Have you heard the song, “What About Me?” by the Australian rock band, Moving Pictures? The song’s about people who’re feeling disregarded—ignored, as if others are looking right through them. That song sprung to my mind during a recent conversation I had with Tony (not his real name)… Tony’s Controversial Proposition Tony was aboutRead more
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An amount of my work with executives and leaders is about helping them influence someone to think differently or to take action. Together, we work through their scenario so that they have a plan that they’re confident will create listening and receptivity in the other person. Their success rate is so impressive. (I love thisRead more
You’ve been in one of those awkward conversations where an idea is put on the table but it goes nowhere, haven’t you? You know, when the conversation becomes stilted or there are embarrassed mumbles or a stony silence. Kerrie, the Australian Sales Manager, has an idea and she needs buy-in from her boss, the GlobalRead more
Much has been written over the years, even by me, about how to influence another person… After examining a few bucket-loads of literature, asking lots of questions, observing behaviours, and personally checking it out in practice, there is no doubt in my mind that the sure-fire way to influencing someone is to—here it is—be committedRead more
More often than anything else in a coaching program a leader wants to deal with how to be more influential with others… Well, when we think about it, influencing others is the most important part of a leader’s job isn’t it? As a leader you’re constantly influencing a team member to work harder, slower, longer,Read more
“How to influence someone” is a topic that’s repeatedly put on the table by leaders I coach. By the way, this is a revamp of an edition of a Leadership Bulletin I published a couple of years ago. Because many readers told me they found it so useful, I decided to give you the opportunityRead more
Whilst driving to my next meeting, I heard this gem on a talkback show—“influencing is listening”… Of course, the truth of that statement is a no-brainer. But how often do you get so tied up, so enthusiastic, about your own perspective that you forget to listen? We all do to some degree. And unless youRead more
A number of people, including many leaders, are frustrated with their boss. Doug, a leader I coach, is typical of those who experienced this dissatisfaction. Doug is exceptionally intelligent, good at his job, well liked and, overall, has pretty high emotional intelligence. But when he spoke about his boss, his eyes rolled, his faceRead more
That’s what Max said he wanted as we were establishing his goals for his Leader Coaching program—minimum input, maximum output. Especially these days when we’re attempting to “get more juice from the lemon”, minimum input, maximum output sounds like a pragmatic goal to me. We don’t want to work more hours than we have to—andRead more
Even when times are great, there’s no good reason to tolerate anything that’s less than fabulous. And when times are tougher and profits are harder to make, it’s critical that everything is functioning at its peak. When it seems difficult to find a lot that’s favourable in the economic news it’s natural to become dispiritedRead more
