Power: Why Some People Have it and Others Don't

by Jeffrey Pfeffer

For instance, instead of giving people feedback about what they have done right and wrong in the past, he focuses on “feedforward,” which emphasizes what people need to do to get ready for the subsequent positions and career challenges they will confront. The idea is this: when people focus on what they need to get to the next stage of their careers, they are less defensive.

Asking about the qualities of people already in power can confound whether the qualities created the influence or whether they were a consequence of holding power.

military for example

professor David Krackhardt’s analysis of power in a small entrepreneurial company found that the people within the firm with the most accurate perception of the power distribution and networks of influence had more power.