Influence is the ability to get others to do or think what you want them to do or think. Having influence on those around you can open the door to success and is not as complicated as you think.

To influence other people, there is nothing stronger than to offer your opinion. But be careful, if you are very direct you may seem aggressive. On the contrary, if you are lukewarm, your opinion will not be heard. As in many things in life, the ideal is an intermediate point. That's why it's important that you adapt to your interlocutor. To be able to influence others, you have to get a good handle on how you translate your opinions.

Imagine that you want to influence a customer to renegotiate the terms of an agreement. If your client does not have many more options, your influence will be high. On the other hand, if you have other alternatives at hand, your attempt to renegotiate terms may be considered inappropriate, and you may even lose the client.

BROADEN YOUR MARGINS TO INFLUENCE

To be able to influence you to have to have enough room for maneuver. If you find yourself in a situation where you have no formal or informal power, it will be tough to influence anyone. But beware, you can take actions that give you more leeway to influence. These are some of them:

• Speak with passion: If you do not have an interest in what you say, why are you listening to others? Talking with passion makes the other party also passionate about what you say, and so you can more quickly convey your ideas.
• Help others: By helping or advocating the point of view of others you distract yourself from the problem, and others see you as an independent expert. But beware of overstepping yourself, or you will be perceived as an intruder.
• Specialize: If you are excellent at something, others will seek you to know your opinion as an expert. For that, you need to train and work hard. When it is time to show your knowledge, be accessible.
• Put yourself in the place of the other: Empathy is always a great ally. By putting yourself in the other's place, you are able to better understand their needs and how you can influence them.
• It offers alternatives: When you give a tip, you should give several options to choose from. In this way, the person you want to influence will better accept the final result because he has been involved in the solution.
• Create Allies: Trying to influence a friend or partner is easy. So try to generate a relationship before you try to tell anyone what you should do. In this way, you'll increase your power of informal influence.
• Ask for advice: This is an excellent way to build allies and increase your natural power. When you ask for help from another, you are humble, and you are asking the other to put yourself in your place. This may just be the previous step to reverse roles and to be you that influences the other person.