By simply holding back, keeping silent, occasionally uttering ambiguous phrases, deliberately appearing inconsistent, and acting odd in the subtlest of ways, you will emanate an aura of mystery. The people around you will then magnify that aura by constantly trying to interpret youĭo something that cannot be easily explained or interpreted Law 7: Get others to do the work for you, but always take the credit Remember: Most people are upfront, can be read like an open book, take little care to control their words or image, and are hopelessly predictable. Surround your name with the sensational and the scandalous.īetter to be slandered and attacked than ignored.Īt the start of your career, you must attach your name and reputation to a quality, an image, that sets you apart from other people. Once you have a solid base of respect, ridiculing your opponent both puts him on the defensive and draws more attention to you, enhancing your own reputation.
Then stand aside and let public opinion hang them.ĭoubt is a powerful weapon: Once you let it out of the bag with insidious rumors, your opponents are in a horrible dilemma. Meanwhile, learn to destroy your enemies by opening holes in their own reputations. Law 5: So much depends on reputation, guard it with your lifeĪlways be alert to potential attacks and thwart them before they happen. Keep them under control. Be particularly careful with sarcasm: The momentary satisfaction you gain with your biting words will be outweighed by the price you pay. Learn the lesson: Once the words are out, you cannot take them back. Power is in many ways a game of appearances, and when you say less than necessary, you inevitably appear greater and more powerful than you are. Power cannot accrue to those who squander their treasure of words. It strains constantly to break out of its cage, and if it is not tamed, it will run wild and cause you grief. But the human tongue is a beast that few can master. Persons who cannot control his words shows that he cannot control himself, and is unworthy of respect. ” To which Kissinger replied: “Fine, then I guess I’ll read it this time. After redrafting it one more time- and once again getting the same question from Kissinger-Lord snapped, “Damn it, yes, it’s the best I can do. After giving it to Kissinger, he got it back with the notation, “ Is this the best you can do?” Lord rewrote and polished and finally resubmitted it back it came with the same curt question. One oft-told tale about Kissinger… involved a report that Winston Lord had worked on for days. It is really too difficult for them to imagine that the bland and harmless person they are dealing with is simultaneously setting up something elseĪs Kierkegaard wrote, “The world wants to be deceived.” Law 4: Always say less than necessary This derives from a simple truth: people can only focus on one thing at a time. Use smoke screens to disguise your actions. You will kill three birds with one stone: You appear friendly, open, and trusting you conceal your intentions and you send your rivals on time-consuming wild-goose chases. Hide your intentions not by closing up (with the risk of appearing secretive, and making people suspicious) but by talking endlessly about your desires and goals- just not your real ones. Use decoyed objects and desires and red herrings to throw people off the scent Keep friends for friendship, but work with the skilled and competent. The key to power, then, is the ability to judge who is best able to further your interests in all situations.
Friends will say that they love your poetry, adore your music, envy your taste in clothes- maybe they mean it, often they do not. Since honesty rarely strengthens friendship, you may never know how a friend truly feels. If you have no enemies, find a way to make them In fact, you have more to fear from friends than from enemies.
#48 laws of power author how to
Law 2: Never put too much trust in friends, learn how to use enemiesīut hire a former enemy and he will be more loyal than a friend, because he has more to prove. Never take your position for granted and never let any favors you receive go to your head. When it comes to power, outshining the master is perhaps the worst mistake of all. Make your masters appear more brilliant than they are and you will attain the heights of power
0 kommentar(er)
