I really liked an article recently published in The Training Journal. 

To view the article, click here:  

The_Influencing_Skills_of_Barack_Obama

It’s about 5 pages long, so if you are time-poor I have written a summary on how to influence like Obama:

Trust

• Much more likely to be influenced by someone we trust.
• Integrity of action – demonstrable over time.
• Admit mistakes and apologise.
• Obama distanced himself from negative associations (politicians), associated himself with Martin Luther King.

 Presence

•  Slow deep voice, good pauses for impact .
• Be present in the moment – giving full attention to your audience.

 Credibility

•  Usually based on experience and expertise.
• Ruthlessly prepare for each encounter – master the details.
• Reframe the debate around what experience you have – play to your strengths (if you don’t have experience highlight judgement).

 Herd Instinct

• We are influenced by those around us.
• Make it easy for your supporters to influence those around them.
• Give information that will strengthen your supporters’ argument.

Avoiding Loss

• This is where it gets clever, albeit counter-intuitive.
• Canadian research shows that most people want to hang on to things they might lose than to gain things they haven’t got.
• Instead of “do this and good things will happen” “don’t do this and bad things will happen” is much more effective – 3 out of 4 times the loss avoidance strategy is more successful.

 Story Telling

• Instead of dry facts, try to put the audience into the story.
• Leave some parts vague so that they can fill it in with themselves as participants.
• Play on their emotions – we inspire with feelings not just facts.

We discuss most of these elements in our presentation skills workshops.  If you want to come along to improve your presentation skills, give me a call!