John C. Maxwell - The Influence Formula: 4 Steps to Help You Lead Anyone Well

If you want to lead another person, you need influence.

But what is influence, really? And how can you develop it?

Influence is creating a desire in another person to act.

There was a time when people relied less on influence and more on position or title to lead others. Thats no surprise, since at one time hereditary leadership positions were handed down from one generation to another. Princes became kings, and their decisions were lawfor good or for bad.

Those days are gone. And we are better for it.

Today you must earn influence. Fewer people act out of duty. Or obligation. Or coercion. People do what they want.

The question is:

Do they want to follow you?

Even if you possess a title or position of authority, you still need influence to lead people. Any position you have is little more than a starting place, a chance to earn influence.

When you join the army, you become a recruit and must earn rank and the respect of your fellow soldiers.

When you land a job, you may receive a title or a job description: laborer, salesperson, waiter, clerk, accountant, manager. But you must prove yourself.

When you have children, you have the position and title of parent. But the older your children get, the more you need influence if you want to help them grow into happy, healthy, productive adults.

ALL THE LETTERS BEFORE OR AFTER A NAME ARE LIKE THE TAIL ON A PIG. IT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THE QUALITY OF THE BACON.

Claude Winninger

Developing influence is both art and science. Some people influence others naturally. They have so much charisma, personality, beauty, or talent that people want to follow them.

But you dont need to possess those things to develop influence or lead others. You can follow a formula:

Prove yourself.

Earn relationships.

Make your team successful.

Help people reach their potential.

Does the word formula sound cold or impersonal? It doesnt have to. Youre not going to treat people as numbers or objects. Youre just taking the right steps in the right order. With each step, you help others. At the same time, you accomplish the tasks needed to gain influence with the people youre working with.

This is how you gain influence. This is a formula anyone can follow. If you earn influence with someone, then you can lead them.

NO MAN IS A LEADER UNTIL HIS APPOINTMENT IS RATIFIED IN THE MINDS AND THE HEARTS OF HIS MEN.

Infantrymans journal (1954)

Dont think of influence as a noun, something thats been completed. Think of influence as a verb. Its active. Its ongoing. Its something you must do every day with the people you desire to lead.

SHOW ME WHAT YOU CAN DO; DONT TELL ME WHAT YOU CAN DO!

John Wooden

As an active influencer, you never arrive. Neither do the people youre leading. Good leaders are always working to take people somewhere worthwhile. They arent static. If there is no journey, there is no leadership.

You can buy a mans time, you can buy a mans physical presence at a certain place, you can even buy a measured number of skilled muscular motions per hour or day. But you cannot buy enthusiasm you cannot buy loyalty; you cannot buy the devotion of hearts, minds, and souls. You have to earn these things.

Clarence Francis

Dont take influence lightly.

In an age of social media, when people seek clicks to boost their numbers, develop your influence for a positive purpose. Influence people so that you can lead themnot for your benefit, but theirs. And for the team. Lead people where they need to go so that they can accomplish their dreams.

Half of the harm that is done in this world is due to people who want to feel important. They dont mean to do harm they are absorbed in the endless struggle to think well of themselves.

T. S. Eliot

The bottom line is that an opportunity to lead people is an invitation to make a difference. Good leadership changes individual lives. It forms teams. It builds organizations. It impacts communities. It has the potential to impact the world. But never forget that influence is a responsibility. Use it wisely.

LEADERSHIP IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO SERVE.

J. Donald Walters

Can you influence others without accomplishing anything yourself? Yes, to a degree. You can interest them. You can make them your fans. You can get them to like you.

But can you take them anywhere? If people do nothing more than click Like, can you lead them where they need or want to go?

Probably not.

Leadership is influence, but not all influence is leadership.

Influence without action isnt leadership.

The ability to produce results has always been the separation line for success.