The Charisma Myth: How to Engage, Influence and Motivate People

What if charisma could be taught?

What you'll find here is practical magic: unique knowledge, drawn from a variety of sciences, revealing what charisma really is and how it works. You'll get both the insights and the techniques you need to apply this knowledge. The world will become your lab, and every person you meet, a chance to experiment.

The Charisma Myth is a mix of fun stories, sound science, and practical tools. Cabane takes a scientific approach to a heretofore mystical topic, covering what charisma actually is, how it is learned, what its side effects are, and how to handle them.

'Engaging, clear, and chock-full of wisdom, practical recommendations, and uncommonly good sense' Stephen Kosslyn, director, Center for Study of Behavioral Sciences at Stanford

'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' 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' Psychology Today

What if charisma could be taught?

For the first time, science and technology have taken charisma apart, figured it out and turned it into an applied science: In controlled laboratory experiments, researchers could raise or lower people's level of charisma as if they were turning a dial.

In The Charisma Myth, Cabane takes a hard scientific approach to a heretofore mystical topic, covering what charisma actually is, how it is learned, what its side effects are, and how to handle them. She breaks charisma down into its fundamental components.

Olivia Fox Cabane is the author of The Net And The Butterfly and The Charisma Myth, cofounder of The KindEarthTech Foundation and former Director of Innovative Leadership for Stanford's accelerator, StartX. Her books have been translated into 32 languages, including Mongolian.