John Maxwell wrote that we will each influence on average 10,000 people in our lifetime. That’s a crazy big number. I can easily understand how someone like Maxwell could influence that number and even many more. However, the sociologists who shared the statistic say it’s just the average Joe who has this type of swagger. Sounds ridiculous?
Processing Influence…
Will you influence other people? Absolutely. We all do. The question is HOW you will influence them. Here we find the most valuable consequence of influence… the ability to create positive change.
The secret to change is not resisting what we’re called to leave behind, it is the burning desire to build upon what is new. (Click To Tweet)
How did I get on this gravy train anyway?
The new year brings many people to some desired change, even if it is temporary. How do we as leaders muster up change… or, effectively, process influence? And so January began and I got to thinking about this…
The more I read the more intrigued I became. It seems two of the key ways to create or “process” influence are:
– Inspiration. When we share certain values or ideals, we can process influence by inspiring other people. If you follow me around on social media you are well aware this is a favorite activity of mine… sharing the stuff that I find inspiring. Inspiration is also a long-standing category here at I’m Just Thinkin’ – we call it “Soul Food.” All good stuff!
– Relationships. Remember All Sorts And Conditions Of People: The 7 Essentials Of Extraordinary Relationships. Yep a relationship book written by yours truly. I am fascinated by people, personalities and the dynamics of relationships – be it at work, within a family, or when we socially engage. We influence the people around us, even those we casually encounter at the grocery store or gas station.
Inspiration and relationships… is this all sounding familiar now?
“Blessed is the influence of one true, loving human soul on another.” George Elliot
On a related note I wanted to give you a heads up on a change here at my blog: I have turned off comments.
Why?
Great question!
Here’s my take on the evolution of comments and influence:
– Comments were once thought of as a measure of the success of a blog. I started to wonder about this a couple of years ago… and so I changed some things around. Sure enough, others are dancing to the tune of the same drum. While comments afford a venue to build community, they are being replaced by interaction on social media. This is happening for a few reasons, but the important point is this: I appreciate community (remember I write a category that includes “unity”) and hope to continue to hear your feedback and carry forward conversation. My readership continues to grow and for that I’m very thankful. However, for the most part, my readers both loyal and sporadic, by and large don’t leave comments… and I’m ok with that. Think of it this way: would you rather have someone comment on your blog or share your post on FB or Twitter? I’ve been thinking the latter for some time now. It’s the mere circumstance of exposure. Seth Godin never had comments on his blog (He seems to be a pretty sharp guy). Are you catching my drift?
As a side note to all this I can’t even tell you how many books that Thomas Nelson Publishers and others provided to me in advance of their release. I gladly returned the favor by writing a review of them and graciously giving them to friends. All through that process we built influence and community. It was a win for everyone involved. That opportunity is still available to up and cummers. What comes around goes around…
– This has been a long time coming for me (pulling the comments). As I mentioned there are other like-minded writers… you can read about Michael Hyatt’s reasons here. While I successfully eliminated electronic or robot-generated comment spam from my world years ago, I still get them. When Michael says his 10 minutes a day culling the spam amounts to 60 hours a year… I’m getting on-board (though I don’t spend even that much time on mine). When friends ask me about the spam issue, “why do you get them?” there are only two scenario’s here… it really goes back to processing influence… remember, Jesus told us we would face resistance in the world today.
“Conversations matter. That doesn’t mean comments sections are the best place to have them.” Michael Hyatt
Influence is important and conversations matter. Curating a sense of community is important to anyone who chooses to be an agent to invoke positive change.
So we’ll continue to have the conversations…
Thanks for your interest in my writing. I hope you will continue to stop by to read here then share and discuss my content on social media.
Question: What do you think about “processing influence” and blogs without comments? You can share your thoughts on Facebook, Twitter and Linkedin.
Image courtesy of James Willamor on Flickr.com
