The paths to power: How to grow your influence and advance your career | Jeffrey Pfeffer (author of 7 Rules of Power, professor at Stanford GSB)

Jeffrey Pfeffer teaches the single most popular (and somewhat controversial) class at Stanford’s Graduate School of Business: The Paths to Power. He’s also the author of 16 books, including 7 Rules of Power: Surprising—But True—Advice on How to Get Things Done and Advance Your Career. He has taught at Harvard, the London Business School, and IESE and has written for publications like Fortune and the Washington Post. Recognized by the Academy of Management and listed in the Thinkers50 Hall of Fame, Jeffrey also serves on several corporate and nonprofit boards, bringing his expertise to global audiences through seminars and executive education. In our conversation, we discuss:• Jeffrey’s seven rules of power• How individuals can acquire and use power in business• Networking, and how to do it effectively• How to build a non-cringe personal brand• How to increase your influence to amplify your impact• Examples and stories of people building power• Tradeoffs and challenges that come with power—Brought to you by:• Uizard—AI-powered prototyping for visionary product leaders• Webflow—The web experience platform• Heap—Cross-platform product analytics that converts, engages, and retains customers—Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/the-paths-to-power-jeffrey-pfeffer—Where to find Jeffrey Pfeffer:• X: https://x.com/JeffreyPfeffer• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffrey-pfeffer-57a01b6/• Website: https://jeffreypfeffer.com/• Podcast: https://jeffreypfeffer.com/pfeffer-on-power/—Where to find Lenny:• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/—In this episode, we cover:(00:00) Jeffrey’s background (02:54) Understanding discomfort with power(04:56) Power skills for underrepresented groups(07:51) The popularity and challenges of Jeffrey’s class at Stanford(12:21) The seven rules of power(13:03) Success stories from his course(15:43) Building a personal brand(21:11