Are you looking for the best courses and social skills books available on the market?
Do you want to level up your people skills?
Well, this list gives you more than just the best books on social skills but also includes the very best courses and YouTube Channels when it comes to learning social dynamics.
Contents
- 12. How to Talk to Anyone
- 11. Charisma on Command
- 10. The Charisma Myth
- 9. Soulmate Sequence
- 8. Improve Your Social Skills
- 7. How to Win Friends and Influence People
- 6. The Power of Positive No
- 5. Difficult Conversations
- 4. People School
- 3. People Skills
- 2. The Social Skills Guidebook
- 1. The Social Strategist
- BONUS: Power University
12. How to Talk to Anyone
Leil Lowndes is often present in any list of social skills books and resources.
I am not a huge fan of “list of tips” because I prefer a deeper approach, but Lowndes manages to make it work.
11. Charisma on Command
Charlie Houpert seems to prefer the high-energy, bouncing off the walls type of charisma.
But I really liked his book, which I even rate higher than his course Charisma University, which only promotes one type of charisma (high energy).
The YouTube channel also has some very good videos.
10. The Charisma Myth
Albeit seemingly focused on charisma only, this is one of the best books on social skills because it takes a wide-angle approach to charisma.
Olivia explains that you don’t need to bounce off the walls or talk all the times because there are many different ways of being charismatic, including the quiet, slow-moving, and silent style.
9. Soulmate Sequence
By R La Ruina
Summary | Amazon
Richard La Ruina was a former dating coach, so this book includes tips and techniques to find a mate.
But it has enough wisdom to make it in this list of best social skills books. And it contains some of the best examples I have ever read when it comes to being a good conversationalist.
8. Improve Your Social Skills
As an Asperger Daniel Wendler had to really learn social skills from scratch and “decode” social skills from nothing.
He did quite a good there though, and his
For other Aspergers and people starting from zero this might as well be the very best social skills book available because it zeros in on the true basics of social interactions.
7. How to Win Friends and Influence People
Talking about a book that doesn’t need any introduction and a constant presence on any social skills book list.
6. The Power of Positive No
One of the biggest difficulties that people face in social interactions and a hurdle that I commonly see even in my more advanced coaching clients is that of turning people down.
Turning people down tactfully yet resolutely is indeed is a bit of an art in and of itself and William Ury does a wonderful job in shedding new light and insights even for those who have been around social skills for a while.
5. Difficult Conversations
This one was one of the very first communication and social skills books I have ever read and the depth of information and wisdom blew me away.
Many years later, it’s still one of the best resources on social skills in general and, possibly, the very best book on difficult conversations.
4. People School
By V Edwards
Summary
People School is a video course.
Vanessa van Edwards is a sparkling lady who can teach social skills even when she’s not talking about social skills: much to learn from her radiating personality indeed.
3. People Skills
Socially weak people have one thing in common:
They are afraid of confrontation, and they fail to enforce their boundaries.
Mostly, they passive and submissive.
But they can swing from submissive to aggressive because they don’t know how to strike that assertive balance which is so crucial in life.
People’s Skills is a great on assertive communication, which in turn is one of the main fundamentals of social skills and social power.
It’s a good combo with “No More Mr. Nice Guy“, and for navigating the most difficult conversations go with “Difficult Conversations“.
Power Nugget:
Both submission and aggression have their own payoffs, but both lead to poorer lives.
2. The Social Skills Guidebook
Warning first:
I read The Social Skills Guidebook right before writing down this guide, so consider that I might have been slightly biased towards it (it’s called “recency effect” in psychology).
But, what can I say… I don’t think so because Chris MacLeod is simply good. Very good.
It’s more geared towards the social beginners and socially anxious, but what’s really special about MacLeod’s work is that while he tackles the basics he also manages to enrich the more advanced students of people’s kills.
1. The Social Strategist
By Ali Scarlett & Lucio Buffalmano
In some ways, “The Social Strategist” is more foundational than any other book in this list because it deals with something that no other book deals with:
The social exchange -and its dynamics-.
And getting the social exchange right is what will help you avoid the main pitfalls that plague most guys who are poor at anything social: becoming a value-taker. Or, in more common parlance, a burden.
On the other hand, if you’re a beginner who struggles with basic social and emotional intelligence, I’d still recommend you start with “The Social Skills Guidebook”.
And then move to “The Social Strategist” which will take you further along the road with some more advanced material such as frame control techniques, social power dynamics, persuasion, etc.
BONUS: Power University
Warning:
This is advanced social skills.
If you are looking for something more beginner-friendly, you have much to choose from this list, which includes some of the very best books on social skills.
And when you want to take it to the next level, when you are ready for something edgier and more advanced you can come back to Power University.
