Personal Note: Exert Yourself
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Written by Kerry Patterson   
Monday, 31 March 2008
Personal Note: Exert Yourself - American Executive - RedCoat Publishing
Author Kerry Patterson says most people stink at influencing others and shows us ways to improve.
The most important capacity we possess is our ability to exert influence. Not a day passes that we don’t try to change either our own or others’ behavior. It’s what humans do. It’s how we make the world a better place. It’s also what leaders get paid to do.

And now for the irony—most of us aren’t particularly skilled at getting ourselves or others to behave differently. Actually, when it comes to behaviors that matter, we stink at influence. Consider the following evidence.  

According to a study by Arthur D. Little, 85% of all corporate change efforts fail. The well-trod trail to disappointment is familiar. Leaders kick-off promising new programs with panache and pizzazz. Unfortunately, the plan that appeared so clever on paper immediately runs into the existing culture, bogs down, gradually transforms into the flavor-of-the-month, and eventually remains behind as no more than an accretion of shelved binders, slogan-embossed mugs, and tattered banners—embarrassing evidence that most of us are far better at thinking about what needs to change than getting people to do so.  

On the home front, we’re no better at exerting influence. American dieters spent $40 billion last year trying to take off weight, and 19 out of 20 lost nothing but their money. Seventy percent of smokers who quit smoking resume in less than 12 months. And as one final reminder of our influence impotence, most of us still don’t floss regularly.

And yet, despite our inability to exert influence over aspects of our lives that really matter to us, we curiously cling to hope. David Sedaris captured this bizarre mix of cynicism and optimism when he said: “I haven’t got the slightest idea how to change people, but I keep a long list of prospective candidates just in case I should ever figure it out.”

Well, the good news is that a handful of scholars and practitioners have figured it out. Half a century of careful research combined with some of the most important and successful change efforts ever executed have taught us exactly what it takes to get people to change their behavior.

For example, Dr. Don Berwick, without the aid of a medical staff or any formal authority, has saved more than 120,000 lives in less than one year by drastically reducing hospital-borne infections. For years, hospitals remained one of the most dangerous places in a community because healthcare workers unwittingly transmit diseases from one patient to the next. Fortunately, this killer practice is all starting to disappear because Dr. Berwick knows how to exert influence.

Dr. Mimi Silbert routinely transforms ex-cons into productive citizens—91% of the time. Individuals who were previously warehoused in prisons now work real jobs—contributing to society rather than waging war on law and order. To date, more than 5,000 former drug addicts, pimps, and thieves have been successfully integrated into society because Dr. Silbert knows how to exert influence.

In our book, Influencer: The Power to Change Anything, my co-authors and I chronicle the work of these and other powerful influencers. Here is a sampling of what we’ve learned by studying those who have resolved some of the world’s toughest challenges.

Don’t settle for serenity. Most of us are convinced that certain things simply can’t change, so to avoid constant carping, complaining, and bemoaning, we learn how to seek serenity. Unfortunately, more often than not, we quickly conclude that whatever we’re trying to change can’t be changed—when in reality, with a little instruction and a change in strategy, we could succeed. We need to become better at seeking new methods of influence and worse at finding comfort in failure.

Expand your repertoire. We routinely seek serenity over solutions because most of us possess a limited influence repertoire. For instance, say you own a restaurant. How would you solve the constant bickering caused by wait people shouting orders to cooks who don’t like being ordered around? For years, food service leaders lectured restaurant employees on the importance of collaboration. That didn’t work. Renowned behavioral scientist Dr. William Whyte broke away from the tradition of lecturing when he invented the order wheel. That worked.

In a similar vein, what if whole departments don’t get along? To get them to stop bickering, do you send them to a “ropes” course? Dr. Gene Dalton learned to locate interdependent (yet quarrelling) teams next to each other. Sharing office space and resources does more to reduce infighting than anything else. Bell Labs discovered that scientists were three times more likely to collaborate on a scientific problem with a colleague located next door than with one located a mere 30 feet away.

But take note. When it comes to influencing human behavior, we rarely think of changing the physical environment.

Or how about this challenge? You want to ensure that a controversial new business process is understood and practiced by virtually every employee in your company. Where do you start? Put up a tent, gather everyone under the big top, and give an impassioned speech? That can be an expensive intervention, and people tend to resist rah-rah speeches.

Dr. Everett Rogers learned to identify opinion leaders and use them as a sounding board for the new ideas. Opinion leaders first help vet the plans, then they share the new ideas with their teammates. Since, by definition, they’re opinion leaders, people tend to embrace the new ideas rather than fight them at every turn.

Become a student of influence. Fortunately, you probably don’t need to eradicate a disease in Sub-Saharan Africa or eliminate a nationwide illegal practice—as did some of the masters we studied. But, if you’re like most people, you do face your own persistent and resistant problems. It’s time to become a student of influence. Learn from the best practitioner and scholars, embrace their ingenious methods, and join a growing body of people who are making the world a better place.

Kerry Patterson is coauthor of Influencer: The Power to Change Anything, (McGraw-Hill) and The New York Times bestseller Crucial Conversations. He is a sought-after speaker and consultant and cofounder of VitalSmarts, an innovator in corporate training and organizational performance. www.influencerbook.com.
 
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