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    • Influence

    Influence Courses Online

    Explore principles of influence for effective communication and leadership. Learn techniques for persuasion, negotiation, and building credibility.

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    Explore the Influence Course Catalog

    • Status: Free Trial
      Free Trial
      U

      University of Pennsylvania

      Positive Psychology Specialization Project: Design Your Life for Well-being

      Skills you'll gain: Positivity, Research, Research Methodologies, Personal Development, Research Design, Mental Health Diseases and Disorders, Psychology, Resilience, Self-Awareness, Program Evaluation, Creativity, Curiosity

      4.8
      Rating, 4.8 out of 5 stars
      ·
      847 reviews

      Mixed · Course · 1 - 4 Weeks

    • Status: Free Trial
      Free Trial
      T

      Tecnológico de Monterrey

      Liderazgo y Pensamiento Crítico

      Skills you'll gain: Critical Thinking, Independent Thinking, Influencing, Organizational Leadership, Self-Awareness, Decision Making, Leadership, Industrial and Organizational Psychology, Strategic Thinking, Leadership and Management, Team Motivation, Personal Development, Emotional Intelligence, Business Leadership, Leadership Development, Resilience, Strategic Decision-Making, Social Skills, Psychology, Complex Problem Solving

      4.7
      Rating, 4.7 out of 5 stars
      ·
      432 reviews

      Advanced · Specialization · 1 - 3 Months

    • Status: Free Trial
      Free Trial
      U

      University of Pennsylvania

      The Power of Team Culture

      Skills you'll gain: Intercultural Competence, Team Management, Team Building, Team Leadership, Cultural Diversity, Team Motivation, Culture, Diversity Awareness, Industrial and Organizational Psychology, Organizational Development, Performance Analysis, Non-Verbal Communication

      4.6
      Rating, 4.6 out of 5 stars
      ·
      520 reviews

      Beginner · Course · 1 - 3 Months

    • T

      The University of Melbourne

      How Music Can Change Your Life

      Skills you'll gain: Music, World Music, Cultural Diversity, Rehabilitation, Community Development, Behavioral Health, Psychotherapy, Mental Health, Rapport Building, Neurology

      4.7
      Rating, 4.7 out of 5 stars
      ·
      177 reviews

      Beginner · Course · 1 - 3 Months

    • D

      Duke University

      The Brain and Space

      Skills you'll gain: Spatial Analysis, Neurology, Human Learning, Experimentation, Laboratory Research, Physics, Biology, General Science and Research, Magnetic Resonance Imaging

      4.7
      Rating, 4.7 out of 5 stars
      ·
      652 reviews

      Beginner · Course · 1 - 3 Months

    • U

      University of Virginia

      The Kennedy Half Century

      Skills you'll gain: Public Affairs, Media and Communications, Political Sciences, Social Studies, Policy Analysis, Public Policies, International Relations, Public History, Economics

      4.7
      Rating, 4.7 out of 5 stars
      ·
      499 reviews

      Beginner · Course · 1 - 4 Weeks

    • Status: Free Trial
      Free Trial
      K

      Keller Williams

      The Principles of Real Estate

      Skills you'll gain: Lead Generation, Real Estate, Real Estate Sales, Property and Real Estate, Customer Relationship Building, Sales Prospecting, Prioritization, Goal Setting, Market Data, Market Analysis, Customer Relationship Management, Market Trend, Compensation Management

      4.8
      Rating, 4.8 out of 5 stars
      ·
      118 reviews

      Beginner · Course · 1 - 3 Months

    • Status: Free Trial
      Free Trial
      U

      University of Michigan

      The Influence of Social Context on Health

      Skills you'll gain: Health Equity, Health Disparities, Health Policy, Public Health, Economics, Policy, and Social Studies, Socioeconomics, Social Justice, Community Health, Stress Management, Behavioral Health, Social Sciences, Health Care, Social and Human Services, Mental and Behavioral Health, Sociology, Environment Health And Safety

      4.9
      Rating, 4.9 out of 5 stars
      ·
      8 reviews

      Intermediate · Course · 1 - 4 Weeks

    • Status: Free Trial
      Free Trial
      U

      University of Michigan

      Inspiring and Motivating Individuals

      Skills you'll gain: Team Motivation, Employee Engagement, Team Management, Team Building, Organizational Leadership, Goal Setting, Visionary, Leadership, Cultural Diversity, Constructive Feedback, Performance Appraisal, Communication

      4.8
      Rating, 4.8 out of 5 stars
      ·
      5.8K reviews

      Beginner · Course · 1 - 4 Weeks

    • Status: Free Trial
      Free Trial
      C

      Case Western Reserve University

      Conversations That Inspire: Coaching Learning, Leadership and Change

      Skills you'll gain: Coaching, Empathy, Compassion, Leadership Development, Active Listening, Emotional Intelligence, Self-Awareness, Personal Development, Organizational Change, Relationship Building, Change Management, Neurology, Stress Management, Goal Setting

      4.7
      Rating, 4.7 out of 5 stars
      ·
      346 reviews

      Mixed · Course · 1 - 3 Months

    • Status: Free Trial
      Free Trial
      T

      Tecnológico de Monterrey

      Iniciación y Planificación de Proyectos

      Skills you'll gain: Project Scoping, Stakeholder Management, Stakeholder Engagement, Work Breakdown Structure, Project Planning, Project Management, Project Management Life Cycle, Influencing, Conflict Management, Leadership Studies, Organizational Structure

      4.7
      Rating, 4.7 out of 5 stars
      ·
      4.5K reviews

      Mixed · Course · 1 - 4 Weeks

    • U

      University of Pennsylvania

      Social Impact Strategy: Tools for Entrepreneurs and Innovators

      Skills you'll gain: Design Thinking, Performance Measurement, Innovation, Entrepreneurship, Business Modeling, Project Performance, Strategic Thinking, Project Design, Organizational Structure, Needs Assessment, Growth Strategies, Market Analysis

      4.8
      Rating, 4.8 out of 5 stars
      ·
      1.4K reviews

      Beginner · Course · 1 - 4 Weeks

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    In summary, here are 10 of our most popular influence courses

    • Positive Psychology Specialization Project: Design Your Life for Well-being: University of Pennsylvania
    • Liderazgo y Pensamiento Crítico: Tecnológico de Monterrey
    • The Power of Team Culture: University of Pennsylvania
    • How Music Can Change Your Life: The University of Melbourne
    • The Brain and Space: Duke University
    • The Kennedy Half Century: University of Virginia
    • The Principles of Real Estate: Keller Williams
    • The Influence of Social Context on Health: University of Michigan
    • Inspiring and Motivating Individuals: University of Michigan
    • Conversations That Inspire: Coaching Learning, Leadership and Change: Case Western Reserve University

    Frequently Asked Questions about Influence

    To influence someone is to affect or change their behavior without the direct use of authority, coercion, or force. Instead, the influencer creates change by shifting the mindset of individuals, groups, or entire organizations, persuading them to adopt the desired course of action of their own free will. The ability to influence can be important for everyday communication and maintaining harmonious relationships in our personal and family lives, but it is also a very important skill for many jobs and career paths.

    For instance, being able to subtly influence your customers to “get to yes” when you’re closing a deal is an essential talent of sales professionals of all kinds, whether you’re selling shoes or business software. In fact, the world of social media and digital marketing has created a new type of selling called influencer marketing, in which influential personalities and cultural figures post pictures and testimonials with the product being sold.

    The ability to influence is also essential for leadership roles in any organization, as management positions require you to motivate employees to not only fulfill their roles but to work enthusiastically at the peak of their abilities. The best executives and CEOs are talented at bringing their teams into vision alignment, with strongly shared priorities, values, and focused goal setting that allow organizations to succeed - in business as well as in the recruitment of top-flight talent.‎

    Influencing skills are important for almost any career that requires working in a team, but they are most important for roles as managers and top executives. Dale Carnegie’s “How to Win Friends and Influence People” has been a mainstay in business school curricula despite being written nearly a century ago because this skill has always been fundamental for success in the business world. The ability to get your team aligned to work together effectively is rare and highly valued; according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, top executives earned a median annual salary of $104,690 per year in 2019, including a median pay of $184,460 for chief executive officers (CEOs).‎

    Absolutely. There is a common myth that the ability to influence others is simply an innate talent that some people have and others don’t, but the reality is that influencing is a skill that is taught at every business school - including schools offering courses online through Coursera. You can learn how to influence others from leading faculty at top-ranked schools like University of Pennsylvania, University of Michigan, Northwestern University, and Macquarie University. And even though Coursera lets you learn remotely on a flexible schedule, you can still work with faculty in live virtual office hours that let you practice your influencing skills to an expert audience.‎

    Some skills or experience you might need to have before learning influence are strong social skills that allow you to get along with all types of people, such as supervisors, peers, and customers. If you have any sales experience or experience presenting information and concepts to others in person or online, you may already have the skills necessary to learn advanced influencing methods.‎

    The kind of people who are best suited for roles in influence are those who are confident in their abilities to motivate and persuade others whether or not they’re in authority roles. Types of people well suited for roles in influence can build and maintain high-quality relationships with diverse groups of individuals. People best suited for learning influence can discern other people’s attitudes, diverse social factors influencing behavior, and why people may or may not act on their intentions.‎

    Learning influence may be right for you if you want to learn how to develop it so you can become more effective in achieving your organizational goals. Studying the subject may be right for you if you want to understand the framework of power and influence and the dynamics of effective networks, persuasion, and leverage. If you're in any type of role where you need negotiation, communication, and sales skills, then learning influence may be a good choice for you.‎

    Common career paths for someone who has studied influence are often found in corporate management in general where the ability to persuade people is paramount. Specific common career paths for people who have studied influence might be product and brand management, research and development, and any leadership position in an organization’s C-suite. Another common career path for someone in influence is blogging where paid or sponsored influencers create content on various social media platforms. The most common career path for someone in influence is in sales where it’s critical to understand how to best persuade customers and clients using various tools, including neuromarketing.‎

    There are many topics you can study that are related to influence, such as emotional intelligence, which may help you to work effectively in teams, build cooperative relationships, and exercise effective influence to foster meaningful change. Another topic related to influence that you can study is social psychology to help you understand why people behave in certain ways. Marketing is another strongly related topic to influence that you might consider studying.‎

    This FAQ content has been made available for informational purposes only. Learners are advised to conduct additional research to ensure that courses and other credentials pursued meet their personal, professional, and financial goals.

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