Have you ever wondered how some people have strong positive influence on those they come in contact with? The secret is they have learned how to use their communication skills to become a person of influence. This concept is talked about in one of my favorite books by John Maxwell and Jim Dornan, Becoming a Person of Influence – How to Positively Impact the Lives of Others.
How can we positively impact those people in our lives on a daily basis? The answer is in how we communicate and influence their thoughts, feelings and actions.
A Person of Influence has or does the following:
I – Integrity with People
N – Nurtures Other People
F – Faith in People
L – Listens to People
U – Understands People
E – Enlarges People
N – Navigates for Other People
C – Connects with People
E – Empowers People
R – Reproduces Other Influencers
What does this list say to you? The power of influence is in the energy that you put out and the way that you serve others with your communication approach. We all have the power and ability to have a positive influence on those around us. Just consider our children, spouse and those we meet at the coffee shop on the way to work. Before 8am we have the power to influence and start our day and impact those around us in a positive or negative way just by our actions and influence.
How many times do we let our actions impact a situation; only after the fact realizing the power we had to change the entire dynamic of our evening, day or life with some small words or gestures to those around us.
My challenge for you today is to remind yourself to strive to be a positive influence to everyone you work with, live with or meet on your daily path.
“Setting an example is not the main means of influencing another, it is the only means.” –Albert Einstein
In business, we need to consider this to be a critical component of our success and our ability to grow. We interact with prospects, clients, team members, our family, and often don’t consider how our communication is influencing them – positively or negatively. Communication is something we should always be aware of and is an area that we believe people should be constantly learning and evolving.
The example we set today with the first, second and last communication we utter – is the first step to positively influencing all of those around us for a lifetime.
By: Robin Edgar
