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How to Get Your Opinions Heard

By Dr Dan Harrison, CEO & Founder Harrison Assessments International

Mastering the Art of Influencing to Elevate Your Opinions. This is part of a series written by Dr Harrison and being used to share insights that we gleam when using predictive analytics as a development tool to improve skill sets. As a certified debrief coach with the Harrison, our founder at Empower Edge, Wendy Lyn Phillips using these tools in her leadership development workshops. One of the most immediate ways to position yourself as an authority in your field or with the teams that you lead, is to have your voice be heard. The second way, is to have others act as a result of being heard.
In our series on enhancing the value of your opinions, let’s delve into a critical trait: Influencing. At Harrison Assessments, we define influencing as the capacity to persuasively impact others’ views, by connecting with their values, emotions, and reasoning.

  • Why Influencing Skills Matter

Influencing skills are essential for building consensus, inspiring collaboration, and aligning teams around unified visions. Effective influencing reduces misunderstandings and builds trust, ensuring your opinions are not just heard, but respected and acted upon. This result is when you know others are really listening to you, rather than just hearing. It takes a bit of engagement and listening on our own part to know how to properly respond, especially when you may have a different perspective or in fact, disagree with another. Cultivating the ability to do so in a tactful and diplomatic way is indeed a skill many leaders should implement.

  • Developing Your Influencing Ability

To cultivate your influencing ability:
– Start Small: Begin in less intimidating settings, like one-on-one meetings.
– Be Clear and Concise: Avoid being overly wordy or vague.
– Listen and Summarize: Practice active listening and summarize opinions before persuading.
– Tailor Your Discussion: Know their goals and concerns to align your communication effectively.
– Address Views and Concerns: Don’t dismiss differing opinions; address them directly.
– Observe Reactions: Pay attention to body language and adjust your approach accordingly.
– Reflect and Refine: After interactions, reflect on how to improve your influence.
– Build Relationships: Use your influence to support others’ goals.
– Practice Framing: Frame ideas in terms of benefits to others or the organization.
– Learn from Experts: Observe successful influencers for effective techniques.
– Continuous Learning: Stay educated on your topic to enhance the weight of your influence.

  • Transforming Opinions Through Influence

Influencing isn’t just a skill; it’s an art that, when mastered, can significantly elevate the impact and value of your opinions in any professional setting. In additional to improving your professional prowess, you’ll find great ROI (return on investment) when using these same principles in your marriage and parenting communication. Dale Carnegie may be ultra popular on the topic of winning friends and influencing people, and it just proves that there is much to learn from such a profoundly deep principle. Sincerity over manipulation will help you achieve great influence. Utilizing the Harrison reports for insights on where development is needed, can be a great tool to get you there.

If we can help you strengthen your voice so that your opinions aren’t only heard, but received well, and responded to, reach out to Empower Edge Solutions for a complimentary DEMO of this core competency report today.