I am at a pivotal point in my parenting (don’t worry I will bring this back to work pronto). If you’d asked me a couple of years ago, when my children were 2, 8 and 10 years old whether going for a third was a wise idea, I would have flashed you a smug smile and let pure light shine from my eyes.
Today, while there are absolutely no regrets, I am somewhere else entirely - and it is making me think about persuasion, and its place at work (and home!)
Ok, so some scene setting. Pearl is 12 years old; she is currently in the middle of her first end of year exams (secondary school), and while she is diligent and kind, she is also defiant, single-minded and impressively quick on the retorts. She believes she knows the ultimate way to greatness, and by greatness, she means a Starbucks with friends - not necessarily conducive to revision.
Tallulah is 10 years old and feisty as f***. She is also a gifted football player. I share that, not to impress, rather to give you a sense of her need to constantly move, be constantly entertained, get constantly physical and possess a constant capacity to kick a ball in the kitchen when I am cooking.
This girl means business. She also hates getting up, leaves her clothes all over the floor, and do you know how long it takes to get right one of those football high ponytails in the morning?! Can I hurry the process? No I definitely cannot.
Monty is 4 years old and communicates at a volume and decibel reserved for sperm whales (interesting fact: sperm whales are the loudest animals on the planet, capable of making sounds up to 230 decibels. This is louder than the sounds of jet engines). Whoever discovered this fact has not met Monty.
He has his own idea of what life looks like, and while he is actually, at the moment, the tidiest and the most considerate of them all (fewer hormones), Monty likes to leave an emotional mess in his wake, continues to have irrational tantrums and will do nothing unless he deigns it right by him. The main things Monty deigns right by him are endless games of Uno and getting his own way.
Light still shines from my parenting eyes, of course it does, these children are awesome creatures who inspire me daily. They also require such depths of persuasion that parenting 2 years on, has developed me as a coach, and also in my corporate sales capacity. Silver linings. Also, grey hair.
How persuasive are you? Because without this key skill, you might be earning less than you deserve, missing out on crucial opportunities or not properly harnessing professional relationships that springboard you forward - or sideways, because, side note, success comes in many forms.
First, some persuasion context, because we need to know where persuasion is required, before we can activate its power.
5 Ways That Professional Persuasion Can Play Out:
1. Influencing Others
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