To be successful in nearly every career, especially those careers requiring interactions with people, and that is a lot of them, you will be placed in a position of needing to persuade others to do something you think is valuable. Guiding direct reports to perform optimally, making a sale to prospective customers, swaying the direction and momentum of a field of expertise, or convincing co-workers to shift tactically are common examples when becoming an influencer is necessary. Whether or not you are a boss, being persuasive makes you a leader to some degree. 

A common misconception is that those who practice persuasion best are of a special class of personality types born with a gift for inducing the masses to do what they want done. We think they are the only ones who can grab the attention, shape the decisions, and erase the doubts of others leading to results envisioned by the persuaders. Oh, if only we could be like them, then we could reach such heights in our careers! 

In a still pertinent twenty-year-old article by University of Arizona psychologist and author Robert B. Cialdini, he unpacks research-based fundamentals underpinning the science of persuasion. He further illustrates how practical applications can be derived from these principles allowing even the most unconvincing of us to hone our influencing abilities. 

What strikes me most about Cialdini’s suggestions is how rooted they are in interpersonal skills. Soft skills are often considered the awkward stepchild of the hard technical aptitudes that form the bases of many careers. As derided as soft skills often are, mastering them can make a worker and a leader extremely effective, and well… persuasive. 

Cialdini identifies six tenets foundational to persuasion, beginning with the deceptively simple idea that people will better respect someone who is seen as more or less equivalent to themselves. If you are a boss this may mean utilizing the peers of direct reports who share your vision and can help you to spread the perception throughout the department or organization. 

If this sounds too manipulative, note that other persuasion principles involve ensuring that you as a leader are well liked and that you treat others the way you would like to be treated. We tend to be persuaded by people who show they like us and are kind to us. So, establishing bonds of familiarity and mutual admiration by leaders can help to make the rest of us more impressionable. 

The remaining standards of persuasion are more specialized and a little less soft, but still rooted in respect. For example, in trying to ensure compliance and commitment from among those being persuaded it is necessary for them to conform to your perspective voluntarily and not by way of coercion. If those being persuaded can be demonstrable in their acceptance by displaying their agreement, say in writing, then all the better. 

Another key aspect of being an effective advisor is also being a credible expert in your field. Many of us still do find plausibility in the vision and words which come from true professionals. To be taken seriously, it is necessary to lay the groundwork ahead of time to establish yourself as someone who knows what they are talking about. 

According to Cialdini, research also reveals that people are more persuadable if the information they are being given is considered scarce or exclusive. Rareness and sparsity make commodities and information more valuable and desirable, setting us up for an openness and willingness to behave in ways which we hope will secure them. If we are delivered a scoop or select information, then we are more likely to believe it. 

Being an agent of influence need not be reserved for only those born with a special talent. We can all practice accessible skills of persuasion by understanding a few essential details. Among the most important of them is to be the change you want to see in others.