A tag creates a rhetorical question out of a sentence that would usually be a
statement. This allows someone to answer yes (or no) to something that would
have otherwise been said a matter of factly (and indeed, it can still be said in that way). When using these tag questions in conversation you notice that people will
tend to agree with what you say, don’t they? Sometimes they have no idea what
they are actually agreeing with, but it sounds right, doesn’t it? What’s more, many people tend to work these tags into their conversations with others without even
realizing it, isn’t that interesting?
Some examples of tag questions are…
…Isn’t that right?
…Wouldn’t you?
…Don’t you?
…Haven’t you?
Tags can also be used when leading up to a big “yes”. Meaning, if you’re helping
someone to come to a positive conclusion about their body-image, you may start
with getting a few “yesses” in before you ask the big question (that you want
them to respond positively to). That may start with little things that you know
they already agree with (pacing current experience), and lead up to something
that they may not have thought was true, but because of the prior acceptance of
other things you’ve said, and more likely to positively comply. For example, the
conversation may look something like this; “it’s such a sunny day today, isn’t it?”
[Yes] “You’re drinking coffee in that cup, aren’t you?” [Yes] “I noticed that the waitress over there is serving the loud table, you used to wait tables, didn’t you?”
[Yes] “I know you’ve been wanting to start dating, that means you’re probably
ready to start putting yourself first, right?” [Yes] “You know, I think you feel better about yourself than what you think you do, am I right?” [YES].
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