Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson is a charismatic guy but perhaps the most interesting thing
about him is where his charisma comes from. Like his career, his charisma isn’t centered
around just one trait. He doesn’t have Bill Clinton’s eye contact, Russell Brand’s
way with words or Neil deGrasse Tysons buttery voice. He is doing a lot of things very well;
which means there are a lot of things that we can learn from him.
So let’s go ahead start with the first one, the most obvious, his commanding physical
presence. And it looks like a lot of it actually comes from his training in the WWE.
Now, obviously, this level of gesticulation is too intense for normal conversation, but
look at how the same movements down to that hand on hand slap have carried over to his
normal conversation just in a less intense way.
And one of the things that you're going to see from Dwayne Johnson and other effective
speakers is that they use their hands to illustrate their points, like in this next clip.
That little hug gesture and those hand slaps are far toned down from his WWE days, but
he's still very comfortable making large gestures when he speaks. I've covered the specifics
of strong body language in other videos and I'm going to link to those in the description,
but, for now, just know that those big gestures instantly make him more interesting to watch,
and they hold your attention while he speaks, but in Dwayne Johnson's case, most of his
expressiveness is actually coming from his face and it's particularly when he flashes
that big toothy smile.
Being visibly happy like this does a lot for you. First off, it's calling attention to
you in a positive way. People want to be surrounded by other people who are having fun. Laughing
boisterously
is a great way to mark yourself as that kind of a person, and that has a lot to do with the
fact that expressive displays of emotion let other people share in your emotions.
When you genuinely, genuinely feel something and show it in your body and on your face,
people around you feel that thing as well. So when he laughs loudly, Dwayne becomes someone
who makes other people around him feel good.
Happiness isn’t the only emotion, though, that’s contagious. "The Rock" Dwayne Johnson,
whatever you want to call him, is a captivating speaker because he lives in the emotion of his stories
and shows us that emotion in his face, and he's done that since his WWE days. You can
see in this next clip the way that he engages his whole face to voice different characters and
even takes a deep breath as he mentions doing so in the story. Check it out.
You just saw it in his last clip, but what these all leads up to are startling moments
of vulnerability in his stories. The Rock is a massive dude and you expect him to have
this hard attitude to match his physique. But not only is he a smiley, expressive guy,
he also talks candidly about the soft spots, and, I think, this is what has made him so
likable in his post wrestling career. He’s not playing this scowling character anymore.
He’s letting people see the emotions that he experiences, even when those emotions might
be considered embarrassing. Here he is, again, talking about a time his mom nearly died as
she walked into oncoming traffic.
Now I want to
make something very clear: telling sob stories isn’t charismatic. Being open, being vulnerable
and being real, that's what charisma is, but it's being all of those things, plus genuinely
strong, that what make Dwayne so special, and I don't mean just physically strong. What
I mean is that in his interactions, he is a leader. In a very, very friendly way, he
dictates the tone of the interaction that he's in. So take a look at this next clip
and see how he takes friendly control of this interview.
Let's watch that back again and pay attention, this time, to the interviewer. See how, at
first, when The Rock interrupts, he is so nervous. But as soon as he receives his congratulations,
he lights up and feels so good about it.
You see there? Dwayne Johnson takes control of the interaction but he does in a very positive
and congratulatory way. He's comfortable leading, and he's comfortable talking other people
up. That makes him the type of person that you just WANT to like you, and that's the
power of spreading genuine praise. It feels amazing to receive, so people work very, very
hard to earn it.
I remember, I actually had a friend that everybody wanted to be fun and happy around, because
when he told you that you had just told a funny joke, you felt like a million bucks.
It seems like The Rock makes people feel the same exact way. But it's not just by praising
them randomly. He makes you first care about his opinion by making you realize that he
is a leader. Now, I have to admit. His size definitely helps here, but he's also dictating
the level of physical intimacy in an interaction, and what I mean here is just watch this next
clip and see how he makes Graham Norton hug him when he walks on stage.
I've also noticed that he makes his interviewers high five him a whole bunch.
Now, I personally find the handshake slash bro hug a really interesting social ritual
and, maybe, I'll dig deeper into it someday in another video, but, for now, just know
that when you're leading the topic of conversation, or you're dictating the level of physical
intimacy and interaction while still being friendly, you are going to come across as
charismatic.
So, with the Rock, you have this really interesting combination. You have a guy who is a physical
beast. He immediately commands respect when he walks into a room, and he goes on to demonstrate
leadership qualities in interaction. And, when you watch him interact with men, it's
crazy how quickly they start to follow his lead.
But the reason that he's well-liked is because on top of all that dominant personality trait
that he shows, he's kind, he talks people up, he reveals weaknesses and stories of depression,
and the whole time, he is spreading a message that you can overcome difficult times.
It's actually really inspiring, so, especially with Dwayne, it's not just one of these traits.
It's the combination that makes it all work, and if you're interested in learning more
about this--the four emotions that lead to an amazing first impression every time, we've
set up a different video that covers that, and these are the four emotions that if you
hit in this right order, you will make an amazing first impression. It's funny because
the Rock is actually hitting a lot of them in these videos.
If you're curious what those are in the order that you need to hit them in, go ahead and
click the link that will pop up now. It will take you to a different page where you could
drop your email and get immediate access to that video. So, I hope that you've enjoyed
this video. If you have not yet done so, subscribe to the channel. We've got new videos every
single Monday, and I started to do some on Thursdays. I'm trying to keep up with that pace.
If you have any suggestions of people that you'd like to see me cover. The Rock was one
I saw a lot of you suggest, so I'm happy to get to do it. Go ahead and write them in the comments,
and, in fact, I actually have a question for you, guys, this week. I'm considering doing
for the first time, fictional characters, and specifically, I'm thinking of doing Game of
Thrones. I noticed that on HBO's Game of Thrones, which I'm a huge of, there's a really, really
great understanding of human power dynamics, and I think those play out really well on
screen, even though it is being acted and even though it's in a fake world. So, if you
guys are curious and would like to see me do fictional characters, I don't want to cram
it down your throats, but if it's something you'd like, go ahead, let me know in the comments,
and if you think that's a terrible idea, let me know as well. I'll be paying close attention
to decide what comes on in the next few weeks. All that to say, definitely let me know what
you think in the comments about fictional characters and I hope you've enjoyed this
video, and I will see you in the next one.