Your colleagues, clients, and even strangers in line for coffee are more open to your influence than you might think with guest expert Vanessa Bohns, PhD

Vanessa Bohns, author of You Have More Influence Than You Think: How We Underestimate our Power of Persuasion, and Why it Matters

Vanessa Bohns and Bill Ringle discuss the scientific principles of how to maximize your influence at work for small business leaders.

>>> Visit MyQuestforTheBest.com for complete show notes and more expert advice and inspiring stories to propel your small business growth. My Quest for the Best is a top-rated small business podcast with over 300 episodes of thought-provoking and insightful interviews with today’s top thought leaders and business experts. Host Bill Ringle’s mission with this show is to provide the strategies, insights, and resources that will unlock the growth potential of your business through these powerful conversations.

Interview Insights

Top 3 Takeaways from this Interview

We need to be responsible with what we say because whether it is intentional or unintentional, our words can influence others. Make every opportunity a chance to contribute positivity.

The good thing about getting rejected many times over is that we build better resiliency towards rejection. We can think with a clearer head on what to do whenever we are in this situation.

We need to make ourselves stronger and better at hearing no and saying no.

Read the Show Notes from this Episode

Vanessa's grandfather made a strong impact in her life growing up. [01:04]

One of her biggest dreams was to get into Brown and recalled how proud her grandfather was of her when she got in. [02:08]

Vanessa talks about guiding students with their own ideas in regard to their future plans. [03:27]

A discussion on how we influence others with our words. [05:30]

Here she talks about Ruth and the thrill of being remembered. [07:58]

Jia Jiang talks about rejection therapy, why people force themselves to get rejected every day, and how it impacts them. [14:01]

A conversation about putting yourself out there and asking a little bit more than you are used to. [17:13]

Vanessa talks about Jason Comely who is the founder of rejection therapy. [20:36]

My Quest for the Best Lightning Round begins [24:03]

Expert Bio

Vanessa Bohns is a social psychologist and professor of organizational behavior at Cornell University holds a Ph.D. in psychology from Columbia University and an AB from Brown University.

She is the author of You Have More Influence Than You Think: How We Underestimate our Power of Persuasion, and Why it Matters.

Her writing has appeared in the New York Times and Harvard Business Review, and her research has been featured by the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, and NPR’s Hidden Brain.

Contact Info and Social Media for Vanessa Bohns

Primary Website 

Travels from: Ithaca, NY

Connect on LinkedIn | Twitter 

Resources Mentioned

Below are key people, places, books, quotes, websites and other resources that we discussed so you can explore further.

Brown University - Brown University is a private Ivy League research university in Providence, Rhode Island.

Leukemia and Lymphoma Society -  is the largest voluntary health organization dedicated to fighting blood cancer in the world. 

Jia Jiang TEDx What I Learned from 100 Days of Rejection

Costco - Costco Wholesale Corporation is an American multinational corporation that operates a chain of membership-only big-box retail stores. 

Jason Comely - Founder of rejection therapy

Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life by Anne Lamott

Books Authored by Vanessa Bohns