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March 25, 2010

Why is persuasion the world’s most researched skill? That’s easy—as history shows, it’s the world’s most important skill!

Take a trip back to the Fifth Century B.C., when Athenians were experimenting with a new form of government. The Athenians quickly discovered that to succeed in a democracy, they had to be persuasive. Leaders used persuasion (then called rhetoric) to gain agreement and win support. Everyday citizens used persuasion before a new legal body—the jury.

Recognizing its importance, Athenian scholars, including Plato and Aristotle, began to study the powerful process of persuasion. Circa 435 B.C., they defined three elements of the process of persuasion: Logos, the appeal to logic, reason, and facts; Pathos, the appeal to emotions; and Ethos, the appeal of the speaker’s character and credibility. These scholars found that one or more of these appeals characterize any instance of persuasion.

Aristotle wrote three books about persuasion. Among his conclusions, he stated that logic is the most reliable appeal, and that it is a “human failing” that people sometimes tend to be persuaded less by logic and more by emotion. Scientists are now learning precisely why appeals to logic can be so unproductive. And they’ve learned that Aristotle had it all backward when he defined logic as the most reliable appeal to persuasion.

In ancient Greece, persuasion proved to be enormously effective in politics, commerce, jurisprudence and everyday life—so much so, that when the Romans conquered Greece, they continued to study and apply the skill of persuasion. Caesar Augustus became a master persuader. He magnificently used the Ethos appeal, starting every speech with the phrase “Vini, Vidi, Vici.” I came, I saw, I conquered. By establishing who he was and why people should listen to him, he was able to quickly win their support.

Fast forward to the U.S.A. in 1940s and ’50s. Explosive post-war economic growth led to more research into how people could make good things happen through others. Writers produced a spate of books based on the groundbreaking research of Carl I. Hovland of Yale University. Many other prestigious universities and business schools also initiated research into the science, art and skill of persuasion. The race for knowledge on how to gain agreement, compliance, to get to YES was on in earnest!

Politicians of that era also realized that the greatest power in the world was the power to persuade. Even President Harry Truman understood how central persuasion was to his ability to lead. “I sit here all day trying to persuade people,” he said. “That’s all the powers of the President amount to.” Today Condoleezza Rice adds to this from her own position of power, “Power is nothing unless you can turn it into influence.”

In time, new and exciting facts about persuasion continued to appear. In the 1980s, Dr. Robert Cialdini, Arizona State University’s Regents Professor of Psychology, conducted extensive research into the emotional “triggers” of persuasion. By the late 90s, his book, Influence – the Psychology of Persuasion, had become Amazon.com’s best-selling business book. Soon, Harvard Business School and other leading institutions were offering executive courses in persuasion skills.

Today the quest for persuasion knowledge continues at warp speed. While some scientists are unraveling the human genome, defining how our chromosomes and DNA affect our physical bodies, others are unraveling the secrets of the brain, exploring how it processes decision-making information.

In this vein, Jay Conger, Director of the Leadership Institute at the University of Southern California School of Business, tells us why research into the “how to” of persuasion is so critical: “Today’s business contingencies make persuasion more necessary than ever,” he says. “Many businesspeople misunderstand persuasion and more still underutilize it.”

The art and science of persuasion continues to attract the world’s best minds. Why? Because today’s leaders need to know:

• How do I motivate others to act?
• ­­­How do I produce agreement, compliance, and results?
• How do I generate change?
• How do I make important things happen with and through others?
• How do I sell my ideas, my products, and my services?
• How do I trigger YES?

The brilliant minds of antiquity had many answers, and today’s scientists have even more. According to New York University Neuroscientist Joseph LeDoux, “The amygdala [the emotional part of the brain] has a greater influence on the cortex [the thinking part] than the cortex has on the amygdala, allowing emotion to dominate and control thinking.”

Similarly, the book and the PBS series “The Secret Life of the Brain” (funded principally by the National Science Foundation) distills the entire 2,500 years of persuasion research into a single sentence:

“We are not thinking machines. We are feeling machines that think.”

History and modern science agree. To persuade successfully, we must appeal to the listener’s inborn, hard-wired need to satisfy emotional needs and wants. We must frame our presentations to appeal to specific shortcuts, the triggers embedded in each of our brains. We must learn to work with the other person’s brain rather than against it as we have been doing for 2,500 years.

The brilliant minds of Greece and Rome recognized the need for persuasion, and set forth fundamental guidelines. Today’s scientists and researchers have defined the specific process that our brains use to make decisions. For the first time, we understand how to work with, not against, the brain’s decision-making process to help others make easy, non-analytical, yet correct decisions.

Today persuasion is more critical than ever. And for the first time we are learning how to persuade efficiently. For the first time we can see, in vivo, in real time, the brain’s blood, oxygen and neuron flows as it responds to decision stimuli. We can see distinct brain elements “light up” as they are brought into play. The exciting news is that we finally understand the persuasion process, a process we’ve been doing poorly for 2,500 years. And that understanding enables us to produce YES, agreement, action and results with and through others.

For the first time in history, we have the scientifically documented breakthrough to quickly, easily produce YES, and the results we want and need from others.

(Source: Seven Triggers)

Kairos Performance Learning will be hosting a Principle of Persuasion (POP) Workshop on June 17-18, 2010. Please click on POP on the website page for the brochure.

March 23, 2020

Decisions, decisions, decisions. It seems like every time we turn around, we have to make more decisions. The question is, “Are you a good decision maker?” If you aren’t (or don’t think you are), there is no need to worry. Decision-making is a skill that can be learned by anyone. Although some people may find this particular skill easier than others, everyone applies a similar process.

There are two basic kinds of decisions: those that are arrived at using a specific process and those that just happen. Although both kinds of decisions contain opportunities and learning experiences, there are definite advantages to using a specific process to make a decision. The most obvious advantage is the reduced level of stress you will experience.

Wise decisions are decisions that are made using a definite process. They are based on the values and perceptions of the decision-maker and include carefully considered alternatives and options along with periodic reassessments of the decision and its effects. Wise decisions may or may not follow societal norms and expectations. However, they are right for the decider based on what she knows at that point in time about both her options as well as herself.

Ten Steps to Wise Decision-Making

This process can be applied to any situation where you need to make an important decision. If you follow these ten basic steps, you will find yourself making wiser decisions, both in your professional as well as your personal life. 

• Define, as specifically as possible, what the decision is that needs to be made. Is this really your decision or someone else’s? Do you really need to make a decision? (If you do not have at least two options, there is no decision to be made.) When does the decision need to be made? Why is this decision important to you? Who will be affected by this decision? What values does this decision involve for you?
• Write down as many alternatives as you can think of. Brainstorm as many different alternatives as you can imagine. Let your imagination run free and try not to censure anything. This is not the time to be judgmental. Just be sure to write everything down.
• Think where you could find more information about possible alternatives. If you only come up with a few alternatives, you may want to get more information. Additional information generally leads to more alternatives. Places where you can look for the information you need include friends, family, clergy, co-workers, state and federal agencies, professional organizations, online services, newspapers, magazines, books, and so on.
• Check out your alternatives. Once you have a list of alternatives, use the same sources of information to find out more about the specifics of each option. You will find that the more information you gather, the more ideas will pop into your head. Be sure to write these down and check them out too.
• Sort through all of your alternatives. Now that you have your list of alternatives, it is time to begin evaluating them to see which one works for you. First, write down the values that would come into play for each alternative. Second, look for the alternatives which would allow you to use the greatest number of your values. Third, cross the alternatives off the list which do not fit into your personal value framework.
• Visualize the outcomes of each alternative. For each remaining alternative on your list, picture what the outcome of that alternative will look like. Here, too, it helps if you write out your impressions.
• Do a reality check. Which of your remaining alternatives are most likely to happen? Cross off those alternatives that most likely will not happen to you.
• Which alternative “fits” you? Review your remaining alternatives and decide which ones feel most comfortable to you. These are your wise decisions. If you are very happy about a decision, but are not as comfortable with its possible outcome, this is a clue that this is not a wise decision for you. On the other hand, you may dislike an alternative, but be very excited about the possible outcome. This decision would probably not be wise for you either. If you feel you can live with both the alternative as well as the possible outcome, this is the wise decision you should follow.
• Get started! Once you have made your decision, get moving on it. Worrying or second-guessing yourself will only cause you grief. You have done your very best for the present. You always have the option of changing your mind in the future if you want to. Remember, no decision is set in stone.
• How is it going? Be sure to review your decision at specified points along the road. Are the outcomes what you expected? Are you happy with the outcomes? Do you want to let the decision stand or would you like to make some adjustments? If the decision did not come out the way you planned, go through the complete decision-making process again. In the process, answer the following questions. Did I not have enough information? What values actually came into play? Were they my values or someone else’s? Remember, you can always change your mind!

 Common Decision-Making Mistakes

As much as we would like to believe that we do not have any prejudices or biases, the fact is that everyone does. The more aware you are of yours, the better off you will be. The main reason everyone has their own way of viewing the world is because our brains simply cannot take in everything, at least not on a conscious level.

Have you ever tried to learn ten new things all at once? If you have, you know that it is very easy to become overwhelmed and to end up learning very little at all. That is because of the way the brain works. Our brains screen and categorize information so that we can understand the world around us without being overwhelmed by it. We get into trouble when we fail to realize that many of the perceptions we hold are based on what society (i.e., parents, teachers, the church, all institutions, etc.) teach us, not what we actually know to be true.

Below is a list of the most common decision-making mistakes. By learning about these pitfalls now, you will be able to avoid them in the future. 

• Relying too much on “expert” information. Oftentimes, people have a tendency to place too much emphasis on what “experts” say. Remember, experts are only human and have their own set of biases and prejudices just like the rest of us. By seeking information from a lot of different sources, you will get much better information than you would if you focused all of your energy on only one source.
• Overestimating the value of information received from others. People have a tendency to overestimate the value of certain individuals in our society and underestimate the value of others. For instance, experts, authority figures, parents, high status groups, people who seem to have it all together, and people we respect have a way of swaying our opinion based simply on the fact that we believe they know more than we do. When you find yourself doing this, ask yourself: Do they know as much about this problem as I do? Are their values the same as mine? Have they had any personal experiences with a problem like mine? In other words, keep their opinions in perspective.
• Underestimating the value of information received from others. Whether we realize it or not, we also have a tendency to discount information we receive from individuals such as children, low status groups, women (yes, believe it!), the elderly, homemakers, blue-collar workers, artists, etc. This is unfortunate since a lot of times these groups can paint a good picture of the “other side” of your problem. In other words, these groups may use entirely different values and perceptions in their answers to your questions. The result is a bigger picture perspective of what the issues really are. Just make a note that if you find yourself discounting the information you receive from anyone, make sure you ask yourself “why“.
• Only hearing what you want to hear or seeing what you want to see. Try this exercise. Ask a friend to look around them and make note of everything that is green. Now, have them close their eyes. Once their eyes are closed, ask them to tell you what around them is red. Almost everyone you ask will not be able to tell you what was red because they were focusing on what was green. Our perceptions work the same way. If we have expectations or biases that we are not aware of, we tend to see what we want to see. Likewise, if someone tries to tell us something we do not want to hear, we simply do not hear them. This is a common mistake that many people make. The key is to be aware of your own prejudices and expectations while at the same time staying open to everything that comes your way.
• Not listening to your feelings or gut reactions. Have you ever made a decision only to have it be followed by a major stomach ache or headache? This is your body talking to you. Our brains are constantly taking in more information than we can consciously process. All of this extra information gets buried in our subconscious. Although we may not be able to retrieve this information, our body stores it for us until it is needed. In moments when we need to make a decision, our bodies provide clues to the answer through feelings or gut reactions. Unfortunately, our society teaches us to ignore these feelings. But by tuning into your intuition, you will find that you will make much better decisions in the long run.

 (Source: Bacal & Associates)

GOOD NEWS: KAIROS PERFORMANCE LEARNING is hosting a public workshop on “Managing & Making Decisions to be held from April 28-29, 2010 at the G-Hotel in Penang, Malaysia. (Please see the brochure on the website). Seize the early bird workshop offer before March 28, 2010.

March 16, 2010

Knowing how to manage your boss without committing career suicide is essential in your organization.

Jean Kelly suggests the following:

No matter where you work, you report to someone—maybe even to two or three bosses. Whether you think your boss is brilliant or a bore, the fact is that you have to manage the relationship with your boss if you want to advance your career.

Realize that you are more dependent on your boss than your boss is on you, because your boss holds the key to your short-term future. Not only can your boss release you at any time, especially in today’s economy, but your boss can also unconsciously ostracize you by not keeping you in the communication loop and by giving all the desirable projects to others. When your boss senses that communication between the two of you is not going well and situations have not been resolved, he or she will simply go work with your co-workers rather than you.

Therefore, if you don’t manage the relationship with your boss, you won’t last long in your particular position—either you’ll get fired or you’ll quit. Granted, if you work for a large company, you might be able to transfer to a different boss; but even then, if you still don’t know how to manage a boss, you could end up repeating the same scenario with your new supervisor.

So before you let a little mismanagement on your part disrupt your career, take some time to learn the keys of ‘boss management.’ The following suggestions will get you started on the right path and contribute to a more harmonious work day.

Find out from your boss what ‘good’ looks like and all who are involved in measuring ‘good.’

Whether you report to one person or four different bosses, you need to make sure you’re meeting everyone’s expectations. After all, what seems good to you may only be mediocre to your boss. Therefore, find out what ‘good’ looks like to each boss you report to. You could simply ask, ‘What does ‘good’ look like on this project?’ Or, ‘If this went exactly like you wanted it to go and it turned out perfect, what would have to happen between now and that time?’ As an added benefit, you might even get an idea of the scope of how big that project really is. Sometimes bosses don’t tell you much and you have to pull it out of them. If you do this simple step upfront and find out what the expectations are on the project and the timelines, you save a lot of time in the end.

Ask your boss what kind of follow up he or she wants and what your boss has to have for his or her comfort level.

Many times bosses expect people to be mind readers, simply because they’re busy and can’t always go over all the details of a project. As such, your boss might forget to tell you such things as a firm deadline or a required step. And since everyone operates from their own set of realities, the possibility of miscommunication is high. That’s why you need to take the initiative to set expectations for every project your boss assigns you. You need to find out: ‘What is the deadline? What are my resources? What checkpoints or milestones do we want to establish, if any? What step or contact person is absolutely critical to this project?’

Just as you set expectations when dealing with clients and co-workers, you need to manage the relationship and set expectations with your boss every time.

Examine your boss’ style and adjust to that style.

 Peter Drucker said there are two key leadership styles: readers and listeners. Which is your boss? The readers want data before you talk with them. The listeners want to talk before they read. For example, a CEO has a controller who is good with the numbers. He gives his boss elaborate and spectacular reports…but that’s not what she wants. Every time he gives her a report, she pushes the report aside and starts talking with him. She’s not a reader; she’s a listener. All she wants to know is the bottom line: ‘Are we in trouble or not?’ So this controller is spending precious time producing materials his boss doesn’t want. Conversely, if your boss is a reader, you’re not going to get a good decision from that person in a quick hallway conversation. Readers can’t make fast decisions on complex issues without data. So unless it’s an easy question, they need to think things over and analyze them. And while there are many personality types in the workplace, if you can make this one distinction between the readers and the listeners, you’ll go far with managing your boss.

Muster up the courage to tell your boss when you feel you haven’t been fully heard.
Communication has to go both ways for success. If your boss upsets you or misunderstands you, you have to speak up1not from the head, but from the heart. One way to do that is with an ‘I’ message. For example, ‘I was really upset and hurt by what you said. I interpreted it as __________. Did you mean it that way?’ Most people want to be heard, yet most don’t get heard by their boss. Therefore, it’s your responsibility to say when you’re not feeling heard. If you’re leery of speaking up to your boss, first try this approach on your family members. Practice it in a safe environment before trying it on your boss.

Become aware of other managers’ styles, especially when they have a stake in the outcome of your project.

Keeping up with the expectations and styles of multiple bosses can be a fine balancing act. The only way to wade through it all is if you can keep in mind the one thing that matters most to each of the stakeholders you have to please. It’s too overwhelming to have five stakeholders and think through five requirements for each. So either ask each person what is most important to him/her, or figure out what you have observed in each person’s behavior that you can attend to.

Manage Up

The good news is that no matter how well or poorly you have managed your boss’s relationship in the past, you can recraft your relationship on every new project. Ideally, you want to create a relationship where talking from the heart is the norm, as then confrontation on serious issues won’t be difficult. In the end, it’s really about understanding your boss. When you teach your boss how to work with you and hone great communication skills with him or her, your work life will be happier and much more productive. 

March 01, 2010

We make choices daily, whether in our work or in our personal life. With overloaded information in our high-tech world, we are overwhelmed and cannot make decisions. The condition is analysis paralysis. Depending on our personality, some of us are prone to analysis paralysis when making a decision. Below is an article by Andrew Cox on how to overcome analysis paralysis.

One of the biggest challenges leaders have is to ensure that preparation and analysis add real value and provide the framework for action. The biggest enemy to action is analysis paralysis.

One of the most difficult habits to break is the habit of continuing to create and analyze choices long after decisive action should have taken place. Analysis paralysis is the graveyard of many organizations and careers. It’s procrastination – on both the organizational and individual level – caused by fear of failure, fear of consequences, fear of not being thorough, fear of making a mistake.

Analysis paralysis results in too many choices. Too many choices drag down the energy, the time and the effort of all those who are part of the issue.

Here are ten ways leaders have ensured they and their organizations don’t fall victim to analysis paralysis.

1 – Define success as the result of a cumulative process – built on a cycle of action, evaluation, improvement – then action, evaluation, improvement. Nothing creates fear – and analysis paralysis – quicker than to be told that whatever decision is made will result in failure or success – with no other possible outcomes. Creating a either/or success or failure situation will almost certainly result in careful – read lengthy – analysis and preparation. Define ideal outcomes and solutions and use them as guidelines in setting goals – just don’t let the deal be the only acceptable solution.

2 – The best course of action in the vast majority of situations is the one that “meets requirements.” Save the “best possible” course of action for the relatively few high value, high impact decisions.

3 -Impose constraints – money, time, resources – that keep the focus on action, not on preparation and analysis

4 – Set up a ready, fire, aim behavior. Insist on enough information to act with a reasonable degree of confidence in the decision, and establish a measuring mechanism to allow for changes as they become apparent.

5 – Realize that simplicity and limited choices can be very liberating – they create a structure that allows for action, rather than a constant evaluation of ever increasing alternatives. Complexity is the partner of analysis paralysis.

6 – Value attitudes that place a premium on information – but information as a means to act not as an end in itself.

7 – Insist on action at every step. Direction and priorities are created through goal setting. Accomplishment is the benchmark of success – not activity.

8 – Accept that mistakes are part of improvement. The biggest enemy of innovation and development is often the fear of making a mistake – or of being blamed for a mistake. A problem solving climate accepts mistakes as part of the process of improvement. It punishes non risk taking behavior, as well as behavior to cover up mistakes.”If you’re not making mistakes you’re not accomplishing anything” is a belief in problem solving organizations.

9 – Adopt a “Principle of Good Enough ” (POGE) attitude toward action. Software developers use POGE to act – knowing that the only way to implement and improve is to throw the switch – go live – measure the results and improve – and then do it all over again. Adjustments based on the results of action are an accepted part of the process – not an indication of failure.

10 – Keep progress reviews simple and frequent and highly structured. It’s amazing how even the most worthy goal can become hostage to analysis paralysis – if it’s left unattended by people in a position to see the bigger picture. Make course corrections a routine part of the process – an accepted and vital part of meeting goals. A question that should be asked in every progress review should be “What course corrections do we have to make to meet this goal?

Take an inventory – of yourself and of your organization. Ask yourself if the conditions for analysis paralysis exist – or if analysis paralysis is already hard at work confusing activity with accomplishment. Then use the suggestions from the leaders who contributed to this article to increase your personal and organizational competitive advantage.

If you need to hone your decision making skills, why not attend the Managing and Making Decisions Workshop from April 28-29, 2010? You can download the brochure from this website.