CONNECT WITH INFLUENCE

Connecting gives you more power to influence in every situation.

In a world of interdependence, no one has ultimate control over their actions. You are either affecting or influencing people simply by being yourself. You often use your interaction at the interpersonal level to try to influence the other person.

The interactions with people shape practically everything we become and achieve in life. For those who agree, connecting with people is one of the most valuable skills one can master. You may start working on it today.

Influence is the art of persuading others to understand and agree with your point of view. To influence someone, you need to persuade them to think or act as you wish. Leadership requires this talent.

Nobody follows a leader who can't persuade others. So understanding influence is critical for a leader's effectiveness. Using this knowledge will help him or her become more efficient.

Today's leaders must be able to influence others.

For all of us, a formal position or a formal title does not necessarily influence others. Even if we are not named as a leader in our work as a team member, we still need to influence others to make our work easier. So, how can you establish yourself as an informal leader? How can you get your coworkers to support your ideas and initiatives? How do you become the go-to person for professional advice?

Leaders, who are leading themselves and others, do a lot.

When we work with others, we inspire, we motivate, and we guide. On a daily basis, we do a lot more than that. While all of this is going on, we also have another task to complete that is part of what we do, whether evident or not. It is impacting others.

In taking yourself as a leader, regardless of a formal or informal title, influence on several levels and with various people is crucial.

So, what's the deal with influence for all of us, whether we are formally in a leadership role or not? Affinity: the capacity to relate to individuals in a way that improves our impact.

"Connecting is the ability to identify with people and relate to them in a way that increases your influence with them." – John C. Maxwell

This article was originally published in 2017 and was updated in 2019.

Do you connect or communicate?

They are commonly used interchangeably. In reality, just because we can all talk does not imply we can connect.

You can convey information with your voice, hands, eyes, and body language. But do others experience the emotions underlying your words, or just hear them?

Has your communication effort led to a more meaningful relationship? Did it work?

Making connected choices can help you overcome connecting problems with anybody, anywhere.

Leaders may create and sustain long-term connections with their staff by changing how they interact. The ability of leaders to communicate with their staff is critical to fostering a supportive work environment.

Communication is key to make staff feel valued and engaged to the organization's objective, but it cannot be one-sided or kept for the top. But to truly influence others, you must first establish a close rapport with them. Once you have this, you can easily invite them to collaborate on any issue. It might be a product, service, or concept you're marketing, or even a job ad. You'll have more influence in all areas of your personal and professional life.

Connecting beyond words. Our verbal and nonverbal messages sometimes conflict, especially when we say one thing but feel another. To truly connect with others, we must look beyond words and express our sentiments and attitudes.

The good news is that we can learn to connect. So, how do we know? We all can improve on our ability to connect better, regardless of how good we are at it now. Like great connectors, we can learn by seeing and copying how great connectors apply their techniques. Even when we make many errors, we can still continue improving.