People tend to focus on stakeholders who are nearest, best known, or most liked, rather than the ones they should be engaging with. Remember, a stakeholder is someone who has a stake in your success, either positive or negative. Because of this, … [Continue reading]
The Fallacy of Rational Argument: Influencing Mistake No. 4
Time and time again we meet people on our workshops that have spent lots of time and energy building their business case. They have stacked up the numbers and convinced themselves that it works. The numbers speak for themselves — it’s a no-brainer. … [Continue reading]
Power Vacuums and Unstable Systems
In 2008, I wrote about Power Vacuums in which I defined as... "Your boss has moved on and a successor has yet to be appointed. Suddenly nobody is quite sure what to do." Except this isn't quite true, is it? People who are adept at navigating the … [Continue reading]
Are You Powerful Enough?
Mention this five-letter word — power — and there is often a deep emotional reaction. If so, it is usually negative. In the absence of a strong reaction, most people are neutral or simply curious — rarely are they enthusiastic. The reaction depends … [Continue reading]
How to Learn about Influence
If you want to learn about influence, you could go on a course or get some coaching. Or, you could just do it yourself. All you need is a little structure, motivation and resourcefulness. By way of structure… Pause: Stop a moment and think. … [Continue reading]
Trust and Integrity Made Simple
Trust and integrity are two intertwined concepts that usually crop up when I start talking about influence. Although interconnected, they are different, and a clear understanding of them can help you to build influence more quickly. However, despite … [Continue reading]
Pausing to Influence Faster
I coined the phrase “pause to go faster” while running workshops several years ago for a particularly fast-paced organisation. There seemed to be no stopping them. They pick up an idea and they're off the starting blocks before you know what has … [Continue reading]
What Are You Hiding?
Sometimes, you may have the irresistible urge to hide your views, opinions and feelings from others. However, communication is far more complex than simply the words you use. Your inner thoughts and feelings can leak out in so many ways. You may be … [Continue reading]
The Power of Three
One of the joys of being a practitioner of the practical is the delight of seeing a simple idea land in seconds and make a positive impact on behaviour. It happened again today while running a workshop for a group of highly experienced professionals … [Continue reading]
Aristotle, Rhetoric and Influence
On the conference stage, I often refer to Aristotle’s abhorrence of rhetoric as part of my argument that even if you don't like a subject, mastering it can still be preferable to ignoring or denying it. You may not like office politics, but avoiding … [Continue reading]
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