Keywords:: PermanentNote makePublic
Another interesting thing in this research is the difference between dominance and prestige.
Dominance is status gained from physical supremacy over others. Prestige, on the other hand, is status acquired from expertise and knowledge.
People are willing to defer to and perform favors for others who have acquired skills. It comes from the fact that throughout our history as a species, our existence depended on highly technical information like fishing, hunting, cooking, building huts, etc. It's more efficient to learn through osmosis than it is to learn through trial and error. (connection to PN: Apprenticeship is the way to learn new skills)
That said, if there's someone who knows something complicated, it's in your interest to have good relations with them to increase the odds of learning from them.
You can determine whether someone has physical dominance over others or prestige by looking at what their subordinates do. In regards to dominance, subordinate individuals avoid those who dominate them; in terms of prestige, subordinates try to get close to higher-status individuals.
This relates to what great leadership is. Great leaders make others feel stronger and better. They bring out the best in others. Bad leaders lead to others feeling smaller and intimidated.
Also, this speaks to the value of having a mentor and learning through apprenticeship. We evolved to learn through observing and imitating others' behaviors.
Further, this shows that if you want to gain respect, you need to acquire competence. And you can acquire competence only through work. Therefore, especially when starting out, speak through your work (as Robert Greene speaks). You'll know that you're on the path to acquiring competence (and prestige) when more and more people come to you.
Relevant notes (PN: )/questions (Q:):
PN: What is focal is important; PN: To persuade think in networks of associations: those with higher status may be more persuasive due to being more salient, social proof, and halo effect.