Principle 30: Help Them See Their Benefits
To make someone glad to do your suggestion:
- Be sincere and focus on the benefits to the other person.
- Know exactly what you want the other person to do.
- Focus on what the other person really wants and consider the benefits he will receive from doing what you suggest; then match these benefits to his wants.
- When you make your request, clearly convey the benefits to that person.
For example, you can offer someone a good title for his work, or offer a substitute immediately after turning down an offer.
The final key to being a leader and changing people without arousing resentment is to make the person happy about doing what we want them to do.
If you're having a hard time convincing your child to do a chore, offer to pay her a dollar for every time she does it, and take away a dollar for every time she doesn't.
If you choose another internal candidate for the job, tell the one who didn't get the job that you felt he was too important to the organization in his current role to reassign him.
If you have an employee who struggles with a certain task, appoint her to be the supervisor for that task, and watch as she improves immediately.
Offering incentives, praise, and authority are all great ways to make a person happily accept our decisions and do what we want them to do.
Practice Principle 30
To be an effective leader, keep these guidelines in mind when it is necessary to change attitudes or behavior:
- Be sincere. Don't promise anything you can't deliver.
- Know exactly what you want the other person to do.
- Be empathetic. Ask yourself what it is the other person really wants.
- Consider the benefits that person will receive from doing what you suggest.
- Match those benefits to the person's wants.
- When you make your request, put it in a form that will convey to the other person the idea that he personally will benefit.