How to Get On with Anyone

Chapter 15

Power and charisma

When I left the dining room after sitting next to Gladstone, I thought he was the cleverest man in England. But when I sat next to Disraeli I left feeling that I was the cleverest woman.

Lady Randolph Spencer-Churchill

Google ‘charismatic people’ and the names that come up are people such as Barack Obama, Margaret Thatcher, Richard Branson and Oprah Winfrey. But you don’t need to be a public figure to be charismatic – anyone can have charisma, even if they do not hold a formal position of power. Charisma is a quality possessed by some people that draws others to them, and it comes from their behaviour and their inner drives. Power often derives from a person’s job or position and is the ability to influence ...