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Day: February 28, 2020

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Best Practices Growth Human Resources Management Skills

The Top 10 Lies We Believe About Our Influence

Avoiding These 10 Lies and Focusing on Real Influence

You might not be as influential as you think. Misconceptions about influence keep us from continued success. Anyone at any level, with any title, can influence others to act willingly upon what we have to say, but only if they are willing to do the work. Influence is a learned skill requiring self-awareness, feedback, and ongoing practice. But why?

We don’t intentionally want to hold ourselves back, but the truth is hard. It’s easier to believe we have influence and believe lies than to put in the hard work required to get better. If you believe one of these 10 lies, it’s time to start focusing and practicing on what it takes to earn and maintain real influence.

My title and position wield influence

Authority does not equal influence. We believe that when we have an authoritative title, we naturally resonate influence. You may have power by default, but do your employees want to follow you? Unlike authority, you can’t mandate influence; you earn it.

I can turn my influence on and off as needed

Many people believe they can turn on the influence needed for high-stakes meetings or big presentations. They fail to realize that influence is earned by the way you show up to every interaction, every day. Your listeners don’t automatically grant you trust or believe you to be credible when you’re front and center. You earn that perception in the consistent behavior you demonstrate in even the smallest interactions.

I feel confident, so I know others see me the same way

It’s natural for us to believe that the way we feel inside is the way others perceive us to be. Rarely is this true. Our behavior, reactions, body language, and habits displayed every day create our identity. When we show up late, are distracted, interrupt others, fidget or ramble, others question our credibility. Even if we feel confident, that’s not necessarily what others experience.

Only face-to-face interactions count

Digital interactions are as crucial to our influence as face-to-face meetings. Perhaps even more so. When body language and tonality are missing, people only have our words to interpret. If they’re too short, we are considered curt. Too long and we are rambling. Even the simplest of digital messages tell a story and provide us an opportunity to stand out from the crowd.

Day-to-day interactions don’t count

Think of how many casual conversations you have with co-workers. Or, consider the number of emails you send. It’s easy to believe they don’t matter, but they do. You build influence from these small exchanges. They are easily misinterpreted and can damage your reputation. Your influence is always on display, no matter how important or casual the interaction is.

People look at their phones when I speak because that’s just our culture today

Every day we try to influence the digitally distracted. Heywire Business found that 97 percent of people respond to business-related messages within three minutes. That means no matter how high the stakes are, chances are your listeners are distracted. If your listeners are paying attention to their phone, they aren’t paying attention to you. If you don’t have people’s attention, you can’t expect to influence them.

Influence is required in more than high-stakes situations

Influence requires you to show up for every moment, conscious of your actions and behavior. Don’t discount the impact of an after-hours email or a simple social media post. It’s vital for people to experience your daily interactions as consistently as your high-pressure moments. If you have a commanding presence on stage then send an email filled with typos, your listeners will be confused, and your influence will diminish.

People will follow because it’s their job

Gallup recently reported that 63 percent of employees lack engagement and 87 percent of team members are unmotivated to do their job or give more than the bare minimum. Effective leadership requires much more than delegating tasks. Influence requires you to inspire others to act, to be their best. Your team is only as good as your ability to motivate them to rally around a common cause.

My previous work got me promoted and will keep me climbing the ladder

The higher we climb, the more others expect of us. Our good is no longer good enough. With all other factors considered, our good won’t beat out the competition for a raise or promotion. Our past won’t create a future of influence when new teams of employees willingly follow us. Today, it is the experience we create for others that builds trust, resulting in new opportunities.

People always show up to hear me speak because they find what I say to be important

Leaders believe that if people show up to hear them speak, they will listen. Physical presence doesn’t mean mental presence. You must earn people’s attention. For others to believe what you say is important, it requires you to create a standout experience that they can remember and later act upon.

Only with consistent behavior is credibility established, trust given and influence earned. Stop believing the lies and start doing the work required to earn influence and see success in your career.

Categories
Growth Health and Wellness Leadership

The Business Case for Mindful Sales

 

No matter the size of y0ur company you are trying to sell something to someone for money.  Sales is, in fact, improving the lives of people no matter if you sell cars, technology, or food. In today’s instant economy that means both sales professionals and customers expect, us to sell more, faster than your competition.  As a sales professional that can mean higher goals, shorter time frames and hard to reach sales goals.  As these continue day after day it causes stress, overwhelm, turnover and burnout of an unmotivated sales team.  Or, worse such a highly competitive sales team there is no team morale at all. It means your company suffers from mind-full ness.  Mindfulness is expensive to your bottom line.

What is mindfulness in the sales process? Mindfulness is the practice of being present in the moment, without judgment. There are many definitions of mindfulness. Over the years this definition is starting to refine. Mindfulness is at its core awareness.  When you become aware your team is overwhelmed to the point of losing sales it’s time for mindfulness.  Simple, easy 2-5 minute questions, affirmations, and activities that can reduce the stress and regain focus on the sales cycle.

There are many ways to be mindful and techniques to bring you back to the present moment, to bring your brain, heart, and body back to focus.  As a sales professional, I like to use short, simple affirmations to re-set my brain in times of stress.

Mindfulness can be practiced no matter where you are selling, as an individual or as part of a group as part of a meeting or during a retreat. I have won client projects by taking a moment to be mindful with my clients honoring what they are going thru personally and professionally.  In fact, mindfulness is so easy you can practice it anywhere! Mindfulness can be practiced for the sole purpose of becoming more mindful and there are several mindfulness practices and organizations that are designed for specific groups of people.

We all take ourselves too seriously, with a fear of failure driving the daily regiment of sales offices. Whether you are a perfectionist who will not accept anything less than an A+ on your report metrics, or you are an average sales professional who does what it takes to get by each day, we invite you to become more mindful in every part of your day.  Don’t take my word for it, try it with your team and measure the results.

Excerpt from “Sell More Stress Less: 52 Tips to Become a Mindful Sales Professional” by Holly Duckworth & Eric Szymanski – Available at Amazon.com

To learn more about how Eric & Holly can help your organization, please visit www.leadershipsolutionsinternational.com or www.mindfulsalestraining.com

Categories
Entrepreneurship Human Resources Management Marketing Negotiations Sales Skills Women In Business

“Danger Is The Cost For Crossing A Negotiation Line“ – Negotiation Tip of the Week

“The danger in crossing a line is ending on the wrong side.”

-Greg Williams, The Master Negotiator & Body Language Expert (Click to Tweet)

 

 

(Click to get the book)

 

 

“Danger Is The Cost For Crossing A Negotiation Line“

 

He stated, with a sense of exasperation, “you’re getting very close to the line! If I can’t walk away feeling like I got something out of this deal, both of us will walk away with that feeling.” With that statement, he’d tossed the gauntlet down and drew the line indicating how far the other negotiator had gone. Yes, it could have been his ploy to signal where his disdain laid per the offer made. But it was also his way of heightening the tension in the negotiation.

There’ll be times when you get caught in situations that lead to crises. Some will stem from the fostered efforts of others. That’ll be their attempt to entangle you in the trap of indecisiveness and uncertainty. If you’re fleet of mind, you’ll slip the snare and avoid a potential crisis. And here’s how to do that.

 

Using And Applying Pressure

 

When an accident victim is badly bleeding, first responders use a tourniquet to apply pressure to the wound. That’s an effort to control blood loss. If you use too little or too much force, you risk further harming the victim. And the same is true in a negotiation. You must know when to and when not to apply pressure. There are three ways to do that if you sense someone’s getting close to crossing a line.

 

  1. Time – Most people know you can use time as a form of pressure. But if you wish to use it as a deterrent to indicate someone should not cross a line, you need to have incremental line points. As an example, let’s say you extended an offer with a time deadline. Instead of stating it expires at 11:37 a.m. on Thursday, you might structure your offering to have the best deal expire on the prior Monday. You could have incremental offers between Monday and Thursday too. And at each point, the deal would become worse. In this case, your efforts would become geared to inducing this individual to act sooner than later. Because the longer inaction occurs on his behalf, the higher the cost he’ll bear. And, if he waits until Thursday to accept your offer, he will have crossed several lines, which will be the penalty he incurred for doing so.

 

  1. Scarcity Factor – Another tried-and-true inducement is the scarcity factor – only two left, 14 people are watching this item, etc. You see it in some form of your everyday activities. Its purpose is to get someone to act quickly.

Depending on your position at that point in the negotiation, you can state that you’ll wait for a better offer before doing anything. With that, you’ll be moving the line closer or pushing it off into the distance. Just be aware that there’ll be a cost for readjusting the line.

 

  1. Boogyman/Phantom – Another buyer is waiting for this. So, you’d better get it while it’s still available. This maneuver encompasses both the time and the scarcity factor. And it can be an excellent ploy to use against a less sophisticated negotiator. Before him, you’ve placed the proverbial line. But a more astute negotiator may mark you as being the one that lacks sophistication if you attempt this with him. So, assess the negotiator’s astuteness before you employ this tactic.

 

Demeanor

You must set the right tone in any interaction, less your actions set out for failure. Thus, before you set the line you’ll use to induce activity, you must consider the role and demeanor you’ll use to enhance that effort.

 

Being Too Soft (soft line) – Recall a time when you were making a purchase or selling something, and there was no pressure or rush to complete the transaction. How did you feel? If you were the seller, you might have experienced some form of angst if you wanted to complete the deal quickly. If you were the buyer and you sought to acquire the item fast, and could not do so expeditiously, you may have had the same sensation. The point is, sometimes taking a soft approach is not the right approach to use. With some people, the more time you give them to complete a transaction, the more time they’ll take, which may lead to them not adopting an action at all.

 

Pushing Too Hard (hardline) – Darn, he was pushy. That’s what someone might have said about you, or you might have said about someone you dealt with about and effort to excessively close a deal. While the soft line approach can be less daunting for some to deal with, being a hardliner can cause someone to run from you. Always know the difference between when to use one approach versus another. And that will dictate which demeanor and line you should adopt.

 

Tip – Always attempt to leave the other negotiator feeling like a winner. And, if he thinks that he slightly got an advantage due to his smarts, he’ll receive greater pleasure from the outcome. The demeanor you cast during your engagement will determine the degree he feels he’s won something, or if you gave it to him. People have a tendency not to appreciate what someone has given them as much as what they’ve achieved on their own merits. Remember that!

 

Reflection

Every day, we’re confronted by a line that serves as a boundary between what we want, what others will allow us to have, and what we’ll offer them. Once you become better at drawing a line and knowing how to maneuver someone’s perspective about the value of it, you’ll become better at achieving more significant outcomes from those with whom you engage. And everything will be right with the world.

 

Remember, you’re always negotiating!

 

Listen to Greg’s podcast at https://anchor.fm/themasternegotiator

 

After reading this article, what are you thinking? I’d like to know. Reach me at Greg@TheMasterNegotiator.com

 

To receive Greg’s free “Negotiation Tip of the Week” and the “Sunday Negotiation Insight” click here https://www.themasternegotiator.com/greg-williams/

 

 

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