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  • Acting with Power

  • Why We Are More Powerful Than We Believe
  • Written by: Deborah Gruenfeld
  • Narrated by: Deborah Gruenfeld
  • Length: 8 hrs and 15 mins
  • 5.0 out of 5 stars (3 ratings)

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Acting with Power

Written by: Deborah Gruenfeld
Narrated by: Deborah Gruenfeld
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Publisher's Summary

“A refreshing and enlightening new perspective on what it means to be powerful.” (Susan Cain, best-selling author of Quiet)

We all know what it looks like to use power badly. But how much do we really know about how to use power well?

There is so much we get wrong about power: who has it, what it looks like, and the role it plays in our lives. Grounded in over two decades’ worth of scientific research and inspired by the popular class of the same name at Stanford’s Graduate School of Business, Acting with Power offers a new and eye-opening paradigm that overturns everything we thought we knew about the nature of power.

Although we all feel powerless sometimes, we have more power than we tend to believe. Power exists in every relationship, not just at the top of big institutions. It isn’t merely a function of status or hierarchy, either. It’s about how much we are needed and how well we take care of other people.

We often assume that power flows to those with the loudest voice or the most commanding presence. But, in fact, true power is often much quieter and more deferential than we realize. Moreover, it’s not just how much power we have but how we use it that determines how powerful we actually are.

Actors aren’t the only ones who play roles for a living. We all make choices about how to use the power that comes with our given circumstances. We aren’t always cast in the roles we desire - or the ones we feel prepared to play. Some of us struggle to step up and be taken more seriously, while others have trouble standing back and ceding the spotlight.

In Acting with Power, Deborah Gruenfeld shows how we can get more comfortable with power by adopting an actor’s mindset. Because power isn’t a personal attribute. It’s a part we play in someone else’s story.

©2020 Deborah Gruenfeld (P)2020 Random House Audio

What the critics say

"A smart, interesting, and timely book about how to use power in everyday life - and, just as important, how not to." (Daniel Gilbert, Harvard psychologist and author of Stumbling on Happiness)

"'All the world’s a stage...and one man in his time plays many parts.' Acting with Power stirs us to give our best performance as players on the corporate stage. It shows how the power we do possess can be used well, humanely, for the advancement of something more than our personal success. Deborah Gruenfeld’s book directs us in the art of acquiring power by using our abilities while being our authentic selves. This book is a treasure." (Tristan Walker, founder and CEO of Walker & Company Brands)

"Acting with Power is an entertaining and uplifting read, filled with sharp insight and practical advice. This book will change how you think about power and how you handle it - and will help you see the power you may not have known you have." (Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook and founder of LeanIn.Org and OptionB.Org)

What listeners say about Acting with Power

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

So many take aways

So impressed with this book and so many concise, relatable scenarios
Will definitely share it

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Quotable

This book made me want to pull out a pen and make notes in every chapter. So relevant and needed in the world we live in today (with pandemics requiring social isolation, the state of our politics and divisiveness as nations, our struggle to contain bullying and sexual harassment). This book covers everything. How to find and use your own power, why power is misused and how great leaders use power.

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