Persuasion: The Art of Influencing People

"I wanted a book that would help me to twist people around my little finger. That's probably not the most realistic objective in the world, but if you're looking for a book that will help you to influence and use the art of PERSUASION on people, you could do worse than buy this book.
The author explains how to use different skills and techniques first of all to gain the attention of people and then pick the right words and actions to get them to see your point of view and change their behaviour accordingly.
I fold the corners of pages in books to note pages that I find particularly interesting or useful and I can tell you that I've folded down quite a few pages (more than the average book).
The author has an amusing take on life and makes the topic very accessible. I really enjoy books that are broken up into sub-sections and with exercises and techniques split out from the main text so that you can jump to them, and this book delivers in that respect.
There are some illustrations which I thought were a little childish, but that's just about my only criticism of the book. Don't let the illustrations put you off from a thoroughly well-written book by the author, James Borg."
~ Written on 2008-08-02

"I found Persuasion an easy and an extremely useful read. I especially liked the how-to style of the book and its specific Dos and Don'ts rather than merely presenting the concepts or ideas behind the approach. I thought most chapters were well written and genuinely useful, but while some contained real nuggets, I felt that a couple of chapters that provided little more than padding.

I do however strongly recommend this book.

"
~ Written on 2008-02-19

"James Borg has provided us with one of the best books ever written on the art of persuasion. Prepare to dog ear and highlight this book to death as James gives you simple yet powerful techniques to better your influencing skills. For anyone who deals with people and wants to be more effective in their communication then this book fits the bill, I guess that's everyone then!?"
~ Written on 2008-01-15

"This is a practical, readable and most of all tremendously interesting book from the field of communication skills and inter-personal relationships. Though it is written for general public and intended to facilitate our professional and personal face-to-face relationships, it can be extremely helpful for `business people' and all those dealing with other individuals or groups, such as tourist guides and interpreters. In the latter case, they will find the book instructive on how to carry out presentations and manage their groups more effectively.

The book describes various skills of controlling the audience's attention, among other topics. You can learn how to recognize (in)visible signs of a breakdown of attention of your audience, to `read' the body language of people in your tour groups, and to generally win more attention while guiding. You'll find here how to pick up signals as to how you are coming across, retrieve the situation if somebody is resistant, choose the right words to get results in any situation, and more.

The text of this book is written in a charming way with a lot of examples from everyday life, given in special 'boxes'. Each chapter is followed by a small test, so the reader can check out his understanding of the subject. Even though you might think of yourself as a persuasive professional, there is always enough space for further improvements. James Borg's book is here to help you in that direction, and not only in your professional milieu."
~ Written on 2004-12-27