Earning the Right to Be Heard

Book excerpt: This is your practical, step-by-step guide to selling ideas, building influence, and growing opportunities in the most effective manner possible. What causes decision-makers to really listen to what you have to say? It can be very frustrating when the gatekeepers to your personal and professional success seem disinterested in your thoughts and suggestions. You can’t assume that good ideas will yield positive results, nor that a strong desire will enable you to surmount all obstacles and objections. You have to understand the decision-making process—the psychology behind why people say “yes” to some propositions and not others—and use this information to motivate the right people to take action. In this book, you will learn how to earn the right to be heard, as well as how to use your newfound influence to get more of what you want. Communication, persuasion, and negotiation do not have to be mysterious processes—all you have to do is package your ideas in a way that ensures key players will not only respond favorably to your advice, but seek it out in the future. Earning the Right to Be Heard offers the time-tested information, tools, and techniques for mastering the art of building influence, including how to: captivate your audience and set the stage for communication success demonstrate your credibility and competence anticipate, and prepare compelling responses to, the questions all decision-makers must have answered inspire action by convincing others to adopt your perspective maximize your impact through follow-up and results analysis Let Earning the Right to Be Heard help you discover the sweet spot of strategic communication so that you can gain respect and authority, attract more professional opportunities, and become a decision-maker yourself.