Influence
by Robert B. Cialdini · first published 1983
70% recommend28% neutral1% critical
Why HN recommends it
Research-backed look at the psychology of persuasion, with studies and examples showing why people comply and how reciprocity and consistency work. Suits marketers, salespeople and founders.
Common criticism: Some find it padded, with anecdotes that drag
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
Influence, the classic book on persuasion, explains the psychology of why people say "yes"—and how to apply these understandings. Dr. Robert Cialdini is the seminal expert in the rapidly expanding field of influence and persuasion. His thirty-five years of rigorous, evidence-based research along with a three-year program of study on what moves people to change behavior has resulted in this highly acclaimed book. You'll learn the six universal principles, how to use them to become a skilled persuader—and how to defend yourself against them. Perfect for people in all walks of life, the princi
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…shame because he's clearly interested in it and it's a really cool field. Like the author, I'm not going to cite specific sources in this comment, but anything in it is probably covered in Cialdini's Influence (a fantastic starting point for persuasion psychology) or Gass & Seiter's Persuasion (which is not as easy to read as Influence but is a better textbook). First off, advertisements definitely do work…
on “Ads work by cultural imprinting, not emotional inception” ↗…Principles - Ray Dalio The Power of Now - Eckhart Tolle The Effective Executive - Peter F. Drucker Think and Grow Rich - Napoleon Hill Extreme Ownership - Jocko Willink, Leif Babin Influence - Robert B. Cialdini The Startup Way - Eric Ries The Lean Startup - Eric Ries 12 Rules for Life - Jordan B. Peterson Measure What Matters - John Doerr, Larry Page The Fish That…
on “Ask HN: Books you plan to read in 2020?” ↗…arise from mismatched languages in relationships) -Surely You're Joking Mr. Feynman (you guys probably already know this) -The Blank Slate (Steven Pinker) -The Snowball (Warren Buffett biography) -Influence (Robert B. Cialdini) -Your Money or Your Life (Joe Dominguez and Vicki Robin) -When Heaven and Earth Changed Places: A Vietnamese Woman's Journey from War to Peace (Le Ly Hayslip) -The Halo Effect…
on “Ask HN: What books changed the way you think about almost everything?” ↗…to know about these things. Once armed with knowledge, it becomes a parlor trick. If you don't know about the techniques, then you're playing at a disadvantage. I read the author's previous book on influence[1] and it was rigorously researched with confirmable studies. Well worth reading, since it surveys a wide variety of mind hacks people play on us across 8 or so broad categories. It changed the way I…
on “To influence people don't try to persuade them, use ‘pre-suasion’ instead” ↗For those interested in social psychology, I recommend Influence: The Psychology of Persuation by Robert B. Cialdini. The book elicited facepalm after facepalm after facepalm as I figured out exactly why people behave the way they do. It even helped me explain my own…
on “Psychological manipulation - what I learned trying to save money on a sandwich” ↗The book INFLUENCE does a good job of categorizing and explaining these factors. Though a lot of it comes off as common sense, I never realized how widespread these tactics were until I read this book. I highly recommend…
on “A breakdown of how I was talked out of $100” ↗…years back. Read these, and used them to a good extent. Lean analytics. (must read) Product-Led growth. (must read) 22 Laws of marketing (must) One million followers If you like scientific approach: Influence by Robert Cialdini Contagious (Jonah Berger) This resource is also gold: https://brianbalfour.com/essays/customer-acquisition I am also documenting my learnings in a book [1]. [1] https://book.amols.blog/59decisions
on “Ask HN: Suggest good books on bootstrapping a startup” ↗I'm reading this book now but prefer Caldini's _Influence_ (http://www.amazon.com/Influence-Psychology-Persuasion-Busine...) because it takes a more systematic approach to understanding what persuades others. For example, a chapter is dedicated to "social proof"…
on “How to Be Persuasive” ↗…Later, you can review those notes with a clearer head. Or better yet, hand them off to someone else to evaluate, who hasn't been exposed to the propaganda. It's also a good idea to read Robert Cialdini's Influence, and then reread it periodically. It's an excellent (but far from complete) run-through of some of the most common tools used by marketers, and techniques for resisting them.
on “If You Want to Raise Prices, Tell a Better Story” ↗Recently finished Robert Cialdini's Influence: Science and Practice, a great horrifying psychology book. Now I've started Iain Banks' Excession, giving his Culture universe another go. (Player of Games was good, but not great.)
on “Ask HN: What book are you reading right now?” ↗…made that choice, we encounter personal and interpersonal pressures to behave consistently with that commitment. If you're interested in this sort of behaviour, you might try Robert Cialdini's book, Influence, the Phychology of Persuasion (http://www.amazon.com/dp/006124189X/). [Edit] I'm an idiot. I forgot that I wrote a post about this a while ago - here's a summary of Cialdini's (and related) stuff: https://www.wittenburg.co.uk/Entry.aspx?id=439dc4d5-33db-45a....…
on “Apple Deleted Rivals’ Songs from Users’ iPods” ↗…ever read. It's targeted to people working with larger organizations, but the sales strategies it advocates are must-knows. After reading it, I was able to negotiate a $16,000 raise at my day job. * Influence and the Psychology of Persuasion: http://www.amazon.com/Influence-Psychology-Persuasion-Robert... An amazing book on psychology. It's a great read if you'll be doing marketing and copywriting work and…
on “Ask HN: Freelance web dev best practices...” ↗…it and mastering communication, psychology, politics and persuasion I recommend: Crucial Conversations by Kerry Patterson Never Split The Difference by Chris Voss The Political Brain by Drew Weston Influence by Robert Cialdini Words That Work by Frank Luntz Pre-Suasion by Robert Cialdini Win Bigly by Scott Adams Radical Honesty by Brad Blanton I just bought this book but haven’t yet read it - Radical…
on “Ask HN: How to find an effective career coach?” ↗…audience for self help type seminars, just rehashing the ideas in the context of business or picking up women. Beyond NLP there are other areas of study that are less mumbo jumbo and more hard science. Influence is a great book on the subject of...well, influencing people. Why people do and buy the things they do, and how things like the Apple fanboy phenomenon (not explicitly in the context of Apple, just an…
on “Is Neuro-linguistic programming (NLP) useful?” ↗This is the book referenced (no referral fee links, btw): http://www.amazon.com/Influence-Psychology-Persuasion-Busine... I've read it and even bought a second copy to lend out. It's that good.
on “The Power of Ridiculous Reasons” ↗