This profile of Olivia Fox Cabane in Matter offers an interesting take on the question of whether charisma, which we usually think of as an innate quality, can be taught — something Ericsson talks about in his HBR article.

Largely through introspection, Cabane developed an alternative definition of “charisma” that breaks the process down into three sets of skills: technical, external and internal. She argues that to be truly charismatic one needs all three sets of skills, and that internal skills are the key: learning to understand and manipulate one’s own feelings to prevent them from leading to socially awkward behavior.

Maybe you can learn these skills and be charming in crucial social situations, but is that really the same thing as having charisma? Or is it more like learning to fake it convincingly? Maybe for charismatic people these skills come easily and naturally, while the rest of us have to work at it. You can fool other people, but you can’t fool yourself.