35 Ways To Become More Powerful And Get What You Want

35 Ways To Become More Powerful And Get What You Want

Teach no one your tricks or they will be used against you.

Powerful people impress and intimidate by saying less. The more you say, the more likely you are to say something foolish.

— Robert Greene, The 48 Laws of Power

Words Saying Less Power

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Keep people off-balance and in the dark by never revealing the purpose behind your actions. If they have no clue what you are up to, they cannot prepare a defense.

— Robert Greene, The 48 Laws of Power

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To succeed in the game of power, you have to master your emotions.

— Robert Greene, The 48 Laws of Power

Power Success Emotion Feelings

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Be royal in your own fashion. Act like a king to be treated like one.

— Robert Greene, The 48 Laws of Power

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When you meet a swordsman, draw your sword: Do not recite poetry to one who is not a poet.

— Robert Greene, The 48 Laws of Power

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Teach no one your tricks or they will be used against you.

— Robert Greene, The 48 Laws of Power

Power Secret tricks

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When you are trying to impress people with words, the more you say, the more common you appear, and the less in control. Even if you are saying something banal, it will seem original if you make it vague, open-ended, and sphinxlike.

— Robert Greene, The 48 Laws of Power

Words Saying Less Power

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If there is something you want but you cannot have, show contempt for it. The less interest you reveal, the more superior you seem.

— Robert Greene, The 48 Laws of Power

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The unfortunate sometimes draw misfortune on themselves, they will also draw it on you. Associate with the happy and fortunate instead.

— Robert Greene, The 48 Laws of Power

Power Success People Happiness

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Give people options that come out in your favor whichever one they choose.

— Robert Greene, The 48 Laws of Power

Power Secret Option

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You must learn when to leave. Create value through scarcity.

— Robert Greene, The 48 Laws of Power

Power Greatness Value

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Never outshine the master.

— Robert Greene, The 48 Laws of Power

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When you show yourself to the world and display your talents, you naturally stir all kinds of resentment, envy, and other manifestations of insecurity... you cannot spend your life worrying about the petty feelings of others.

— Robert Greene, The 48 Laws of Power

Power Envy Showing Off

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Never seem to be in a hurry -- hurrying betrays a lack of control over yourself and over time. Always seem patient, as if you know that everything will come to you eventually.

— Robert Greene, The 48 Laws of Power

Power Respect Time Patience

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Everyone admires the bold; no one honors the timid.’

— Robert Greene, The 48 Laws of Power

Power bold Confidence

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The key to power, then, is the ability to judge who is best able to further your interests in all situations. Keep friends for friendship, but work with the skilled and competent.

— Robert Greene, The 48 Laws of Power

Power Friend Work Success

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Make your masters appear more brilliant than they are and you will attain the heights of power.

— Robert Greene, The 48 Laws of Power

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Do not leave your reputation to chance or gossip; it is your life's artwork, and you must craft it, hone it, and display it with the care of an artist.

— Robert Greene, The 48 Laws of Power

Power Reputation Gossip

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Make yourself a magnet of attention by appearing larger, more colorful, more mysterious than the bland and timid masses.

— Robert Greene, The 48 Laws of Power

Power Attention Mystery

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Do not accept the roles that society foists on you. Re-create yourself by forging a new identity, one that commands attention and never bores the audience. Be the master of your own image rather than letting others define it for you.

— Robert Greene, The 48 Laws of Power

Power Attention Image Originality

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Be wary of friends—they will betray you more quickly, for they are easily aroused to envy. They also become spoiled and tyrannical. But hire a former enemy and he will be more loyal than a friend, because he has more to prove.

— Robert Greene, The 48 Laws of Power

Power Friends enemies Frenemies

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It is much more powerful to get others to agree with you through your actions, without saying a word. Demonstrate, do not explicate.

— Robert Greene, The 48 Laws of Power

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Avoid the unhappy and unlucky.

— Robert Greene, The 48 Laws of Power

Power Success People

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When you act, act effortlessly, as if you could do much more. Avoid the temptation of revealing how hard you work -- it only raises questions.

— Robert Greene, The 48 Laws of Power

Power Effort pretending

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So much of power is not what you do but what you do not do—the rash and foolish actions that you refrain from before they get you into trouble.

— Robert Greene, The 48 Laws of Power

Power Greatness actions

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Know who you're dealing with. Do not offend the wrong person.

— Robert Greene, The 48 Laws of Power

Power Greatness People

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Do not commit to any side or cause but yourself. By maintaining your independence, you become the master of others -- playing people against one another, making them pursue you.

— Robert Greene, The 48 Laws of Power

Power Greatness People Commitment

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Your predictability gives them a sense of control. Turn the tables; be deliberately unpredictable.

— Robert Greene, The 48 Laws of Power

Power Greatness Predictability

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The more you are seen and heard from, the more common you appear.

— Robert Greene, The 48 Laws of Power

Power Greatness Value

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Never be distracted by people’s glamorous portraits of themselves and their lives; search and dig for what really imprisons them.

— Robert Greene, The 48 Laws of Power

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Make people depend on you for their happiness and prosperity and you have nothing to fear. Never teach them enough so that they can do without you.

— Robert Greene, The 48 Laws of Power

Power Success Dependence

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An emotional response to a situation is the single greatest barrier to power, a mistake that will cost you a lot more than any temporary satisfaction you might gain by expressing your feelings.

— Robert Greene, The 48 Laws of Power

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In a world growing increasingly banal and familiar, what seems enigmatic instantly draws attention. Never make it too clear what you are doing or about to do. Do not show all your cards. An air of mystery heightens your presence; it also creates anticipation—everyone

— Robert Greene, The 48 Laws of Power

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What good is it to have the greatest dream in the world if others reap the benefits and the glory? Never lose your head over a vague, open-ended dream—plan to the end.

— Robert Greene, The 48 Laws of Power

Power Dreams plans

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The best way to protect yourself is to be as fluid and formless as water; never bet on stability or lasting order. Everything changes.

— Robert Greene, The 48 Laws of Power

Power Change Flexibility

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