How to Persuade Others

Sure you make your own decisions everyday, but have you ever really thought of where or why you chose to act and talk that way? One would like to believe they came up with every logically explanation themselves based on their own independent assessment and judgment, however that’s not always the case. Often times we are persuaded into believing or thinking a certain way and believe it or not, most of our actions come from being influenced by others.

Now that we have you second guessing how you make everyday decisions, we actually want to find out your impact and the influence and persuasion you have on others.

Some individuals have a hard time believing they have an influence on others while some are second guessing the results from influencing clients, colleagues and family decisions. Whether you believe it or not, you do have influence on others around you by the way you walk, talk, eat and carry yourself. However, some individuals are influencing others in a direction they do not want, so how is their persuasion being misdirected? Let’s first find out your influencing style, to have a better understanding and explanation as to why others are not being persuaded the way you intended.

Take a look at yourself as having a specific influencing style, which might help clarify actions from others around you. Whether it’s positive or negative results, your influence might be misguided resulting in confusion and a misguided influence on others. To grasp a better understanding of what your influencing style is and how you can alter your actions to have better influence, take the following self-scoring assessment, courtesy of Harvard Business Review.

  • Rationalizing: Do you use logic, facts, and reasoning to present your ideas? Do you leverage your facts, logic, expertise, and experience to persuade others?
  • Asserting: Do you rely on your personal confidence, rules, law, and authority to influence others? Do you insist that your ideas are heard and considered, even when others disagree? Do you challenge the ideas of others when they don’t agree with yours? Do you debate with or pressure others to get them to see your point of view?
  • Negotiating: Do you look for compromises and make concessions in order to reach an outcome that satisfies your greater interest? Do you make tradeoffs and exchanges in order to meet your larger interests? If necessary, will you delay the discussion until a more opportune time?
  • Inspiring: Do you encourage others toward your position by communicating a sense of shared mission and exciting possibility? Do you use inspirational appeals, stories, and metaphors to encourage a shared sense of purpose?
  • Bridging: Do you attempt to influence outcomes by uniting or connecting with others? Do you rely on reciprocity, engaging superior support, consultation, building coalitions, and using personal relationships to get people to agree with your position?

Take advantage of which influencer you are and capitalize on your persuasion abilities to make the impact you want on others, which in turn can have great influence on the success of your career.

In a recent interview on the Speaking of Wealth Show, Kurt Mortensen an expert in persuasion, influence, and negotiation, shared some important tips and tricks to help listeners become a little bit more persuasive in their every day lives.

“Biggest problem for persuaders is that they push too much.” – Kurt Mortensen

Kurt mentions that the impact of influential people can actually sense the mood of their audience and quickly change it and so can you. Learn how to make changes and be the inspiration you want to your colleagues, staff or family by listening to Kurt’s interview on persuasion by visiting SpeakingofWealth.com.

photo credit: reihayashi via photopin cc