3 Ways to Be More Persuasive at Work

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0:39So when your mind won't switch off, you've got something that can help. Erasing thoughts and restless nights won't stand a chance. Find Oli's sleep solutions for the whole family at Oli.com. That's O-L-L-Y dot com. Hi, you're listening to one of our squiggly shortcuts. These episodes are designed to be quick to listen to and easy to take action with. And today I want to talk to you a bit about the power of persuasion and three simple ways that you can increase your persuasion at work. So let's quickly talk about why this matters. Persuasion means that we have more influence with the people that we work with.

1:18So if you are trying to get your ideas across or you want to influence an outcome that is going to support your work, then persuasion is a skill that really matters. But it's not one I think that we're always taught to do. And some people do it brilliantly and some of us are struggling to know what to do differently. And so we're going to borrow some insights from Robert Caldini, who's done lots of work in this area. And there are three simple things I think you can do that will increase how persuasive you can be in the moment. So if you're in a conversation with somebody and also increase how persuasive you can be over time.

1:55These are research proven and I think they are relatively easy for everyone to do. So the first thing in the moment to increase your persuasion is mirroring. So when we mirror people, that creates a connection with somebody and it increases how influential we can be with them and how persuasive we can come across. The obvious way to mirror that people talk about is body language. But I think you have to be really good at that. I think when people talk about mirroring, it's, you know, someone crosses their arm, you cross your arm. If someone leans forward, you lean forward. I think you have to be very good at that for it not to look forced and fake.

2:31So a more subtle way of mirroring that I like to do is with mirroring people's language. So listen to the words that they're saying. So if they're talking about performance or efficiency, you can then start to mirror their language, play those words back to people. It becomes more persuasive in your communication and create some slightly different points of connection. So that's the first one for in the moment. The second thing for in the moment is likeability. So you are more persuasive when people like you. Now, that doesn't mean that you have to be just super nice to everybody, super smiley all the time.

3:09That isn't always what results in likability. It's back to this point on connection. And there are lots of ways that you can create connection. It can be because you and the person you're talking to connect over a particular topic. Could be anything from coffee. I've definitely seen. I've seen Sarah do this brilliantly, where she will create connection with somebody over a discussion about coffee. And that creates greater likability with that influence. If you've got a foundation of likability, it will increase how persuasive you can be with that person. So start looking out for those little moments of connection that can create that likability.

3:47I think the easiest way to do this is through listening. Listen to how someone started their day. Listen to what they might have done at the weekend, listen to what they're doing for the rest of the week. If you are listening, you can spot the things that they might like, that you can connect authentically to what you might like, and then you can create that connection. So mirroring and likeability are really good for in the moment persuasion. For sort of after the moment, or at least over time persuasion, the third thing I'd recommend is building reciprocity into the relationship. So think about that person that you want to have more persuasion with.

4:25And reciprocity starts with what you give. So if you give to somebody, they are much more likely to want to give back to you. And it's sort of a persuasion technique that you can build into your work. So first of all, you've got to spot the person that you want to have more persuasion with. And then you need to think, what have I got to give that is useful to that person? Now, I see this where a lot of people stall because they think, oh, I've not got anything to give. But you might have your experience to give. Maybe you've done something in your role or even a previous role that could be useful for that person to be aware of.

5:01I've definitely done that before where I've worked in other companies and I've had insights from working there that I've shared with other people that was useful to them and definitely created persuasion in the relationship for me. Maybe you've got expertise. Maybe it's not about experience. Maybe it's about expertise. You have some deep subject matter of knowledge. You can give that generously to that person. That is then more likely to result in the reciprocity in the relationship. Or maybe it's just energy. Maybe you're particularly passionate about something that that person is also interested in.

5:31You kind of offer up that energy to that person. That's something that you've got to give. And again, that creates reciprocity. The caution, I think, with this approach is that reciprocity is built over time. So this is not a tactic of if I then you, that's not what we're doing here. We are building reciprocity into the relationship as a way that we increase our persuasion over time. And to be honest, you've got nothing to lose by doing it because I think generously giving to people is always going to build better relationships anyway. But if there is someone that you want to influence, if you want to increase your persuasion in your role, then that mirroring, likeability and reciprocity are three proven ways in which you can do it.

6:13So I hope that has been useful. If you want a longer listen, definitely look for the episode that I did with Robert Caldini because he talks about some more principles that are useful if you want to add on to what I've talked about today. Thank you so much for listening. We'll be back with you again soon. Hey marketers, listen up. Before this, there was this. Our voice. It's how we shared knowledge, built communities. Well, guess what? Voice is back. That's why Spotify Advertising has published a new report, The Sound On Era, because audio moves culture forward. And if your brand wants to be heard, you need a sound on strategy.

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