Persuasion

Three practices can help.

A simple formula to create a concise, memorable pitch on the spot.

Effective persuasion involves preparation. Learn what steps you need to take to get support for your idea.

Instead of confronting people who resist your ideas, try connecting with them. You might just win their support.

How do you convince someone to agree with you when they've already said no? Learn a two-step approach for transforming resistance into support.

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When you're preparing to persuade someone, you don't always need to stick to a script. Sometimes the most convincing moments are improvised.

When Leadership Brainery's sponsorship application was denied, its founders didn't give up. Instead, they leveraged the power of engaging stories to change...

You can't establish credibility without building trust, but trust takes time to develop. What can you do if you don't have time on your side?

Ready to give persuasion a try? Overcome resistance by deciding how best to address Nia's hesitation to your idea.

Managing change requires a shared effort.

How language connects, differentiates, and enlightens us

How to persuade a client or senior executive to spend their limited resources.

Rather than trying to convince skeptics from the outset, start with a small group of enthusiastic people.

To persuade others, don't dismiss what they care about. Instead, find a solution in which both parties win.

There’s a reason “your” is in this headline.

The opportunity to ask questions at the end of a job interview is one you don't want to waste. It's both a chance to continue to prove yourself and to...

A research-backed guide to challenging groupthink.

You might not be seeing potential hurdles.

We live in an age of polarization. Many of us may be asking ourselves how, when people disagree with or discount us, we can persuade them to rethink their...

Examines the principles that apply in any persuasive business situation. Describes how to analyze the goals and audience; how to devise a persuasive message;...

How to be human at work. HBR's Emotional Intelligence Series features smart, essential reading on the human side of professional life from the pages of...

ARE YOUR WORKING RELATIONSHIPS WORKING AGAINST YOU? To achieve your goals and get ahead, you need to rally people behind you and your ideas. But how do...

Effective communication is a key driver for achieving desired results on a personal or business level. Knowing how to produce written communications--proposals,...

Is your message getting through? The right communication tactics can motivate your people--and fuel your business. Get more of the ideas you want, from...

Available exclusively through HBR.org: Ebook + Video! Purchase of the "HBR Guide to Persuasive Presentations" ebook includes a 20-minute video case study....

To be effective, managers have to be skilled at acquiring power and using that power to persuade others to get things done. This guide offers must-know...

Origo Commodities Indian Pvt. Ltd. (Origo) had grown to achieve revenue of US$40 million in just a decade, making it one of the leading players in India's...

Even as a teenager, Nadine Vogel knew she wanted to be an executive with a FORTUNE 500 company. This case chronicles her journey and her life and career...

Five years' worth of management wisdom, all in one place. Get the latest, most significant thinking from the pages of Harvard Business Review in "5 Years...

Learn how the most accomplished leaders from around the globe have tackled their toughest challenges with Lessons Learned. Concise and engaging, each...

Successful college basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski faces the decision whether to accept a lucrative offer to coach a professional basketball team or...

In November 1999, 11 of Goldman Sachs' finest gathered to put the final touches on a revolutionary leadership development plan. Following Goldman's explosive...

The legal availability and use of marijuana is on the rise. More than half the states in the country allow its use for medical purposes, eight of which...

This case uses a start-up in the retail industry to explore the leverage of behavioral science to enrich a business model and structure a marketing campaign....

Master the most critical professional skills with this five-volume set that covers topics from personal effectiveness to leading others. This specially...

This enhanced eBook version of the "HBR Guide to Building Your Business Case" includes downloadable tools and templates to help you get started on your...

Five years' worth of management wisdom, all in one place. Get the latest, most significant thinking from the pages of Harvard Business Review in "5 Years...

For more than 30 years, the TED conference series has presented enlightening talks that people enjoy watching. In this article, Anderson, TED's curator,...

Rather than trying to convince skeptics from the outset, start with a small group of enthusiastic people.

To win people over, create tension between the status quo and a better way.

What Aristotle can teach us about making an argument.

How to persuade a client or senior executive to spend their limited resources.

Three strategies to turn your adversaries into allies.

First, communicate your value and then discuss what your employer can offer you in exchange.

Coming up with creative ideas is easy; selling them to strangers is hard. Entrepreneurs, sales executives, and marketing managers often go to great lengths...

When you're giving a presentation, don't just narrate the text shown on your PowerPoint slides. Instead, create slides that make your ideas stand out...

Ask questions to uncover the motivations behind people's positions.