--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: To win power anywhere you have to…" description: "\"To win power anywhere you have to convince people that you can do something for them.\" — Todd Gitlin" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f9/todd-gitlin-16525_convince_to-win-power-anywhere-you-have-to-convin_2110135.jpg" --- # To win power anywhere you have to convince people that you… ![“To win power anywhere you have to convince people that you can do something for them.” quote by Todd Gitlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f9/todd-gitlin-16525_convince_to-win-power-anywhere-you-have-to-convin_2110135.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f9/todd-gitlin-16525_convince_to-win-power-anywhere-you-have-to-convin_2110135.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f9/todd-gitlin-16525_convince_to-win-power-anywhere-you-have-to-convin_2110135.jpg) > “To win power anywhere you have to convince people that you can do something for them.” [Todd Gitlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gitlin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Influence requires showing others how you can help them achieve goals. **In simple terms:** Help others to gain power. Key Takeaway Demonstrate value and build trust. Themes leadership influence service Mood inspirational pragmatic Type motivational strategic When to use this quote - community organizing - political campaigns - nonprofit work Key Concepts social capital persuasion Questions to Reflect On - How can you prove genuine intent? - What examples of mutual benefit inspire you? A Different Perspective People may resist help if motives seem self‑serving. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Convince](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/convince/) [Convince People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/convince-people/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/power/) [Power Convince](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/power-convince-804659/) [Win Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/win-power-3074329/) ## Related quotes > [“I need to meditate myself, a lot of time, before making any decision, because I know in deep, that I have the power to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zineb-skarabi/i-need-to-meditate-myself-a-lot-of-time-before-making-any-decision/) [Zineb SKARABI](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zineb-skarabi/) > [The only way to win a power struggle is to give it up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-mandel/the-only-way-to-win-a-power-struggle-is-to-give-it-up/) [Robert Mandel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-mandel/) > [If you get in a battle with someone, you don't get their power if you win. Power is something that you have to acquire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/if-you-get-in-a-battle-with-someone-you-don-t-get-their-power-if-you/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [I don't want to win power for myself. I want to win it to give it away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liz-kendall/i-don-t-want-to-win-power-for-myself-i-want-to-win-it-to-give-it-away/) [Liz Kendall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liz-kendall/) > [If you win power, remember why you wanted it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-marston/if-you-win-power-remember-why-you-wanted-it/) [John Marston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-marston/) > [As a Scot Gordon Brown will find it hard to convince people in England he should be prime minister](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boris-johnson/as-a-scot-gordon-brown-will-find-it-hard-to-convince-people-in/) [Boris Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boris-johnson/) > [Do not waste time trying to convince people who have their mind made up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/do-not-waste-time-trying-to-convince-people-who-have-their-mind-made/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If we can just convince other people to get involved, this could make some major changes in our society. It's very exhilarating.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dolores-huerta/if-we-can-just-convince-other-people-to-get-involved-this-could-make/) [Dolores Huerta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dolores-huerta/) > [For actors, the idea is that you convince people you're someone you're not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-bateman/for-actors-the-idea-is-that-you-convince-people-you-re-someone-you-re/) [Tom Bateman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-bateman/) > [I don't think of myself as a movie star and I can pretty easily convince other people that I'm not a movie star.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-mcdormand/i-don-t-think-of-myself-as-a-movie-star-and-i-can-pretty-easily/) [Frances McDormand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-mcdormand/) > [It's hard to convince people that you're killing them for their own good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-ivins/it-s-hard-to-convince-people-that-you-re-killing-them-for-their-own/) [Molly Ivins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-ivins/) > [On a Chinese film you just give orders, no one questions you. Here, you have to convince people, you have to tell them why…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ang-lee/on-a-chinese-film-you-just-give-orders-no-one-questions-you-here-you/) [Ang Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ang-lee/) > [I want to write weirder stuff and convince people that it's Top 40.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/verite/i-want-to-write-weirder-stuff-and-convince-people-that-it-s-top-40/) [Verite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/verite/) > [If you have to go around trying to convince people that you aren't 2 faced, a back stabber, a whore, or a liar, chances…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-you-have-to-go-around-trying-to-convince-people-that-you-aren-t-2/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Convince people and you win their minds. Inspire people and you win their hearts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-kaufman/convince-people-and-you-win-their-minds-inspire-people-and-you-win/) [Ron Kaufman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-kaufman/) ## More by Todd Gitlin > [The genius of the economic machine is in its ability to convert these indulgences into profitability. It converts desire into attention, a grip on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/the-genius-of-the-economic-machine-is-in-its-ability-to-convert-these/) [Todd Gitlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gitlin/) > [All I will say is that there are particular features of the American constitutional system that renders a third party futile - at best.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/all-i-will-say-is-that-there-are-particular-features-of-the-american/) [Todd Gitlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gitlin/) > [Human inertia makes the everyday environment, the furniture, as it were, appear to be a given.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/human-inertia-makes-the-everyday-environment-the-furniture-as-it-were/) [Todd Gitlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gitlin/) > [I first came to think about media and politics in the late 1960s, having observed some distortions up close, but since then I wouldn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/i-first-came-to-think-about-media-and-politics-in-the-late-1960s/) [Todd Gitlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gitlin/) > [I don't for the life of me understand how anybody could contemplate the results of the 2000 election in the US and say that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/i-don-t-for-the-life-of-me-understand-how-anybody-could-contemplate/) [Todd Gitlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gitlin/) > [Right now, we have no possibility of politics because we have a one-party state.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/right-now-we-have-no-possibility-of-politics-because-we-have-a-one/) [Todd Gitlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gitlin/) > [The mobilisation which Bush has been able to perform since 11 September 2001 has to be fought - at least by Americans - in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/the-mobilisation-which-bush-has-been-able-to-perform-since-11/) [Todd Gitlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gitlin/) > [Navigation is power of a limited sort - it enables us to manage the immensity of the media torrent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/navigation-is-power-of-a-limited-sort-it-enables-us-to-manage-the/) [Todd Gitlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gitlin/) > [My book is focused on the power of the American state, not least because the government of the United States governs so much that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/my-book-is-focused-on-the-power-of-the-american-state-not-least/) [Todd Gitlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gitlin/) > [Mills insisted that a sociologist's proper subject was the intersection of biography and history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/mills-insisted-that-a-sociologist-s-proper-subject-was-the/) [Todd Gitlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gitlin/) > [Sure, I've often been misrepresented - anyone frequently quoted has this experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/sure-i-ve-often-been-misrepresented-anyone-frequently-quoted-has-this/) [Todd Gitlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gitlin/) > [A century of convulsive change leaves huge demographic gouge marks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/a-century-of-convulsive-change-leaves-huge-demographic-gouge-marks/) [Todd Gitlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gitlin/) > [If the Bible is a creation myth, it is an amorphous confusing one](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/if-the-bible-is-a-creation-myth-it-is-an-amorphous-confusing-one/) [Todd Gitlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gitlin/) > [So every day I'm mindful as I watch the Bush crowd extend their sway into policies of every imaginable variety, and over almost every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/so-every-day-i-m-mindful-as-i-watch-the-bush-crowd-extend-their-sway/) [Todd Gitlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gitlin/) > [Some versions of patriotism come close to the tribal, which we all want to surpass, and some don't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/some-versions-of-patriotism-come-close-to-the-tribal-which-we-all/) [Todd Gitlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gitlin/) [Explore all 39 Todd Gitlin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gitlin/) ## More Convince quotes > [“Sometimes we want something to be true so badly that we convince ourselves that it is true.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wally-lamb/sometimes-we-want-something-to-be-true-so-badly-that-we-convince/) [Wally Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wally-lamb/) > [The privilege of prayer to me is one of the most cherished possessions, because faith and experience alike convince me that God himself sees…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilfred-grenfell/the-privilege-of-prayer-to-me-is-one-of-the-most-cherished/) [Wilfred Grenfell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilfred-grenfell/) > [Jesus never met a disease he could not cure, a birth defect he could not reverse, a demon he could not exorcise. But he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/jesus-never-met-a-disease-he-could-not-cure-a-birth-defect-he-could/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [The first duty of a wise advocate is to convince his opponents that he understands their arguments, and sympathies with their just feelings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-taylor-coleridge/the-first-duty-of-a-wise-advocate-is-to-convince-his-opponents-that/) [Samuel Taylor Coleridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-taylor-coleridge/) > [Once you convince people that they're victims, you really own them because you've just told them that whatever problems they have in life, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/once-you-convince-people-that-they-re-victims-you-really-own-them/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [The people on the QVC shopping channel convince me that life is worth living. They see the good in everything. People who go to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-vegas/the-people-on-the-qvc-shopping-channel-convince-me-that-life-is-worth/) [Johnny Vegas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-vegas/) > [“What can I say to convince you the Houses of Parliament dissolve night after night to become the fluid dream of the Thames? I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisel-mueller/what-can-i-say-to-convince-you-the-houses-of-parliament-dissolve/) [Lisel Mueller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisel-mueller/) > [Human beings have the incredible capacity for denial. I think they do. And although it's really hard to believe, I have my doubts. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-byrne/human-beings-have-the-incredible-capacity-for-denial-i-think-they-do/) [David Byrne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-byrne/) > [“If you can convince yourself, you can convince the other fellow,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-sanders/if-you-can-convince-yourself-you-can-convince-the-other-fellow/) [Tim Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-sanders/) > [Don't lie to yourself about what you can't or can achieve. Convince yourself on a realistic level that you can do it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/don-t-lie-to-yourself-about-what-you-can-t-or-can-achieve-convince/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Don't ever let anyone convince you that your imagination is wrong.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giuseppe-bianco/don-t-ever-let-anyone-convince-you-that-your-imagination-is-wrong/) [Giuseppe Bianco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giuseppe-bianco/) > [It's hard to convince your agents and managers to do theater, because it's not as financially rewarding and it takes up a lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-helberg/it-s-hard-to-convince-your-agents-and-managers-to-do-theater-because/) [Simon Helberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-helberg/) > [I guess that is the strange part of the human brain that people have studied for eons - is hatred and self-hatred. You can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trevor-noah/i-guess-that-is-the-strange-part-of-the-human-brain-that-people-have/) [Trevor Noah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trevor-noah/) > [I knew I shouldn't like him cause I know it's not working, and everybody tells me that, and I convince myself I don't... and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernajoy-vaal/i-knew-i-shouldn-t-like-him-cause-i-know-it-s-not-working-and/) [Bernajoy Vaal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernajoy-vaal/) > [The statesmen will invent cheap lies, putting the blame upon the nation that is attacked, and every man will be glad of those conscience-soothing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/the-statesmen-will-invent-cheap-lies-putting-the-blame-upon-the/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) [Browse all 1,431 Convince quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/convince/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "To win power anywhere you have to convince people that you can do something for them.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Todd Gitlin" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/to-win-power-anywhere-you-have-to-convince-people-that-you-can-do/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Convince" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/to-win-power-anywhere-you-have-to-convince-people-that-you-can-do/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f9/todd-gitlin-16525_convince_to-win-power-anywhere-you-have-to-convin_2110135.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f9/todd-gitlin-16525_convince_to-win-power-anywhere-you-have-to-convin_2110135.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f9/todd-gitlin-16525_convince_to-win-power-anywhere-you-have-to-convin_2110135.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“To win power anywhere you have to convince people that you can do something for them.” — Todd Gitlin", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Todd Gitlin", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gitlin/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "To win power anywhere you have...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/to-win-power-anywhere-you-have-to-convince-people-that-you-can-do/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/to-win-power-anywhere-you-have-to-convince-people-that-you-can-do/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```