5 Influencing Styles and Ways to Identify Your Own

Knowing how to influence others can be a critical part of any business. You tend to influence everyone around you, either in a positive or a negative manner. Since initial impressions last long and you get only one opportunity to create it, you need to be at the top of your game. However, before you go on to influence others, you need to be aware of the different influencing styles. This article discusses the five prominent influencing styles and a guide for identifying your own style.    

1. Rationalizing  

If you are trying to win over someone who is analytic, you must develop a rationalizing style of influencing. This style involves using reasoning and logic. When communicating with a logical thinker, you must lead with supporting data, objective facts, and information. This can make you come across as a subject-matter expert. Suppose you find that the person you are talking to uses sources to back their information and takes a more logical approach to the conversation. In that case, you must shift to the rationalizing style of influencing. This is one of the influencing styles that can make you come across as confident while impacting the listener in a manner that establishes trust.       

2. Asserting 

This is one of those influencing styles that help you motivate or apply pressure on someone. Assertive influencing skills are used by confident and convincing people. Usually, people pay attention to those speaking with power and confidence. Influencing skills like these do not need to be backed by data. Instead, it uses a direct approach and positions the speaker as an expert to influence others.

The assertive style of influencing is particularly effective in a hierarchal system where what you are and what you say are the only influencing factors. To create meaningful networks by establishing yourself as an expert, you need to develop this influencing style. In addition to being influenced, people will also look up to you and want to establish a professional connection with you.   

3. Negotiating 

Positive and negative negotiation influencing skills can help you find common ground, making both parties happy and thereby influencing one’s confidence level. A negotiating influencing style can be effective in situations where there is no right way or some conflicts. Such influencing skills can make others agree with you while convincing them that their needs are met.  

If you are interacting with people who possess different interests or ideas, the negotiating style helps you come across as open. This can help you create several opportunities as others will find you as someone who is willing to listen to them. Hence, a negotiating style can keep both parties happy and content.       

4. Inspiring 

Inspiring is one influencing skill that employs motivational words to get others to act. People are often motivated and encouraged by others’ success. Hence, you can easily win over others by sharing your past experiences or future ideas. Inspiring influencing skills can also help find a common vision or goal and motivate them to work together.  

This style can also be impactful when collaborating with someone who shares similar interests. It helps develop meaningful connections by working towards a common goal. Since people like to feel good about themselves while working towards something, you can easily make them feel good by adopting the inspiring influencing style.    

Read Also: Women Leaders Inspire Change Through Learning

5. Bridging 

The final influencing style is bridging, which can help you build connections between people. This style can make people feel seen and noticed. From asking questions to listening to answers to finding common ground, this style can help you bridge the gap with almost anyone. Such influencing skills can draw people in by creating connections and building relationships in places where there were none. It can also help establish meaningful relationships by making people feel included and valued.   

The bridging style can also enable you to bring together other people and helps them build meaningful relationships with each other. And since both parties are likely to associate the connection with you, it can cement your image as an influential person in their lives.  

How To Identify Your Influencing Style 

In order to know how to influence others, you need to know yourself first. Self-assessment is the first step toward analyzing your influencing style. These are some of the most prominent characteristics that can help one identify your influencing styles.    

• If you are analytical in your approach and like to support your vision with facts and data, then you employ the rationalizing style of influencing.  
• If you are straightforward in your approach and your confidence motivates and inspires others, then you use the assertive influencing style.  
• If you are a strong collaborator, like to take care of multiple interests, accommodate different voices and strive for harmony, then you have the negotiating influencing style.  
• Suppose you are a compelling speaker or like using stories and comparisons to make others understand complex concepts, offer encouragement or instill a feeling of common purpose. In that case, you operate the inspiring style of influencing.  
• If you can draw on the connections of friends and coworkers or like bringing people together, you likely possess the bridging style of influencing. This style can help you reach a consensus by inviting the concerned stakeholders into your conversations.  

Effective influencing styles can help you build trust, create meaningful networks and enhance your confidence. However, you must practice self-assessment if you wonder how to influence others. Therefore, these pointers can help you know yourself and your influencing skills.