Influencer Discussion Questions

Change anything by learning and adopting the principles and strategies found in the book Influencer: The Power to Change Anything. Facilitate your learning through a weekly discussion. Here are a few questions to get you started:

Why are there so few influencers in the world?
What can you learn about influence from those who have solved problems like Guinea Worm disease?
Why is it crucial to identify “vital behaviors” when attempting to bring about change?
What makes a “vital behavior” so high-leverage in solving important problems? What is a “vital behavior” in your life?
How do you go about changing minds when people are very resistant to your ideas? Why do we stay focused so frequently on verbal persuasion long after it appears to be failing?
What can you learn from those who have used entertainment education about how to influence change in your life?
What does it mean to “make change inevitable” or to“overdetermine change”? Why is this so important when
attempting to change deeply entrenched habits? Why is it so rarely used?
Which of the six sources of influence do you tend to rely on most? Which do you almost never consider? Why?
Can you really “make the undesirable desirable”? What is an example from your experience where a behavior that was uncomfortable or undesirable began to feel otherwise to you? Why?
Why do we so often underestimate the need for skill building when influencing change? How would the principles of“deliberate practice” help improve your own change efforts?
In what ways do you see peer pressure creating unhealthy norms and behaviors in your community, company, or life? How could you harness peer pressure to influence positive change in these circumstances?
What are some ways people enable bad behavior? How do they disable good behavior? Describe some things people could do in your workplace or neighborhood to enable more effective behavior.
Why do incentives and rewards often fail to create the intended change? What does it mean to “use incentives
third”? Share an example of an incentive that really worked because it supported the other sources of motivation.
Why are we so unaware of the effect our environment has on our behavior? What are some ways the environment affects behaviors you care most about?
What are some of the important problems you see at home, at work, or in your world that won’t be solved until people’s behavior changes? Which sources of influence are currently being used to influence those changes? Which sources of influence are missing?

Note: These discussion questions are not intended for use in corporate training and are only meant for informal reading groups or book clubs. For inquiries regarding training courses, please call us at 1 (740) 453-4547.