// Book comparison
How to Win Friends and Influence People vs The Body Keeps the Score
Which should you read? A side-by-side comparison of How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie and The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel van der Kolk.
How to Win Friends and Influence People
by Dale Carnegie
★ 4.9/5
The Body Keeps the Score
by Bessel van der Kolk
★ 4.9/5
At a glance
| How to Win Friends and Influence People | The Body Keeps the Score | |
|---|---|---|
| Rating | ★ 4.9/5 | ★ 4.9/5 |
| Pages | 288 | 464 |
| Reading time | ~7.2 h | ~11.6 h |
| Published | 1936 | 2014 |
| Author | Dale Carnegie | Bessel van der Kolk |
| Category | Leadership | Personal Effectiveness |
| Publisher | Simon & Schuster | Viking |
Choose How to Win Friends and Influence People if…
- → You're interested in leadership.
- → You want the higher-rated book (4.9/5).
- → You prefer a shorter read (~7.2 hours).
Choose The Body Keeps the Score if…
- → You're interested in personal effectiveness.
- → You want the more recent perspective (2014).
Key takeaways — How to Win Friends and Influence People
- ✓ Practice Radical Appreciation by identifying and acknowledging the sincere strengths of your team members, which is the most effective way to inspire high performance and loyalty.
- ✓ Master Empathetic Perspective-Taking by always seeking to understand the motives and needs of your stakeholders before attempting to persuade them to your strategic viewpoint.
- ✓ Avoid Direct Criticism and instead use indirect methods to point out errors, ensuring that you preserve the other person’s dignity and maintain a collaborative work environment.
Key takeaways — The Body Keeps the Score
- ✓ Acknowledge the Physiological Basis of Behavior, recognizing that your team's reactions to stress are often driven by deep-seated biological patterns rather than just professional logic.
- ✓ Prioritize Psychological and Somatic Safety within your organization, as the human brain cannot engage in high-level strategic thinking when the body is in a state of perceived threat.
- ✓ Implement Self-Regulation Techniques as a core leadership skill, utilizing mindfulness and body-awareness to maintain executive presence and clarity during high-stakes organizational crises.
The verdict
If you want the higher-rated, shorter read, start with How to Win Friends and Influence People. If you specifically need personal effectiveness, The Body Keeps the Score is the better fit. Both summaries are free — no signup required.
❓ FAQ
Is How to Win Friends and Influence People or The Body Keeps the Score better? +
How to Win Friends and Influence People has the higher reader rating (4.9/5 vs 4.9/5), but "better" depends on your goal. How to Win Friends and Influence People focuses on leadership, while The Body Keeps the Score focuses on personal effectiveness. See the verdict below.
Which is shorter, How to Win Friends and Influence People or The Body Keeps the Score? +
How to Win Friends and Influence People is shorter (288 pages, ~7.2 hours) compared to The Body Keeps the Score (464 pages, ~11.6 hours).
Should I read How to Win Friends and Influence People or The Body Keeps the Score first? +
If you want the quicker, higher-rated read, start with How to Win Friends and Influence People. Otherwise read whichever matches your current goal — both summaries are free on BookHubs.