Don’t expire, inspire!

 

In my previous post, I gave you tips to influence your stakeholders. One of the best way to do this is by inspiring the people around you.

When you inspire people, you motivate them personally and emotionally. You also encourage your stakeholders to greater success, to adopt higher goals or to contribute to the success of your project.

Inspiring people relies more on emotional appeal than logical appeal.

First you need to connect with your audience’s feelings. You need to recognize and address their fears and goals. You can use Maslow’s hierarchy of needs as a checklist. You will know that you have connected with your listeners when you see them nodding their heads.

Now that you established the connection, you need to describe the desired changes. As you lay out the plan, make sure you show them how their fears and worries are counterproductive.

You can now challenge your listener to adopt nobler feelings and values. Make sure to explain the benefits of these new sentiments.

To support these steps towards inspiration, you must pay particular attention to the words you use. Be prepared to use quotes, stories and anecdotes. Use inclusive language to unite your listeners and create a bond between you and them. For example, use we instead of you. Make sure to use action verbs to convey power. Finally, be positive with your team, don’t criticize.

With these tips, you can light a fire in your stakeholders’ bellies. You will set them on the path to success. Everybody’s success.