Power and Influence

Alice is a friendly, helpful and upbeat security guard at a venue that I frequent many times per year.  Though I've never seen her job description, I can assume that exerting power and influence is not included. However, she is the perfect example of exerting power and influence, regardless of title or prescribed duties.  It is clear that she loves people and life, by her infectious optimism and bright smile.

Yesterday, when Alice and I visited, she said that she would have happily given me a preferential parking place.  I appreciatively told her how thoughtful that was, and that the parking place I found was very convenient.  As I wished her a happy rest of the day, I told her that I'd look forward to seeing her early the next morning, for another event.  She quickly told me exactly where I should park upon arrival.

This morning as I pulled into the parking space Alice had designated for me, in addition to extreme gratitude, I was so impressed by the model she exemplifies, of leading from where you are.

Permission

Perhaps the start of school, and the memory of years of permission slips, made me realize that we all need them.  Fortunately, we don't need to officially document and return paper forms.  However, we all need to give ourselves permission to:

• enjoy every day
• take care of our own needs, before or on parity, with the needs of others
• laugh a lot
• exert influence, power and impact wherever we are
• be successful where we are, not where we strive to be
• pursue our passions
• ask for help or advice
• make small, inconsequential mistakes or omissions
• do nothing for a day
• be rather than do

Influencer by Kerry Patterson, Joseph Grenny, David Maxfield, Ron McMillan, Al Switzler

In Influencer - The Power to Change Anything, the authors provide six sources of influence:

1. Make the undesirable desirable -  Most people are not good at predicting their own likes and dislikes, so sometimes simply getting them to try a new behavior will lead to enjoyment.  Another option is to make it a game with clear, frequent feedback to lead to a sense of accomplishment.
2. Surpass your limits - Relentlessly practice the essential elements of the skill.
3. Harness peer pressure - the approval and disapproval of those in our network can make an enormous difference, particularly the influence of opinion leaders.
4. Find strength in numbers - groups working together are often smarter than any extremely bright individual.
5. Design rewards and demand accountability - the rewards need to be gratifying to the recipient, closely tied to the behavior desired and delivered timely.
6. Change the environment - often this can be accomplished by making the invisible visible.  A hospital dramatically decreased the cost of the latex gloves being used, by highlighting for all to see, the cost of each glove option - $3 v. 25 cents.

Mine!

We are all influenced, positively and negatively by all of our experiences.  We are sometimes discouraged from emphasizing individual priorities v. team accomplishments.  Generally it's appropriate and beneficial to broadly give credit.

Though I enthusiastically credit the others who are involved, I eagerly claim the following as mine:
my name
my family
my reputation
my experience
my offspring
my salvation
my influence
my attitude
my impact