Have you ever been in a meeting where a peer provided a great solution to the problem at hand, but no one heard it? Why? Perhaps he had a soft voice and poor eye contact? Or her argument was disorganized and hard to follow? Or maybe he even read something verbatim from a page, putting everyone to sleep?
It’s clear, people who lack effective influencing skills tend to be powerless and undervalued in the workplace. As I have addressed in previous posts in the Communicate to Win series, the ability to influence and persuade others is a major building block in the foundation of success.
Here are six influencing style types along with their key attributes:
- The Asserter: Bold, energetic, persistent and resourceful. “I stand up for what I want.”
- The Expert: Competent, balanced and perceptive. “I know my subject.”
- The Politician: Detects power networks, builds coalitions and support networks with others and develops winning arguments. “I am influential in the circles where decisions are made.”
- The Preparer: Always fully prepared and considers potential opportunities. “I research topics before forming an opinion.”
- The Presenter: Logical, charismatic and a great communicator. “I put my ideas across persuasively.”
- The Client-Centric: Listens to build bridges and relationships.”I meet the needs of my audience.”
Were you able to see yourself in one of these style types? Maybe your style falls into more than one category?
Knowing yourself is the first step on that proverbial road to success. If you don’t know your influencing style, you are at a disadvantage in the workplace, as well as in your personal communications. Being aware of how you prefer to influence your superiors and peers will help you leverage your style; you will be able to advocate for using the approaches most successful for you.
Download the Influencing Skills Finder assessment tool to determine which style you prefer. You can answer 15 questions to discover your own style and learn how to use that knowledge intelligently to leverage your best attributes and skills in the workplace.
Once you establish your influencing style, you can create a personal action plan to:
- Set personal development objectives
- Identify areas where improvement is possible
- Establish precise behavioral goals
- Break down complete tasks into sub-tasks
To this point in the Communicate to Win series, I covered the importance of coming up with good ideas and having the ability to communicate them. Next week, I begin to show you how to solve problems. A tip? The first crucial step is to truly define and understand your problem before you begin working on it.