How to Influence Your Boss and Get Ahead
One of the most important things we can do as a leader is influence those we work for. We will cover the general idea of managing upward in another article, but specifically influencing your direct supervisor is critical for your development and advancement. There is a way to accomplish this without feeling as though you are stepping on any toes or stepping out of line. Here are a few ideas on how you can manage your boss and put yourself in a position to get ahead.
Put yourself in their shoes
We often think about having empathy for those that work for us or around us, but not always whom we work for. Taking time to understand what your supervisor may be dealing with can be a productive way to provide influence and support as well. What issues might she be facing? What are the obstacles that she is working to overcome? Gaining a good understanding of those scenarios will help you tailor your messaging, your output, and suggestions to the needs they have in their role.
Solution oriented, forward-looking
It is one thing to go to your boss and lay out the challenges that are being faced by you and your team. It is another to state those and then follow that up with potential solutions that move you towards a better place. The best leaders will not simply listen to your problems and then offer a solution. Rather they will listen, then look back to you for your ideas. If you want to influence the outcomes, be prepared with those ideas. How would you like to solve the problem? What results are you looking to achieve and what is your plan to get there? Even if you are straining to come up with a good solution, have some ideas to help get the dialogue started with your boss. You may find out that it isn’t such a far fetched idea, or within the conversation, you develop an even better idea that you play a significant role in defining.
Confident and concise
We are all busy. No one has extra time to hear lengthy explanations of the problems at hand. When you are presenting your ideas to your supervisor, get to the point quickly. State what you are trying to solve and share your solutions. I have found that presenting these ideas in a way that implies this is how you will move forward not only moves the conversation along faster but demonstrates the confidence you have in your solution. Confidence may be the most important element of influence. Think about all of the silly ideas that have come to life in any business - that started with someone speaking with confidence in that plan to influence others to go with the idea. Now imagine how much better it will be with a well thought out plan that will deliver positive results.
Facts, Feedback, Flexibility
Use these three ‘F’s’ as a reminder for influencing. Speak to the Facts of the situation. No need to embellish or create added drama, stick to what is happening and communicate that clearly. Be open to the Feedback that follows. You need to shift quickly from presenter to listener. This will allow you to understand what additional questions need to be answered in your supervisor’s mind. Finally, be Flexible to different possible outcomes. Walk into the conversation with a clear understanding of what you want the outcome to be. The final results may not be exactly what you were looking for, but if it is close, that can be a big win for you. There will be a certain element of negotiation when influencing others. I believe this back and forth dialogue and the give and take that goes with it helps to ensure that you are working towards productive influence instead of manipulation or coercion.
Timing Matters
One tricky element of influencing your leader is timing it correctly. There is not always a good time to have certain conversations, but there are almost always bad times. This starts with the first item we covered above: place yourself in their shoes. Catching your boss at a moment where there is another significant issue being addressed may not be the best time for you to present your idea. If your situation will require some meaningful time for discussion and thought, trying to catch your boss in a short window of time between other commitments may also be bad timing. Whenever possible, I would recommend setting up a scheduled time to share your ideas and provide a brief glimpse into the conversation ahead of time. Urgent issues are a different matter; you may have to work through the bad timing element of that. However, using some of the ideas above will help you navigate that need to overcome potentially poor timing.
Keep the bigger picture in mind
In all of this, you need to keep your eyes wide to the bigger picture. There will inevitably be more to consider than just your idea and this specific situation. Anticipate what those scenarios may be. If your concept reaches beyond the immediate issue, explain how. Showing that you are looking beyond just your needs will demonstrate your ability to look at things from a different lens, shows your leadership beyond your role, and can be an important factor in influencing your boss.You are in your role for a reason, and your supervisor is counting on you to contribute in many ways. Great leaders want to be influenced by those around them, regardless of titles or positions. Taking time to think through your ideas, understand the overall situation, and being able to present your thoughts in a meaningful way is the best method to make a difference in your role each day. No one person can change the world they live in. It will take the collective thoughts and actions of others to improve, build, and sustain new paths forward. Moving yourself ahead in your business and career will require you to influence your boss as well as those around you.What successes have you had when influencing your boss? What steps did you take?Join other retail leaders in continuing their development journey with Effective Retail Leader.com. SUBSCRIBE today to receive FREE leadership tips directly to your inbox and monthly newsletters that provide many tools to help further develop your leadership skills all at no cost. JOIN NOW!No spam ever - just leadership goodness.Photo by Amy Hirschi on Unsplash