How to Influence Without Authority

How to Influence Others without Authority

Influencing others can often feel like walking a tightrope. While no one wants to come off as a dictator, we also need to ensure our teams get things done. So what does it really mean to influence the productivity of others?

Ellen Wong, Director of Engineering at Calm, says "You can't get people to do what you need them to do without understanding their motivations."

If you want to influence others you need to start by building relationships. Here are the 3 steps that Ellen recommends 👉

1. Map your stakeholders and their motivations 🗺️

Map out all the people you need to get stuff done at work. Invite them for a coffee, and ask questions to find out:

• What do they care about? • What are they measured on? • How can you support them?

That way, when the time comes to ask for something, you already know how to position your request.

2. Translate your ideas to what they care about 💑

Imagine your team implemented a new product feature a bit differently from the original plan, so you need to get your sales team to adjust how they're speaking about it. You want to influence their sales pitch without stepping on their toes.

Instead of "I need you to stop saying the feature does X, and instead say it does Y" Try "Can we look at the pitch for this feature together? We've had to adjust how it works, and I want to be sure you're set up for success in future sales conversations."

3. Call out mutual needs 🖇️

Focus on highlighting the common ground. For the sales pitch, you both want to get potential customers excited about your upcoming feature.

Instead of "You need to change your pitch because it's no longer accurate" Try "Let's find out how we can promote the new feature so that customers get excited in your sales meetings."

Start with trust

As you climb the management ladder, you may find yourself further from the actual work. Heavily relying on others means you’ll need to level up your game in influencing.

The key is to start building relationships before you need to influence. So what are you waiting for? Time to grab that coffee meeting! ☕️