairs. In my nervousness and excitement, I was waiting at the bottom of the stairs, ring in hand, and failed to notice that she was carrying a stack of laundry as she descended.
And that’s how I proposed to my wife while she was holding a pile of dirty underwear.
edit: I hate it when my client decides to post half a comment without consulting me.
Not the most manipulative but
Keep a log of the birthdays, hobbies and names of spouses and children of colleagues, managers, team members and customers.
I learnt this from a guy who did executive search. People remember you, when you remember what is important to them.
When I’ve lead teams it’s one of the first things I find out - note down when someone says “yeah Gary that’s my hubby, he’s super into gaming”
- Gary (husband.)
- likes gaming
When you’re a manager, your teams families, partners and friends know your name. Reciprocating that - learning who is important to them - is really important.
To me this seems less like manipulation and more like you put in the effort to not only be a good boss, but a real person.
If you care you’re a good person. If you pretend to care in order to network then you’re being mildly manipulative.
