Sunday, September 26, 2010

Gaining The Power To Make A Difference

Had an interesting conversation with a client last week about making a difference. He said he wanted to but felt powerless to actually make it happen. Here are some relevant insights/options that might be relevant to what you are going through:

First of all, all power is actually based on the influence you have in a particular situation - either over things or people.

When I was in charge of Leadership initiatives for the Disney Institute, my team discovered that the most successful leaders at Disney first influenced people so that they could affect things and lead people (followers) accordingly.

That said, there are many different ways to gain power/influence:

  • What you have - When you have money/resources, you are of value to others and can influence accordingly. Keep in mind that your "stuff" is not you. If your resources go away, so does you influence/power.
  • Who you know - Are you influential with those who are influential? Meet them, get to know them, and be worthy of their trust/respect.
  • What you know - Develop yourself so that you know information or have skills regarding something of value to others. An important thing to know is what matters to the people you want to make a difference with - and what is currently influencing that situation.
  • Who you are - Do people care about you? Do they admire you? Do they fear you? If so, they will be willing to do things for you - including tap into their resources. (FYI: The fear condition is always short-term and always backfires.)

Bottom line: The most sustainable strategy is to be a person of integrity and connect with people - proving that you are trustworthy and care about them. Then develop yourself with what you know (education) and what you can do (skill). Who you know and what you have may ebb and flow with time, but relationships and abilities (when properly maintained) will provide all the influence and power you'll need to make a difference.

Have you identified what legacy you want to leave? What is your passion? What worthwhile goals do you have that help those you care most about?

Think about it. But more importantly, do something about it...today!

2 comments:

jeff noel said...

I'm challenging the top 3% of male Baby Boomers to do something great before they die. As (seemingly) small as mend a family relationship, to helping to find a cure for an incurable disease, or something in between.

80Mil Boomers, figure half are men - that 40Mil. 3% of 40Mil is 1.2Mil

And then let the ripple effect do it's thing....

Mark David Jones said...

I accept your (excellent) challenge, Jeff! Cool cause! Even cooler legacy, my brother!