Moved

The Art and Science of What Moves Us & How to Move Others

What makes something meaningful to us become meaningful to others?

We know what it feels like to be moved. A story, a teacher, a performance, an idea, or another person reaches us and changes something. But creating that kind of movement in a group is a distinct challenge. Throughout our lives, we need to bring people with us: to build commitment to a strategy, make a classroom invested in learning, give an audience a reason to care, or inspire a community to act. Most of us were never taught how. We announce, explain, and push. That may generate agreement or action in the moment, but too often, the effect ends there.

As a Hollywood screenwriter, Lindsey Caplan learned how stories move audiences. Later, as a corporate trainer and organizational psychologist advising leaders at some of the world’s most recognizable companies, she realized that moving people in the moment was only part of the challenge. The harder question was what they would carry forward afterward.

Moved answers that question with a practical framework readers can use in their own work and lives. The Moved Model shows how two choices—how much control we hold and how personally we connect—shape four different effects: Compliance, Informing, Entertaining, and Engaging. None is inherently wrong. The problem is that we often create one while expecting another.

Combining behavioral science with stories from comedy clubs, classrooms, performances, communities, and boardrooms, Caplan reveals two common barriers to lasting influence: the Transmission Trap, or the belief that giving people more information will move them, and the Ownership Gap, which prevents people from carrying forward what still feels like someone else’s. She then shows how to shift from Push to Pull and from One-Size-Fits-All to Personalized, so people can see themselves in what is happening, play a meaningful role, and take ownership of what comes next.

For anyone who needs to move ten people or ten thousand, Moved is a practical guide to helping groups care, participate, take ownership, and carry something forward once you’re no longer in the room.

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ISBN: 979-8-90026-128-7
Imprint: Amplify Publishing
SKU: 18-1612-01
Categories:Amplify Publishing, Self-Help, Leadership and Management

“Why can we give people the right information and still fail to change their behavior? In Moved, Lindsey Caplan provides a compelling, clarifying framework for understanding why it’s so hard to catalyze real change and what you can do about it. She understands something essential about influence: Groups can’t be coerced into engagement any more than an audience at a comedy show can be forced into laughing. Combining stories, research, and wisdom, Moved will change the way you think about communication, influence, and leadership.”

Colin M. Fisher, author of The Collective Edge

“In a world of scattered attention, perhaps the most important task of any leader or storyteller is to make people care. Moved is an engaging and practical guide to creating the kind of resonance that inspires people to take action.”

Simone Stolzoff, bestselling author of How to Not Know and The Good Enough Job

“In a world overflowing with information and starving for attention, Moved offers a better way to influence: make people feel seen, give them a role, and let them discover why it matters. Lindsey Caplan offers a lively, evidence-based guide for anyone who needs to move a team, classroom, audience, or community.”

Jay Van Bavel, professor of psychology, New York University; director, Center for Conflict & Cooperation; author, The Power of Us

“Caplan pulls you in from page one and doesn’t let go. It’s no coincidence that someone who's spent decades studying what moves us has written a book that actually does. If you’re looking to truly understand how to influence behavior, look no further!”

Caroline Fleck, PhD, licensed psychologist and author of Validation

“A cure for what ails us. Through science and stories, Caplan shows us how to forge connection, spur action, and inspire both hearts and minds. A fiercely human book that is both current and timeless.”

Alison Fragale, PhD, author of Likeable Badass

“Most of us think influence is about convincing people. Lindsey Caplan shows it’s really about creating the conditions that move people. In Moved, she introduces a practical framework for doing exactly that. The world needs this book.”

Kim Scott, author of Radical Candor and Radical Respect

“When we're trying to influence others, we place too much weight on polishing our words and too little on creating the conditions for others to make our message their own. Moved is a wise and practical guide that will help leaders stop pushing harder and start earning the quieter yes that outlasts the meeting.”

Daniel H. Pink, #1 New York Times bestselling author of To Sell Is Human and The Power of Regret

Lindsey Caplan

Screenwriter turned Organizational Psychologist, Advisor, and Speaker

Lindsey Caplan is a former screenwriter turned organizational psychologist. She’s a sought-after speaker and advisor whose work explores what moves groups emotionally and behaviorally. She holds a master’s degree in organizational psychology from Teachers College, Columbia University, and a bachelor’s degree in communication and creative writing for the media from Northwestern University.

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