How we change what others think, feel, believe and do

The Power of Influence

Guest articles > The Power of Influence

by: Robert Ishoy

Unfortunately, too often in life we are persuaded by the power of position. The power of position is simply someone else making demands or requirements on you by the standing of their position in relationship to you. There are several serious drawbacks with this type of persuasion. First of all normally the person using the power of their position is egotistical in their motivations and desires. In other words what it is that they want from you is going to benefit them but it is not necessarily going to be good for you. Another problem with the power of position is that it is usually temporary and conditional. Once their position of power over you is gone then their influence over you to do what it is they what no long has much meaning and may even result in you resenting their artificial persuasion over you thus having an opposite effect in the long run.

The alternative to the power of position is the power of influence. The power of position is based on a person’s status, control or even worst, acts of force or threats. The power of influence on the other hand is based on the individual themselves. Their influence is based on their personal credibility, knowledge and empathy. And this type of power is not temporary or conditional but rather can be permanent and even life changing. Another virtue of the power of influence is that by using this form of persuasion you cannot help but be altruistic in your approach towards others. This is because the power of influence requires you to establish positive rapport with the other person and the elements of rapport building include trust, empathy and credibility which by their nature are altruistic.

So, on one side we have the power of position that usually is self-serving, temporary and conditional and can even be abusive and counterproductive. And then on the other side we have the power of influence that is normally mutually beneficial, lasting, unconditional and honorable as well as effective.

Confucius made the statement that “It does not matter if you have a high position in life, it only matters if you are worthy of a high position in life.” So ask yourself, which would rather have, a power based on your position in life or the power of influence based on who and what you are.

Now, you are probably asking yourself how I get this power of influence. What exactly is it and how do I obtain it? Well the answer is the same as it is for most things in life. The power of influence is something that needs to be studied and then practiced. The program that I have developed titled the Secret Art of Persuasion is designed to do just that, provide you with the research and learning materials to study how to develop your own power of influence and then provides you with practical exercises for you to perfect your ability to put what you have learned to practice. My program can be found on my web site: http://secretsop.com.

If you choose not to go with my program then at least let me give you a guide to some of the topics of study that will help you get started on your journey. They are: Rapport Building, Good Questioning Techniques to include Socratic Questioning, Good Listening Skills, Elicitation, The Art of Rhetoric to include Pathos, Ethos and Logos, Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, Critical Thinking and finally The Powers of Persuasion.

If there is one thing that I hope you have gained from this article it is the idea that the powers of persuasion when used correctly can be a positive tool to influence others in such a way that it will be mutually of benefit to them as well as yourself. And when confronted by others who try to use the power of their position over you, you will be at least aware of their misguided efforts and be able to better defend yourself from their artificial persuasive methods.

Robert is one of the world’s leading experts in the field of the Art of Persuasion.

His background and credentials as a subject matter expert includes:

• BA in History from California State University Fresno (Cum Laude),
• AA in Social Sciences from Merced College,
• AS in Intelligence Operations from Cochise College (High Honors).
• Member of The Military Intelligence Corps (awarded in 1989),
• Former Army Interrogator and veteran of Desert Storm,
• Corporate Director of Security and Loss Prevention,
• Former Church Missionary,
• Master instructor of Human Intelligence for the U.S. Army and Department of Defense.

Additional Training includes; The Reid Technique of Interviewing and Interrogation, Joint Interrogation Certification Course, Joint Senior Interrogation Course, Advanced Cognitive Interviewing and Forensic Statement Analysis, U.S. Army Intelligence Center (USAIC) Instructor Training Course, USAIC Small Group Instructor Training Course, USAIC Advanced Instructional Methods Course, Socratic Questioning Workshop.

Awards and Honors include: Department of Defense Human Intelligence Award 2011, Instructor of the Quarter Award 2012 from HUMINT Training Joint Center of Excellence (HTJCOE).

Contributor: Robert Ishoy

Published here on: 14-Jun-15

Classification: Persuasion

Website: http://secretsop.com