Social Power Dynamics: Start Here

Go in this order:

Social Skills

Before learning power dynamics you should acquire a minimum level of social skills and emotional intelligence.

Some people naturally have both, while some others learned it with time. Still, it won’t hurt to review the basics:

1. Best social skills books: the best books and resources to learn the basics
2. The law of social exchange: learning to analyze social relationships as exchanges will help you get into a mindset of being a giver, which will do a lot of good things for you
   1. Also check the forum entries for some typical mistakes linked to the law of social exchange: missing the WIIFM and failing to put their best foot forward
3. Learn to move beyond exchanges for close relationships: The social exchange law is strongest among strangers. But the closer you get to someone, the more you want to move beyond the exchange level. For example, see “how to bond with people” and “how to be a leader” to get a feel for the higher levels of social skills
4. Learn to read power dynamics: this is a series of 4 articles on dominant body language, verbal expressions of power, body language of submission, and verbal expressions of submission. They will help you understand social dynamics at a deeper level than most other resources

Power Dynamics

These are some of the basics

1. Power dynamics: let’s start with a definition, and why they matter
2. The irrefutable laws of power: this post lists the main laws of personal and social power, and it will help you prioritize your self-development goals
3. The fundamental strategies of power: this post details what works best for long-term success -success and power are the same-
4. Mix power with warmth: Machiavelli said that, ideally, a prince should be feared and loved at the same time. He was right. That’s why you want both power and warmth. Also read “value and availability“, which is the ultimate goal of mixing power and warmth.
5. Frame control techniques: understanding frames is understanding power dynamics. The full lesson is in social power, but here you get 75% of the value

These will provide you with the basics.
From here on, you can move to mastery with Social Power.