Influencing without Authority

So the idea of influence, and this is a key word here, which is about helping others to behave and make decisions that support the greater good, you know, supports the direction of how things should be travelling.

And this is not based on authority.

Everybody can have influence.

So irrespective of your level of authority, you know, authority comes from a formal role.

I mean, it's a job description, it's a job title, it's a position in the hierarchy of the business.

That's not influence.

Influence comes from trust, credibility, relationships, expertise, the timing of communication, clarity, relevance, and of course the big one, persistence.

You've got to want to do this and build a momentum around it.

So understanding how work really gets done is really important when it comes to influence, because influence isn't a binary thing.

It's not a sign this off.

Okay, fine.

Onto the next stage.

Do you like this or do you like that? Okay, we're going to make a decision and then just move on.

It's much more subtle than that.

There's a lot of kind of things that go on here.

And so title is just one source of authority and add expertise relationships.

and organisational understanding can all help if you build those in to build influence.

So yes, you might have a particular job title that says you do this within the job description, but actually it's the influence, it's the how you then use that job title, that job description to move the game forward, to achieve things, to help people make decisions and to create action within the organisation.

And you are more in control than you think.

Okay, you really are.

I mean, if you think, well, Neil, it's all very well you say this, but I'm very junior in the organization.

Look, my job title says it.

Look, I've got the organization structure.

And look, there's me.

There's little me at the bottom there.

So the idea of influence, and this is a key word here, which is about helping others to behave and make decisions that support the greater good, you know, supports the direction of how things should be travelling.

And this is not based on authority.

Everybody can have influence.

So irrespective of your level of authority, you know, authority comes from a formal role.

I mean, it's a job description, it's a job title, it's a position in the hierarchy of the business.

That's not influence.

Influence comes from trust, credibility, relationships, expertise, the timing of communication, clarity, relevance, and of course the big one, persistence.

You've got to want to do this and build a momentum around it.

So understanding how work really gets done is really important when it comes to influence, because influence isn't a binary thing.

It's not a sign this off.

Okay, fine.

Onto the next stage.

Do you like this or do you like that? Okay, we're going to make a decision and then just move on.

It's much more subtle than that.

There's a lot of kind of things that go on here.

And so title is just one source of authority and add expertise relationships.

and organisational understanding can all help if you build those in to build influence.

So yes, you might have a particular job title that says you do this within the job description, but actually it's the influence, it's the how you then use that job title, that job description to move the game forward, to achieve things, to help people make decisions and to create action within the organisation.

And you are more in control than you think.

Okay, you really are.

I mean, if you think, well, Neil, it's all very well you say this, but I'm very junior in the organization.

Look, my job title says it.

Look, I've got the organization structure.

And look, there's me.

There's little me at the bottom there.