To be influential you do not require power, but wielding your influence is powerful. Vanessa Bohns, social psychologist and professor of organizational behavior at Cornell University, joins us to discuss her enticing new book “You Have More Influence Than You Think”: https://amzn.to/39vCDIN. She draws from her research to illustrate why underestimating our influence can lead us to miss opportunities or worse yet, to misuse our power.
Vanessa challenges us to examine our powers of persuasion and to recognize that we have more influence than we even realize. We learn exactly why it’s so hard for us to say no, even when we’re uncomfortable with saying yes. And why we should focus on communicating more with people face-to-face.
As with all of our episodes, we leave you with a Grooving Session discussion focusing on how we can use Vanessa’s research to improve our lives, our relationships and our workplaces. Maybe this episode will influence you more than you realize? If it does, please support our ongoing work by contributing to our Patreon page at www.patreon.com/behavioralgrooves (just imagine, if we asked you in person, would you say yes?).
Topics(3:19) Welcome to Vanessa Bohns.
(5:46) How your enjoyment of chocolate is influenced by others.
(8:15) The spotlight effect; is everyone really looking at me?
(12:34) How can we influence people more than we think?
(17:20) How Vanessa discovered people are likely to help, if you ask.
(23:34) Why it’s so much harder to say no than we think.
(26:50) How power amplifies your influence.
(29:22) Why we need to recognize white privilege as a position of power.
(32:47) Communication: why our choice of words matter.
(34:13) Robert Cialdini’s Influence.
(36:30) What are the most common misconceptions about influence?
(41:07) What are the 2 biggest takeaways from the book?
(43:52) How music has influenced Vanessa.
(49:13) Grooving Session discussing how to apply Vanessa’s research.
© 2021 Behavioral Grooves
Links“You Have More Influence Than You Think: How We Underestimate Our Power of Persuasion, and Why It Matters” Book by Vanessa Bohns: https://amzn.to/39vCDIN
John Bargh, Episode 248: Do We Control Situations or Do Situations Control Us? With John Bargh: https://behavioralgrooves.com/episode/control-situations-with-john-bargh/
Shankar Vedantam, Episode 222: How Delusions Can Actually Be Useful: Shankar Vedantam Reveals How: https://behavioralgrooves.com/episode/shankar-vedantam-useful-delusions/
Cristina Bicchieri, Episode 102: Social Norms are Bundles of Expectations: https://behavioralgrooves.com/episode/cristina-bicchieri-social-norms-are-bundles-of-expectations/
“Shared Experiences Are Amplified” Erica J. Boothby, Margaret S. Clark, John A. Bargh (2014): https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0956797614551162
“Good Lamps Are the Best Police: Darkness Increases Dishonesty and Self-Interested Behavior” Chen-Bo Zhong, Vanessa K. Bohns, Francesca Gino (2010): https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0956797609360754
Robert Frank on the Power of Peer Pressure in Fighting Climate Change: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VmOUNgXKd0c&ab_channel=Rare
Robert Cialdini, Episode 226: The Power Of Unity: Robert Cialdini Expands His Best Selling Book Influence: https://behavioralgrooves.com/episode/cialdini-unity-in-influence/
How to Start a Movement | Dan Sivers: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V74AxCqOTvg
Musical LinksBronksi Beats “Smalltown Boy”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=88sARuFu-tc
Sleigh Bells “Locust Laced”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wzLOcmRRUfg
The National “Light Years”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5FQtSn_vak0
Vampire Weekend “This Life”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FwkrrU2WYKg
David Bowie “Ashes to Ashes”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HyMm4rJemtI
Harry Styles “Watermelon Sugar”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fKlD97TnYwM
Billie Ellish “Everything I Wanted”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EgBJmlPo8Xw
Taylor Swift “Willow”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RsEZmictANA
Nirvana “Smells Like Teen Spirit”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hTWKbfoikeg
The Power of Unity: Robert Cialdini Expands His Best Selling Book Influence [Republish]
Groove Track | 12 Words That Improve Company Performance
Delusions Can Actually Be Useful: Hidden Brain’s Shankar Vedantam Reveals How [Republish]
How To Find Meaning IN Life | Dr Brian Lowery PhD
How Do Incentives Actually Impact Motivation? | Dr Indranil Goswami PhD
Groove Track: Cab Driver Study
Can You Really Love Things As Much As People? With Aaron Ahuvia
The Loss of Common Sense: How To Gain A Little Perspective | Martin Lindstrom
Trust Your Gut? Only If The Data Supports It | Seth Stephens-Davidowitz
Changing Our Mind: Exploring How Mental Illness Is Managed with Daniel Bergner
Finding Out What Your Customers Want and Why It Matters | Andrea Belk Olson
From Distracted To Focused: Nir Eyal’s Secrets On How To Be Indistractable
You Have Dignity Because You’re Human, Not Because You Work | Jonathan Malesic
How To Fix Burnout (Hint: It Isn’t Another Yoga Session) | Jennifer Moss
You Can Change Someone’s Mind But Are You Sure You Want To? | David McRaney
Changing The World with Persistent Optimism | Dr. Paul Zeitz
Want To Improve Your Kid’s Behavior? Start With Your Own | Sue Donnellan
Three Easy Ways to Nurture A Child’s Brain Development | Dana Suskind MD
Fail to Scale: Why Good Research Doesn’t Always Make Great Policy | John A. List
For Revolutionary Solutions, Look To Evolutionary Ideas | Sam Tatam
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
The Poetry of Science
Hidden Brain
Choiceology with Katy Milkman
The Science of Happiness
The Psychology Podcast