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Persuasion and Influence Book List

Are you surprised at yesterday's election results? Do you want to help shift the political climate? You need to brush up on your sales skills.

Elections have never been decided on policy issues or experience. Whichever team has the best persuaders wins, everytime.

You might protest, "sales tactics are manipulative and unethical and icky!" Yes, sales and marketing has a reputation of being shady and underhanded. But you do yourself a huge disservice by dismissing the whole field.

  1. If you don't understand persuasion and influence, you will continue to get tricked in all aspects of life
  2. You can use persuasion and influence in an ethical manner to make the world a better place

Here's a book list to get you started on understanding persuasion and influence. Hit up your library. If you only read one, read Influence.

Understand how your brain is susceptible to making illogical decisions

Thinking Fast and Slow


Thinking Fast and Slow - Daniel Kahneman

Persuade others, defend yourself against sales tactics

Influence


Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion - Robert Cialdini

Understand the different views of other people in different situations

How to Win Friends and Influence People


How to Win Friends and Influence People - Dale Carnegie

Prepare people to be receptive to a message

Pre-Suasion


Pre-Suasion: A Revolutionary Way to Influence and Persuade - Robert Cialdini

Create memorable messages

Impossible


Impossible to Ignore - Carmen Simon*

Understand power dynamics

48 Laws of Power


The 48 Laws of Power - Robert Greene

Bonus: Cognitive Bias Cheat Sheet (website)

Cognitive Bias Cheat Sheet


Cognitive Bias Cheat Sheet

If you're looking for quick summaries, Derek Sivers has notes on most of these.

Think I should add another book to this list? Let me know.