“One can always hire technical ability, but the person who has technical knowledge plus the ability to express ideas, to assume leadership and to arouse enthusiasm among people – that person is headed for higher earning power.” (Dale Carnegie)
Carnegie spent his entire life seeking ways to help individuals and organizations improve their performance and productivity. Not only is Dale Carnegie a legend, but his classic “How To Win Friends and Influence People,” is one of the best selling books of all time in the field of performance improvement.
One of Carnegie’s fundamental beliefs, and a theme we see in virtually all of his writings, is the value of treating everyone we meet with dignity and respect. When he talked about the link between influence and leadership, he offered advice such as:
Avoid Arguments.
Respect differing viewpoints.
When you’re wrong, admit it and move on.
Let the other person talk more than you do.
To get the best out of your people, create competition in the spirit of a desire to excel.
When you want people to do things the way you suggest, point out the benefits.
Talk about your fallibility before pointing out someone else’s.
Harnessing the power of relationships is one of the greatest skills you’ll ever develop, personally or professionally. Individual and corporate accomplishment will be measured by how effectively we manage the relationships with our family, friends, colleagues and coworkers.
Does this sound too simple to be true? Carnegie’s critics referred to his thoughts on relationship building as “simplistic hyperbole.” Too simple to be effective, said some of his scholarly detractors.
Too simple? Truth is always simple. I didn’t say easy, but fundamental truth doesn’t require a Ph.D to figure out. And, sometimes Ph.Ds don’t like that.
Tags: effective, enthusiasm, influence, knowledge, leadership, power, professional, professionally, relationships, respect, simple
