Carlos A.
Alvarenga
I write about language, technology, and the ideas that shape how we live and work.
About
All of my work — research, writing, coaching — has one thing in common: I help people access ideas and information often located in specialized, scholarly, or technical sources. My mission is to simplify and summarize complex information and make it accessible to anyone who reads what I write or works with me on a coaching project.
Latest book
The Rules of Persuasion
How the World’s Greatest Communicators Convince, Inspire, Lead — and, Sometimes, Deceive
Post Hill Press, 2023
Have you ever wondered what makes someone convincing, or why some messages persuade when others do not? The Rules of Persuasion explains exactly how persuasion works in all forms of human communication, and presents a clear model you can use to put its elements and chemistry to work in your personal and professional life.
Using insights and examples from art, history, literature and hip-hop, it updates and expands ideas first presented in Aristotle’s Rhetoric, with original observations on the role of the audience, persuasion in social media, and what happens when the rules of persuasion are used to deceive and corrupt audiences — even entire nations.
“I was hooked from the first page — a must-read for anyone who wants to understand how persuasion really works.”Toby Gordon, Sc.D., Johns Hopkins Carey Business School
Work
Research and advisory work focused on how communication shapes interpretation, alignment, and authority inside organizations. Former Executive Director, World 50 Labs, the member innovation group of World 50. Previously Principal, Ernst & Young Advisory Practice; Managing Director, Accenture. Taught in the Robert H. Smith School of Business, University of Maryland.
Education
- University of MarylandDoctoral research in communication and rhetoric
- University of PennsylvaniaPost-Baccalaureate Program in Classics
- Hampden-Sydney CollegeB.A., Humanities and Classics, Magna cum Laude, Phi Beta Kappa