Kevin Hogan

Through the Open Door is a guide to Self-Hypnosis written by Kevin Hogan and Mary Lee LaBay. It begins by telling you the limitations of Self-Hypnosis, you aren’t going to become some kind of miraculous superhero or something, but you can do some extraordinary things. It explains the background of what Hypnosis is and is not. All in all, a great deal of this is ground in reality.

Self-Hypnosis works to produce a trance state, you might have experienced them if you have ever gone driving and did not recall the time you spent doing that activity. Your conscious mind was away doing something else while your subconscious mind did all the work. I will admit that I have a bit of difficulty with the idea of hypnosis, mainly because of how it is portrayed in media accounts. They tend to sensationalize everything and make it seem ludicrous.

If you could control when these trance states occur, you can achieve pain relief, faster healing, improved memory, better learning, and so on. Some of the advice and techniques are things I have heard of before but putting it all into one book might be beneficial for some people.

I enjoyed this book well enough. Since I found it at the library I figured it was worth a look.… (meer)

In plainspeak, this book regards social engineering, which is a tool that individuals may employ to influence others to take specific actions. Admittedly, these actions could be positive or negative depending on the intent of the social engineer.

Kevin Hogan has only become recently known to me. However, with his execution of this particular book he’s certainly earned my respect.

Invisible Influence is a very pragmatic and easy to follow book that allows people to see how they can socially engineer actions within other individuals.

The book is essentially split into two parts. The first part, which predictably sets the stage for the second part, wasn’t as useful for me personally. It’s not that the information was not practical, or noteworthy. It’s just that for me personally, would have appreciated more information based on studies or references rather than stating certain ideas as matter of fact. Not that the veracity of the author is in doubt. Its just that being able to follow source of data is invaluable for the curious mind, and the book could have offered more in that respect.

Be that as it may, the way the author connotes sincerity in his straight forward approach is rather appreciated. Some books can get bogged down with technical jargon, and in this respect the book flows smoothly.

The cogent explanations that followed his many examples were also top-tier. Various examples were used to bring about many different strands of information to further provide fulcrum for the author’s thesis of the invisible influence individuals may have over others.

Reading the book, the reader is able to realize how the possibilities of the techniques the book features can certainly multiply. And this takes us to the second half of the book.

The second half of the book is composed of 52 techniques that will help an individual become adept at social engineering at an entry level. This part alone was work the price of the book. Each of the techniques mentioned follow a stark methodology that is sure to make proactive individuals more efficient at casting their influence when need by while also noting it when others attempt to do the same.

A book like this will provide the impetus for individuals to increase their repertoire.

Invisible Influence is rousing in its possibilities as it is subtle in its approach. A great bonus is that the author makes it a point to be candid and aware of how these influences can shape circumstances for better or worse. Such awareness is to be highly noted.

Other Suggested Reading:

Tavistock Institute: Social Engineering the Masses
Unmasking the Social Engineer: The Human Element of Security
Mass Control: Engineering Human Consciousness
Emotions Revealed, Second Edition: Recognizing Faces and Feelings to Improve Communication and Emotional Life
Unmasking the Face: A Guide to Recognizing Emotions From Facial Expressions
Thinking, Fast and Slow… (meer)