You can't see or smell power.

But with enough practice, it's easy to recognise who has it and who doesn't — especially when you're the one without it.

Social psychologist Professor Dacher Keltner, from the University of California, Berkley, has talked to thousands of people about power. He's studied it for 25 years.

He says most of us consider power in terms of work, money or prestige.

However what power really comes down to, he says, is your "capacity to alter the state of another person … their thoughts, their feelings, their actions, their pocketbook, their health".

So how do you attain power? Why can it be so easy to lose, but so hard to give up?

Getting power

Professor Keltner says in many workplaces gaining power and rising in the ranks largely comes by doing right by your colleagues and peers.

"People rise in power by connections, by developing strong social networks, by inspiring, by empathising," he tells RN's This Working Life.

He says it's the same at work as in a team, or in a community — power often comes from the other members of that group.

"People give other people power, studies show, if they are bold in their ideas, if they are sharing and willing to brainstorm and pass on their own wisdom, as opposed to hoarding it to themselves."

But, he warns, power can corrupt almost anyone.

"You can take any human being, maybe with the exception of the Dalai Lama, and you give them a little bit of power over other people and they go crazy," he says.

"They start swearing, they touch inappropriately, they stereotype people, and they take things that were meant for other people."

During a study watching how people behaved while walking by a bowl of chocolates meant for children, Professor Keltner says he noticed several things.

"The people with privilege just take a big handful of chocolates," he says about the 2012 experiment.

Those with power, he warns, are "more likely to lie, to cheat, to swear".

"It's an endless litany of the abuse of power."

The power paradox

Leadership trainer Zoë Routh says power can be positive, provided leaders demonstrate the right intent.

"The power that we exercise in terms of our confidence and our conviction is good power," she says.

One example, she says, is to use your power to elevate the confidence and abilities of those around you.

"You can use it and wield it like a sword, or you can use it and wield it like a torch," she says.

"You bring the light or you can cut people down."

Professor Keltner says as people gain power they can lose the very thing that got them there — the social connection and empathy.

He calls it the power paradox.

"You stop empathising, you stop listening, you stop imagining what other people are thinking," he says.

"You don't feel as dependent on others, suddenly you feel like you're a master of the universe, you don't have that keen edge of really relying and amplifying the strengths of others … you're out of touch with the people you're managing."

"What we have to do to have enduring power is stay close to empathy."

One Radio National listener says she's seen women in her company change once put in positions of power:

"What strikes me is how often as soon as they're promoted, we see these women lose the amazing character traits that people have admired, to instead try to emulate some of the power plays, our male leader counterparts demonstrate.

I would like to see women relax into leadership and trust that who they are is enough.

We need to leave our egos at the door, and that maleness that we've kind of been coerced into believing is needed in leadership roles."

Kim Nguyen, who holds a senior leadership position in the open cut mining industry, says his background has influenced his perception of power.

"I come from a conservative Asian upbringing — humility is high on the agenda," he says.

"I have a strong sense of humility and I think humility is powerful when leading teams."

Mr Nguyen says he's been fortunate to witness many different leadership styles in his 21 years in the industry.

"I learn from people who I like, their styles, but equally I've seen others that exhibited poor leadership traits," he says.

"You can influence by standing shoulder to shoulder with people rather than in front of them."

Another Radio National listener says he fondly remembers a former manager showing empathy and collegiality in the workplace.

The manager would start the work week by walking around the building and saying hello to everyone.

"He would pop his head into every office — and drop into the kitchen if there were people there — chat to you, ask you how your weekend was, and then tell you to have a great week. And that was a really positive aspect of power in the workplace where the main manager would come around and treat you equally."

Power, powerlessness and your body

Professor Keltner says there's a reason having power can feel exhilarating.

He says it triggers the "feel-good" hormone that's part of your brain's reward system.

"What we found in the lab [is] that power feels good, it's related to dopamine release, it's related to a better cardiovascular profile."

A lack of power also has an effect.

"When you are not empowered by people around you, it affects regions of the brain that activate the release of cortisol, the stress hormone, which dysregulates all of your body systems like digestion and respiratory and immune system and you die younger."

That stress and poor health also comes back to bite in the workplace.

"People who don't feel empowered by their bosses, or their managers, or leaders or colleagues have more stress, more cortisol, they feel fearful, they take more sick days," he explains.

He says there's research that shows it can make people's work less creative and innovative.

"If you're leading in this coercive, fear-based domineering way, the people around you are suffering physically and not doing their best work."

How to stop power going to your head

Workplace culture plays a role in keeping power in check.

Zoë Routh says leaders need to be mindful that their position of authority means people will be reluctant to speak up.

"We need, as leaders, to constantly seek out feedback … and to make ourselves more accessible so that people can feel more confident to share their point of view," she says.

Professor Keltner says at a seminar for women in leadership at one of the largest healthcare providers in the US, he asked the women how it was they constrained abuses of power.

It was simple. They told him they'd adopted "the no asshole rule" as part of their constitution.

The rule comes from US author Bob Sutton's 2007 book of the same name, which lays out simple guidelines of what not to do in a healthy work culture.

The rules include: don't interrupt, don't shame people and don't roll your eyes when someone's speaking,

Professor Keltner says the rules provide a list of "very simple ethical guidelines".

"They create a culture of healthy power," he says.