Influencing people

Building your base of power

Main topics

• What is power?

• Benefits and costs of power

• Bases of power

• Developing your bases of power

• Using power responsibly

Selected notes

Multiple definitions of power were given. My favourite was Weber's:

The ability for an actor to carry out [their] own position despite resistance.

Types of power:

• Structural

  • Reward (including rewards like support and favours)

  • Coercive (often not worth it)

  • Legitimate (formal hierarchies)

• Personal

  • Referent (personal connection/charisma)

  • Expert

  • Information

• Cognitive

  • Beliefs

More priming studies with implausible effect sizes... (As well as axes that start at 40% for some reason...)

Much of the discussion was around making power legible (e.g., through credentials).

Influencing people without relying on formal authority

Main topics

• Social proof

• Signalling authority

• Cognitive biases: availability, framing, and anchoring

• Liking, scarcity, and reciprocity

• Non-verbal influence

Selected notes

Social proof as an influence tactic:

• Show that their peers are doing it

• Show that others have succeeded

• Share testimonials

Authority as an influence tactic:

• Dress in a way that implies authority

• Develop a reputation as an expert

• Show that high-status people agree

• Signal your expertise

Make use of stories and visual examples. One case highlighted was a TED talk about energy consumption that featured a wheelbarrow full of coal.

Make use of anchoring by contributing early with your desired framing. For example, if you think that last year's budget was too low then you should try to anchor the conversation on the average competitor's budget instead.

A lot of the discussion focuses on ideas in Cialdini's Influence, such as liking, scarcity, and reciprocity.

Liking:

• Draw on similarities

• Engage in dialogue before making a request

Characteristics of sticky messages:

• Simple

• Unexpected

• Concrete

• Credible

• Emotional

• Stories

Non-verbal influence tactics:

• Eye contact

• Mirroring

• Relaxed facial expressions

• Hand gestures

• Firm handshake

(Though I've seen eye contact and hand gestures backfire in some cases when excessive.)

This section also had the usual selection of implausible/unreplicable studies (power posing; judges' lunches).

Developing high-quality relationships to enhance influence and power

Main topics

• Network shapes and structural holes

• Offering value to others and managing mutual dependence

• Relationship currencies

• Building a reputation

• Becoming an energizer

Selected notes

Burt's theory of structural holes: A structural hole is a gap between two individuals or groups that have complementary resources or sources of information. Brokers are people that bridge these gaps. In general, it's better to have a network like this rather than a network limited to a particular group.

Valuable relationships often have high mutual dependence. That is, you both depend on each other to a significant degree.

It's important to sell yourself, but it can backfire if done poorly. Think about how you might be able to get others to do the selling for you.

Becoming an energizer:

• Introduce relationship development to day-to-day interactions

• Show concern for others

• Connect with people beyond their job roles

• Focus on possibilities rather than just limitations or constraints

• Maintain physical and cognitive engagement in meetings

Protect yourself from unwanted influence

Main topics

• Influence vs. manipulation

• Protecting yourself

  • Minimizing biases

  • Flipping the tactic on the other person

  • Reframing the power relationship

Selected notes

Ask people to record their opinions privately before a discussion to combat groupthink.

Keep records so that you don't fall victim to the availability heuristic (e.g., overweighting recent performance on a performance review).

Consider distancing meetings from events that might be too salient.