Influence mastering life's most powerful skill
(DVD)

Title from DVD container cover.

"The Teaching Company."

Lectures by Kenneth G. Brown, the University of Iowa.

From the guidebook. Influence and persuasion are fundamental to everyday life. From the alarm clock that startles us awake in the morning to the commercial interruptions of our favorite evening television shows, we are bombarded with efforts to get us to do, say, or believe particular things. This series of lectures will help you better understand influence across the spectrum, from the mundane alarm clock to the symbol-driven political strategy that averted civil war in post-apartheid South Africa. This course explores the factors that contribute to success stories, such as Nelson Mandela's in South Africa. It illustrates how some people harness the power of influence to achieve worthwhile goals at home, at work, and in their power of influence to achieve worthwhile goals at home, at work, and in their social lives. In addition to positive examples, the course also offers cautionary tales, such as the Ponzi scheme run by Bernie Madoff, because it's crucial to understand the influence tactics used by people who intend to take advantage of us. The course introduces a model to depict the components of an influence attempt that contribute to its success or failure, The ATTiC model is an acronym representing four fundamental elements: agent, target, tactic, and context. As the course explains, ATTiC is more than an acronym; it is also a useful metaphor. Many factors that determine the success or failure of influence operate outside of conscious awareness. In this way, the four factors are much like the attic of a house -- always present, even when the residents aren't thinking about it. In the same way, factors that make us susceptible to influence are built into our basic psychology. By bringing these factors to light, this course not only helps you develop the skills that will make you a more influential person, but it also provides practical guidelines for resisting influence attempts when doing so is in your best interests (p. 1).

DVD.

For private home use only.