Have you ever wished that you were more charismatic? Do you think you can learn how to be more charismatic? Well according to Olivia Fox Cabane you can learn how to be charismatic and she wants to teach you how to be more charismatic through her book The Charisma Myth: Master the Art of Personal Magnetism.

Olivia is passionate about the topic of charisma and for good reasons. At the beginning of the book she states, “Like it or not, charisma can make the world go round – it makes people want to do what you want them to do.” Now luckily she doesn’t state that charisma is important and then disappear. Instead she states that anyone can learn how to be charismatic. This is because she believes there is an equation to being charismatic.

Accordingly to Olivia, the charisma equation is:

HIGH WARMTH + HIGH POWER

Interestingly after saying this is the equation Olivia then adds in presence as a third component. The books then walks you through exactly what warmth, presence and power are and how you convey the three elements. As well as telling you what to do Olivia also points out the obstacles that could stop you. Two major obstacles are physical or mental discomfort and Olivia gives advice on how to minimise the chance of you being uncomfortable.

The mind plays a major role in being charismatic and as a result, Olivia devotes a whole chapter to creating charismatic mental states. This chapter includes lots of exercises for you to try to delve deeper into being able to get your mind into the right state.

Once the idea of charisma has been thoroughly explained and Olivia has shown you how to be charismatic it is time to delve deeper into charisma styles. According to Olivia, there are four types of charisma styles:

• FOCUS
• VISIONARY
• KINDNESS
• AUTHORITY

You are then encouraged to choose a preferred charisma style, which would be based on a combination of your personality, your goals and the situation. Whilst everyone should have a preferred charisma style it is important you fully understand how the others work so you can use it if the situation calls for that charisma style.

The next chapters of the book focus on how to practically apply your new knowledge.

Charisma starts from the moment people first meet you so it makes sense to have a chapter on first impressions. This covers topics such as clothing, handshakes and how to break the ice.

Then there is a focus on speaking and listening. Listening properly is something lots of people struggle with so Olivia shares three tips to help you be a better listener.

• Attentive listening
• Refraining from interrupting
• Deliberate pausing.

Listening is only one part of the puzzle though and it is important for you to speak with charisma too. The book walks you through a combination of tips to help improve what you say as well as how you speak.

When it comes to being charismatic your body plays a major role so there is a chapter devoted to your body language. It looks at everything from personal space, your eyes and posture.

Towards the end of the book, Olivia gives a warning. Being more charismatic obviously has positives, but there are negatives too. She writes that when you become increasingly magnetic, you may find yourself praise, admiration, and envy”. However, there are tips provided to help you deal with negative side of things and even behave in ways to minimise them.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Overall, I really enjoyed reading The Charisma Myth. It is the first book I have read on the topic of charisma and I loved how Olivia really broke what can be classed as a mystical skill that you are born with into something very concrete that you can learn to be. Whilst there a lot of exercises to try out the rest of the book was fairly easy to read.

If you like the sound of The Charisma Myth you can buy a copy for yourself by clicking here.

This book was read as part of PropelHer’s Book, which is a women-only non-fiction book club. If you are an ambitious women who want to read books to support your personal development and professional success then you can find out more about PropelHer’s Book Club at www.propelher.co.uk/bookclub.