How to Influence Your Boss and Lead Up
Recently, my 8th-grader shared about an assignment his teacher gave the class. They were to write an essay response to a reading they had done. The 5 paragraph essay was due on a Friday. The problem? The teacher had admittedly forgotten to tell the class about it Monday and assigned it Wednesday instead.
The next day, when I asked about how the progress on the essay was going, my son explained that the teacher revised the due-date to the following week. I assumed his teacher made the adjustment on his own, figuring the kids would need more time. But my son gently corrected me and explained that he simply asked the teacher if the class could have an extension on the due date. When my son spoke up in class, his peers all agreed and the teacher made the accommodation like it was no problem at all.
✋Friends, let’s just take a second and realize what a big deal this is.
one person being willing to spot a problem and ask a simple question
another person of authority being willing to meet the need and adjust
one change made that impacted roughly 20 students (not to mention their parents)
Did you know you can actually influence decisions that aren’t yours to make? It’s called leading up.
When it comes to leadership, we often think change trickles down, but that’s actually only true in terms of management.
Consider the concept of management in a traditional working environment: Management is linear… you have a boss, they give a directive, and as their subordinate, you agree to the directive, regardless of opinion, because it’s your job to do so (in most cases).
However… LEADERSHIP is different. In leadership, you can influence changes from wherever you sit; you just have to know how.
Here’s how to make the biggest impact with your influence
Listen and learn - don’t just try to change things because you don’t like them. A good listener seeks to understand the whole picture. Leaders are learners first.
Ask WHY questions - the why behind any direction is the core foundation of the decision. If you want to influence change, you must know the why.
Come up with solutions - The last thing your manager (or insert any person of authority here) wants to hear about are your complaints. You don’t like the way something is done? Figure out how to make it better.
psst… Check out this instagram post where I speak on this very topic over at The Brave Collective. Give us a follow too, if you’re interested in professional development resources, career tips, and leadership advice for Christian women in business.
