How mastering the art of persuasion can help you progress in career

The professional world bristles with conversation. More often than not, we are locked in arguments with clients, customers, supervisors, colleagues, partners, team leaders and investors over making decisions and in these dynamic scenarios, the writing is on the wall - either we convince, or are convinced by others. Taking control of your professional trajectory thus requires a lot of convincing and persuading. Persuasive skills in fact, go beyond the concerns of making people see your vision but also bolster organizational strength and are crucial for influencing the direction your company takes. Persuasion, in the professional domain thus merits an unpacking.

Most significantly, persuasiveness has emerged as a key managerial virtue and is fundamentally linked to soft power capabilities. To think of it in the most rudimentary of ways, persuasion has to do with building equations with people through effective communication and making them believe the rationale of your suggestion. It is fundamental to taking people along with you in your mission and garnering support for your endeavour. This can translate into extraordinary outcomes at the modern workplace, as persuasion can become crucial to make employees believe in the vision of the company, convince superiors, make leadership effective and meaningful, boost team cohesiveness, engagement and productivity and clinch gains for the organisation in interaction with external entities.

The other worthy aspect of persuasion lies in its ability to employ soft power. Commanding, controlling and instructing have become obsolete and has elicited unenthusiastic and critical responses from employees. In a study conducted by Egon Zehnder, 79 per cent of respondents said that a company could only undergo successful transformation if the person at the helm also engaged in self-renewal. The study, summed up by Christina Kestel, also remarked that today's ideal CEO is less authoritative and more 'open and curious' and 'a better team player.' In such a circumstance, persuasion, instead of coercion, can effectively transform individual employees into team members who are committed to the company's progress and make leadership meaningful and authentic.

So, how do we become more persuasive in our professional settings? This multifaceted journey requires a great degree of self-reflection, training and confidence-building. To start with, your research must be impeccable, with facts and figures, alongside a conclusive rationale to convince stakeholders to follow your design. By demonstrating knowledge and expertise, you become immediately credible and through logical argument, you can win popular approval. Secondly, specific detail to what is in an endeavour for the company at large and for employees and other involved actors is a key element of persuasive effort. Instead of making a drab and impersonal presentation, it is worthwhile to link every professional pitch to what it means for the company and its ideals and how it impacts individuals in the organization vis-á-vis their current positions, work hours, particular expertises and skills and other related factors. Once these two formative bases are covered, it is important to understand the nuances of being persuasive. Persuasion requires tremendous self-awareness and empathy. It is essential to know what you stand for and where you are coming from. At the same time, you must understand that everyone views the world differently. Since the workplace is dynamic, you might meet questions in the face of a plan. Knowing yourself better is the first line of self-defense in this regard, since mere questioning would not ruffle your integrity. Simultaneously, empathy allows for a flexibility crucial to leading, or working in a team, where instead of discarding the ideas of others, you choose to work with them and include multiple perspectives in your final plan of action.

Finally, being persuasive in the longer run also requires being open to being persuaded. Credibility is built through consensus, which shall remain in your favour if you are perceived as rational instead of domineering and democratic instead of dogmatic. A good leader or colleague has high emotional intelligence and is an active listener, who can concede when necessary and this precise manoeuvre establishes his commitment to purpose.

On the whole, persuasion is a powerful and necessary skill to have in today's professional universe. From making crucial interventions to making leadership genuine to beckoning a direction for your organization, it involves and deploys the most significant aspects of being a true professional. Persuasiveness is leading without commanding and charting a path built through agreement and consensus for necessary change, and it is time to embrace the virtues it carries.

(The author is Chief Impact Officer at Recykal Foundation)