Influential Leadership

Achieve greater results through negotiation and influence

Colin Gautrey is an author, trainer, and executive coach who has specialized in the field of power and influence for over ten years. He combines solid research with deep personal experience in corporate life to offer his audiences critical yet simple insights into how to achieve results with greater influence. Colin adopts a highly ethical approach to influence and encourages those he works with to find practical ways to build trust, foster collaboration, and gain mutually beneficial results.

Colin is a GREAT example of making business personal – in a good way! He has been a great friend and colleague to me and I am so excited to share our discussion with you all. You know what we have to do next… go back to the basics. 

What Did You Want to Be When You Grew Up?

Little did I know that this question would be a challenge for Colin and make him go down memory lane… Oops! Growing up, college was unheard of for Colin in his working-class family. With all the possibilities of what he COULD be, knowing what he wanted to be was confusing. Isn’t it ridiculous that you have to pick just one path? Colin’s big pivot was when he… made people start to sweat. Wait, what!? 

Yep. You heard right. Colin realized he had the ability to challenge individuals and make them think differently and get the results they wanted. It might sound funny, but he knew he was on to something. Our conversation today proved just that. (Listen here or keep reading!)
 

Call the BS

We all have it. The mind trash that we have a tendency to fill ourselves up with and allow it to hinder us. Call yourself out and call your own BS! Stop making assumptions about or for other people. Ask them directly. Make the implicit, explicit. Until you’ve got a firm fix on what the other side is trying to achieve, anything you say or do is like shooting in the dark. When you know the reality, you can move forward with confidence. Are you gambling on an agreement? Pressure test the yes.
 

COVID Curveball

Everything has changed with COVID. It has upended business, approaches, and mindsets to work. As the dust settles, it has become evident that people are latching on to the benefits that COVID provided. Companies that have survived to this point, will survive. The frontrunners will begin to establish and reposition what tomorrow looks like for businesses.

Creating the Future

The past can only tell us how we got here. To create the future you’ve got to make it backward.

Nevermind what has gone before. In planning forward, you have to consider your ultimate goal and work back to your starting point and where you are now. Selling your services, selling yourself, and putting your skin in the game all contribute to creating your future. 
 

Cultivating Critical Changes 

The ability to be able to take seriously radical perspectives will become crucial as we move forward. It is important to take in a variety of different thoughts and ideas. This requires an emotional psychological skill to step aside and get rid of your preconceived notions. (This can be hard, but is definitely worth it!) Certainty is created by the frontrunner. Tap into that creativity and assist in shaping the reality for others. Grab the attention of the other runners.

The Takeaway: If people can begin to develop independent hearts and minds and cultivate critical thinking then the world will be a better place. Refocus. Reenergize. Rejuvenate.