The Charisma Myth: How Anyone Can Master the Art and Science of Personal Magnetism [Paperback]

Simple techniques to help you become more influential, persuasive, and confident

The charisma myth is the idea that charisma is a fundamental, inborn quality—you either have it (Bill Clinton, Steve Jobs, Oprah) or you don’t. But that’s simply not true, as Olivia Fox Cabane reveals. Charismatic behaviors can be learned and perfected by anyone.

Drawing on techniques she originally developed for Harvard and MIT, Cabane breaks charisma down into its components. Becoming more charismatic doesn’t mean transforming your fundamental personality. It’s about adopting a series of specific practices that fit in with the personality you already have.“The top book I’ve read all year.”
—Dr. Tina Seelig, Executive Director for the Stanford Technology Ventures Program (STVP), the entrepreneurship center at Stanford University's School of Engineering, and author of inGenius: A Crash Course on Creativity .


“Olivia Fox Cabane offers hands-on advice and a practical guide to humanizing leaders without comprising integrity or authority. She focused on the ‘it’ factors that can make a real difference.”
—Laura Lang, CEO, Time Inc.

“Cabane has done us a big favor. She’s woven solid science and engaging narrative into an instructive treatment of the role of charisma in leadership—a topic that (until now) we only poorly understood.”
—Robert B. Cialdini, author of Influence

“If you are interested in increasing your ability to be charismatic in your unique setting or employment, this book will give you direct skills to use.”
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