Why Don't We Have Power?
A B2 follow-up to a Jeffrey Pfeffer video on the barriers we create to gaining influence at work. Learners audit their own habits, challenge fair-world beliefs, reframe judgements, announce an unpopular decision and build weak-tie relationships. Suits managers and ambitious professionals.
Print-ready A4 PDF · teacher's notes and answer key included
What's inside
- Self-audit questionnaire
- Discussion
- Agree/disagree with video-based answers
- Sentence rewriting
- Case study
- Role-play
- Network mapping
- Message writing
- Homework task
- Short talk
By the end, learners can
- Discuss personal work habits that limit influence, using real examples
- Challenge common beliefs about fairness at work, giving reasons and referring to Pfeffer's view
- Rewrite judgemental comments as neutral, curious observations
- Announce an unpopular decision clearly while staying firm and acknowledging its cost
- Write a short message to a new contact and hold a first conversation that builds a relationship
- Deliver a two-minute talk on a trade-off made for more influence
Skills: Speaking · Listening · Writing · Vocabulary
Suits: Managers · Team leaders · Ambitious professionals
Language practised: Challenging a belief · Agreeing and partly agreeing · Announcing a decision · Acknowledging others' concerns · Holding firm under pushback · Reframing judgements as observations · Making a polite request · Starting and closing a conversation · Asking questions to build rapport · Offering something in return · Describing a trade-off
Pairs with
Lesson 4: Why Don't We Have Power? →
Teach the lesson first. The pack builds on the video your learner has just watched.
1 · Teach the lesson
Run the video lesson as usual.
2 · Run the pack
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3 · Report back
Open the next lesson with the homework.
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