The Sphere of Influence: How Your Circle Shapes Your Success

0:00These people can absolutely be a drain on your time and energy. All right, now I don't mean to be harsh, but we do have to be careful about who we're spending time with and how much effort we're putting in.

0:10Jeannette Linfoot:These are people that have a high level of interest, they're highly engaged in what you're doing, but they don't have necessarily a massively high level of influence, quite a low to mid level of influence. this is often your team it's often the people that are actually operationally maybe you know taking action in order to deliver what you're doing and very often what I find is that when we're actually look at the different quadrants here that we neglect that top left box it happens all the time welcome back to Brave Bold Brilliant I'm Jeanette Linfoot host investor multiple property owner business owner entrepreneur and I spent 30 plus years in business And the thing that has always really resonated with me is just how important it is to have a certain level of influence, not only in the world around you, but also thinking about what are the influences that come into you and who are the people in what I will call your sphere of influence.

1:11so you know we're going to talk about this because it's a topic that is hugely important it's also aligned with relationships and actually how you build really meaningful relationships with different stakeholder groups at different times so whether you are in a job whether you're a business owner whether you're a corporate ceo or md that's running large international businesses it doesn't matter what position you're in it does not matter what business you're in it does not matter the size of the organization because every single one of you has a sphere of influence and it's so important that we look at this intentionally not by chance because this is where we have real world impact and at Brave Bold Brilliant you know we are all about sharing knowledge experience in a very grounded way that's based on proper business reality not theory so listen if you are not part of Brave Bold Brilliant community.

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2:43So sphere of influence, what is it? Why is it important? And how can you actually take yourself forward with your own sphere of influence? Okay, so why it's important is because, you know, time is precious. The impact you put out in the world, you know, is like having a ripple effect. You know, when you drop a pebble in a pond, that pebble hits the water, a whole ripple appears around it. And that's really what the sphere of influence is about. It's a bit like dropping that pebble in the pond and how it spreads out to the different people that you actually touch in the world around you, in particular in the world of business.

3:25So going about this intentionally is important. So I'm going to share with you a very simple model. Now, this is a model that I use with my clients. It's a model that we use when we advise businesses on scaling up and growth. And it's a model that we use when we're looking at high performing teams. So as I say, I'm giving this to you for free, because I am passionate about helping business leaders, entrepreneurs step up to the next level of growth. So as well as watching the video or listening to this on Apple or Spotify, actually make sure you stay to the end because what we're going to give you is your own free guide and template to how you can create your own sphere of influence so all you really need to do is click on the link actually in the comment or in the part of the post where you're you may be listening to this and then we will send you that guide for free just to help okay so that's what we're all about at brave bold brilliant so grab a pen and paper and you might want to make some notes

4:26Jeannette Linfoot:imagine a four box matrix okay and along the horizontal axis we actually have support or level of interest okay the left hand side being low the right hand side being high and then on the vertical axis we actually have level of influence so at the bottom being low the top being high and then you've got four boxes okay and what we're going to do is we're going to look at each of those four boxes and the different type of people that sit within them. Okay, so let's take the bottom left box in the bottom left corner. So these are people that they have a low level of influence. They also have a low level really of direct interest in what you're doing.

5:14Okay, so I would categorize these people as casual observers. Now, these people can absolutely be a drain on your time and energy. All right. Now, I don't mean to be harsh, but we do have to be careful about who we're spending time with and how much effort we're putting in. So with the casual observers, what we don't want to do, we don't want to waste too much time with these people. These might be, you know, people that really have a lot that they want to get from you, but there isn't really a great deal of benefit from spending time. So casual observers. We then have along the bottom

5:51Jeannette Linfoot:right. These are people that have a high level of interest. They're highly engaged in what you're doing, but they don't have necessarily a massively high level of influence, quite a low to mid level of influence. This is often your team. It's often the people that are actually operationally maybe taking action in order to deliver what you're doing. Now, this is really important, this group, and you will spend, as a leader, you'll spend a lot of time with your team. Very important that you do and you're going to explain your vision you want them to be part of the journey understand how their part contributes to the bigger piece so with your time with your team in that bottom right you are going to spend quite a lot of time with these people but you also need to make sure that you're not over managing that you're giving accountability clear direction and the tools for them to do their job without you necessarily having to be too involved so if you feel you're spending too much time with your team it could be that you're micromanaging in which case you need to elevate yourself up.

6:49Then we look at the top right. So these people have a high level of interest in what you're doing. And they're also highly influential. These are decision makers. This is your boss. This might be, you know, key directors in the business. So these are the people that you want to reward first with news. You need to get their buy-in in order to get decisions made and through. So very, very critical group to engage with.

7:18Jeannette Linfoot:And then we have the top left box. So the top left box here, these are people that have got a lower level of direct interest in what you're doing. Maybe they're not in your part of the business. You know, they could be in a different division or something like that. But they've got a high level of influence. These people are what I would call advocates. Okay, they can be champions of what you're doing, but they may not be directly involved in your area specifically. And very often what I find is that when we're actually look at the different quadrants here, that we neglect that top left box. It happens all the time.

7:56And actually, even only recently, I was on a leadership mastermind of running a leadership mastermind group with one of our large corporate global clients. And here we have people that are based in Australia, some are based in Singapore, some are based in the Middle East, some in the US. So we've got a mix of cultures. But the one common thing, when actually everyone had done their sphere of influence, we saw that that area needed some attention. It was being neglected. And so by intentionally looking this, it's going to help you. So now you understand the four box matrix, what actually you need to do is give yourself some headspace to actually work on this.

8:35So how are you going to put it into practice? Well, you are going to get yourself in a place where there are no distractions. You're going to give yourself some headspace in order to map this out. We're going to give you the guide and we're also going to give you the template that you can use to populate this. All right. So you're going to spend time thinking about each of those four quadrants, who sits in each of those four quadrants for you in your space that you're in, in your world. Okay. Now, some of this, sometimes people do this in the group types of people together. Other people like to literally name every single person.

9:09And that is also fine, whatever is going to work for you. But you want to spend some time thinking about the different stakeholder groups. Then the second stage I would like you to do is to really allocate what percent of time do you think you're spending in each of those different quadrants. Now, again, some people go down into the minutiae of how much time you're spending with individuals within those groups, that's fine. You can do that. Or you can do it just as an overall. So, you know, what percent of your time are you spending with decision makers, for example, the top right-hand box? What percent of your time on average week you're spending with your team?

9:44What percent of time are you actually sort of wasting really with casual observers that maybe have got their own agenda? And what percent of time are you spending in that top left-hand box with advocates that are highly influential, but you may not directly be in your part of the business. So that's what you do. First of all, what percent of time are you currently spending? The next stage is what percent of time do you think you think you should be spending? Do you need to be spending in the future? And if the two match, then OK, you're in balance there. But you normally find that actually you're not spending enough time in that top left hand box.

10:18OK, so from there, we're able to say, OK, interesting. What do I therefore need to do in order to create that time? How do I engage with each of those groups? Is the form of communication I'm using actually the best? Should I be trying to have more face-to-face time? Should I actually, am I spending too much time face-to-face and I could actually do things more efficiently remotely? So you start to create a little bit of an action plan for each of those four different stakeholder groups. So this is super simple, super powerful. It really makes a difference. And when you do this intentionally, you'll be surprised by what it throws up.

10:56Okay, so I believe in simple things that work. 30 plus years in business, I haven't got the time to mess about. Okay, I want to have things that really make a difference. And this makes a difference. So that's the sphere of influence model, why it's important, how you can apply it to everything you're doing. Don't forget, click on the link, because you are then going to be able to get your free sphere of influence guide and also the template that we're going to give to you that you can populate with all of that information on so it's going to really allow you to go from just talking to actual action because that's when we make a difference right so if any of this has resonated with you and you feel there's someone in your network that would benefit from this please

11:40Jeannette Linfoot:share the episode okay and don't forget hit subscribe if you're not subscribed to brave bold, brilliant, you're missing out. And of course, come and join the community. You know, there's lots of free resources we have on our website. Go to the Learning Hub. You will see there absolutely jam-packed full of resources to help you on your business journey. So no time like the present. You might think I haven't got enough time for all of this, Jeanette. Well, that's exactly why you need to do it. And if you want to build meaningful relationships that actually end up making an impact, then this is the way to do it.

12:12So remember, it is by being brave and bold that you will unlock your brilliant

12:16Jeannette Linfoot:and I will catch you for the next episode. Well, that's it for this episode of Brave Bold Brilliant. Thank you so much for spending this time with me. Now, if today's conversation gave you something to think about, made you think about your own growth and what you can do with your business life, do me a favour, hit subscribe because then you are going to be notified the moment the next episode drops and it genuinely helps the show. And it means that you're never going to miss out on conversations that could really change how you lead. And remember, Brave Bold Brilliant, it isn't just a podcast.

12:54Jeannette Linfoot:You know, through our Align 360, Rise Academy, our Leadership Masterminds, Executive Edge programs and one-to-one business mentoring. We are here to help leaders and businesses just like you turn bold ideas into real, measurable growth. So if you're ready to take the next step, get in touch. The link's below. I'd love to hear from you. So until next time, stay brave, stay bold, and most of all, stay brilliant.