How to Resist Persuasion

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Resisting PersuasionYou may not always be aware of all the persuasion efforts that go on around you all day. 

Every day people are subjected to persuasive messages. It has been calculated that each person sees more than 300 of these messages each day. The majority of these messages come from advertising mediums including the television, radio, newspapers and magazines, billboards and on the internet and social media. 

Persuasive messages take many different forms including the more recognisable ones of commercials and advertisements that aim to make you want to buy things. Other forms of persuasion include those social messages that encourage you to take specific actions such as losing weight, avoiding drugs, stopping smoking or ‘going green’ campaigns. 

When you think about it the amount of persuasion we are bombarded with every day is almost overwhelming.  

While some of these messages are helpful, the daily dose of ‘Buy this!’, ‘Buy that!’ can get very annoying for everyone. 

Even children are targeted by persuasive messages. Cereal manufacturers advertise free toys on the outside of their boxes so children will pester their parents into buying them. Then there are those car commercials just making you want to go out and buy that brand new car! 

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So how can you manage to resist all of this constant persuasion? 

Well, first of all, you need to be aware of the fact that you are being persuaded. This will help put you into a defensive mode and make resisting much of it easier. 

You can easily recognise this situation when you are at the car dealership or dress shop looking at cars or outfits. Immediately a sales person is attempting to persuade you to buy that new car or outfit. When this happens ask for a time out or back away from the situation. Tell the person you just want to look and you are not ready to make a decision yet. If necessary walk away from the situation. 

Another way to master resistance includes not shopping for items when you are tired or hungry. If you do, you may be rushed into making a decision that you will regret later on.  

This also applies when a work colleague is trying to persuade you to do or say something that you are not sure about.  If you are tired, or angry about something which has happened, it is easy to rush into a decision you may later regret.  Be firm about taking your time to make your decision so you have the opportunity to consult others and consider all the options.  There is nothing worse that a leader who is swayed by the last person they spoke to. 

Want to know more?

And if you want to know more about Persuasion for Busy Leaders, check out our guide here…  http://kmginfo.com/go/persuasion

Categories: Crisis communication, Leadership, Marketing

What really persuades?

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Words have power

Have you ever wondered just how you can persuade others on your team to do what you want them to do?

In a management role it is possible to use your authority to tell someone to do something and they will do it (if you have the appropriate authority to do so).

It isn’t quite the same in a leadership role where you need to influence and inspire others to follow your lead. Then you need to be able to persuade them to join you and do what you want. And this pretty much comes down to the words you use and how you use them…

When it comes to persuading others, have you thought about whether you are passionate enough? If you are trying to persuade someone to do something and yet you are expressionless and emotionless then your chances of successfully persuading them to follow your lead are pretty slim.

If on the other hand you speak to them with passion and enthusiasm you are much more likely to inspire them and convince them to follow you and join your team.

Your words matter

Persuasion relies on your verbal skills to get the results you want. You want to incorporate enthusiasm and passion into your voice and your actions as a way of getting your point of view across.

You are not trying to manipulate or force anyone into something. Instead your aim is to persuade people that what you are asking is reasonable and even necessary. It is plausible and that it is something worth trying.

When you incorporate just the right amount of passion when you are speaking to your team, your persuasion will improve and you will start getting just what you want. Others will be keen to get on board with your vision and plans.

You will find more about Persuasion for Busy Leaders here… http://kmginfo.com/go/persuasion

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Categories: Crisis communication, Group facilitation, Leadership, Small business coaching - Tags: , ,

Finding opportunity in a crisis

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Issues, critical incidents and crises can present many opportunities for the organisation that is open to learning. Meyers and Holusha (1986) identified seven potential advantages or gains which can arise from a business crisis:

  • New leaders or heroes may be born
  • Organisational change may be accelerated
  • Latent problems are faced
  • People are changed
  • New strategies evolve
  • Early warning systems develop for future issues
  • New competitive edges appear.

During a crisis it is vital that actions are oriented to each of the following:

  • containing the crisis
  • fixing it
  • communicating with the authorities and all other important stakeholders, and
  • learning from the crisis without focusing on laying any blame.

The organisation which does not attempt to learn from a crisis or critical incident is foregoing a major opportunity. Many organisations which accept the challenge to learn from a crisis or incident quickly discover the potential of a proactive issue risk management program to limit their future exposure.

If you would like to learn from the experiences of others without personally undergoing such a crisis, contact KMG Consulting for details of how we can help you develop a crisis preparedness plan or issue risk management program before it is too late.

Categories: Crisis communication, Strategic planning

How do you identify a crisis when it is happening?

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For some it might seem a silly question, but how DO you identify a crisis when you see one? What makes a crisis different to the myriad problems which beset many organisations much of the time?

Identify a crisisProblems are different to a crisis. In fact organisations are often reasonably comfortable addressing problems. That’s what managers are good at – easy as ABC!

Sometimes problems are warning signals or symptoms of a developing crisis or controversy. If recognised early enough these signals can help you avoid disaster and even find opportunity in a crisis.

However, people generally act slowly to non-normal signals, and that makes it harder to identify a crisis. It is common for all of us to:

  • wait for further information
  • delay action until supporting signals appear
  • seek to confirm a warning signal personally.

By the time the media is clamouring for your comment, the phones are ringing in your ears and messages are piling up around you, it’s too late to do much but respond.

So how do you identify a crisis?

According to Robert Heath the characteristics of a crisis are:

  • little time in which to act or respond
  • missing, uncertain or unreliable information
  • some threat to resources and/or people.

Crises never happen when you have the time or resources to cope with them.

That’s why some level of prior planning is critical for any organisation. And, if you don’t wait until it is actually happening to identify a crisis, appropriate staff training can shortcut your response time, as well as making sure it is most effective and appropriate.

If a crisis does strike your organisation you not only need to recognise it early, but remember your ABC’s:

  • Act responsibly
  • Be open, honest and available
  • Contain the situation
  • Don’t delay action
  • Empathise with those affected.

When you do identify a crisis building, these ABC’s are the key to your effective response.

Quote of Note

“There can’t be a crisis next week. My schedule is already full.”

Henry Kissinger

Crises do happen.  But if you identify a crisis before it’s too late you can retain control and limit the damage.

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Categories: Business, Crisis communication - Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,

Can a crisis plan really help?

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You need a crisis plan

I’ve heard it said that process of creating a Crisis Plan is pointless because the crises you plan for are never the ones which happen.

While there may be an element of truth, if for no other reason than any good planning process includes reducing exposure to identifiable risks, it isn’t the full story.

A crisis plan helps you to respond more effectively, even if the situation was not anticipated during the crisis planning process.

There are many different crises which might happen to you. Yet in all of them the situation is characterized by a need to make critical decisions under pressure from a lack of time and information, and in the face of a rapidly escalating cost (in human as well as financial terms) for the resources needed to communicate and implement those decisions.

A crisis plan, at the very least allows you to collect information and allocate resources without the time pressure generated by a critical situation.  So even in a totally unexpected situation, you will be somewhat better prepared as responsibilities have been already been allocated for decision-making and available resources identified in advance, during the crisis planning process.

Crisis Plan Process

The crisis planning process can focus decisions and establish a common point of view from which your team can respond in a crisis, confident in their interpretation of the organisation’s position and supported by your crisis plan.

Any crisis plan is a flexible guide to action.  And it is only ever as good as the crisis planning process which produced it. A sound crisis planning process will not only reduce the risk of crises occurring.  It will develop the skills your people need to respond appropriately should the unanticipated actually ever occur because they have the confidence afforded by your a crisis plan.

Categories: Crisis communication - Tags: , , , , , , , , ,