7 Rules of Power

Surprising—but True—Advice on How to Get Things Done and Advance Your Career

By: Jeffrey Pfeffer

Narrated by: Zac Aleman

Length: 6 hrs and 13 mins

Publisher's summary

Is power the last dirty secret or the secret to success? Both. While power carries some negative connotations, power is a tool that can be used for good or evil. Don’t blame the tool for how some people have used it. If fully understood and harnessed effectively, power skills and understanding become the keys to increasing salaries, job satisfaction, career advancement, organizational change, and happiness.

In 7 Rules of Power, Jeffrey Pfeffer, professor of organizational behavior at the Stanford University Graduate School of Business, provides the insights that have made both his online and on-campus classes incredibly popular—with life-changing results often achieved in 8 or 10 weeks. Rooted firmly in social-science research, Pfeffer’s 7 rules provide a manual for increasing your ability to get things done, including increasing the positive effects of your job performance.

The 7 rules are:

1. Get out of your own way.
2. Break the rules.
3. Show up in powerful fashion.
4. Create a powerful brand.
5. Network relentlessly.
6. Use your power.
7. Understand that once you have acquired power, what you did to get it will be forgiven, forgotten, or both.

With 7 Rules of Power, you’ll learn, through both numerous examples as well as research evidence, how to accomplish change in your organization, your life, the lives of others, and the world.

©2022 Jeffrey Pfeffer (P)2022 Dreamscape Media, LLC

Great advice and evidence based perspective

I loved the clear, succinct and effective advice and how Prof Pfeffer presents it. It's clearly based on a wealth of research and cases, and is more relevant than ever.

MBA from USC

Dr. Pfeffer is a legend in the business world and has published many must-read books for anyone who wants to pursue an MBA. This book is excellent for anyone trying to have a cheat sheet into how to grow their network and influence.

Great principles

Enjoyed the content. Explained a lot of corporate experiences I’d had. Sound principles backed up by examples. Wish I’d listened to this 10 years ago!

Provocative, Challenging, and Empowering

This book offers a seemingly provocative, but truthful guidebook of how to secure power, reap the benefits, and make meaningful change with your newfound influence. This book challenged my preconceived notions and has led to what I think will be a life-changing perspective shift.

Rule 7

My case studies for each rule , and antithesis of each rule. How it applies (which the book does) and how it backfires

Real Story of Power

Do you still believe all those fairytales we were told when we were young? You know, those stories about how if you work hard and follow the rules and do what you’re told and keep your nose clean you’ll be rewarded with success?
Well, this book will disabuse you of those silly notions and that is why it is so valuable.
Whether or not you decide to put these rules into practice, you should at least know how people in power actually get there. Hint: it’s almost never the feel good stories they tell you.
Loved this book and if you give it a try I predict you will love it as well.

Great information!!!

This book was a relatively short audio with great chapters that are very valuable on this subject! Highly recommend!

Great Book on the Importance of Power, and How to Get It.

I throughly enjoyed this book on power as it teaches why to get it and why it’s so important to keep it. I will be listening to it again and again.

Educational and entertaining

I thoroughly enjoyed listening to this extraordinary book. Very well done. Lessons I will use in all facets of life.

timeless, applicable, controversial yet realistic

very understandable reasons to do each of these steps. lots of great research throughout to support the foundational opinions on each chapter.