John C. Maxwell has a very inspiring story for you about winning friends and influencing people.
You can be sure that influence has a lot to do with leadership. And there is no one more experienced in the field of leadership than John Maxwell. He is a great leader, appreciated all over the world. But Maxwell is not just the person who has a lot of knowledge. He is also the best teacher you can imagine and he has his own methods available to share the vast knowledge with you.
He is the one you should listen to if you really want to know how to win friends and influence people.
John Maxwell, on his Leadership Wired blog, tells you a wonderful Jackie Robinson story. He is the first African American to play Major League Baseball. The great story of the player, who was not afraid to break the color barrier in baseball, is the main plot of the Harrison Ford movie “42”.
You see, the life of Jackie Robinson offers valuable insight into the nature of influence. He can be quite influential when he knows how to get involved in something big and important. Maxwell tries to test the idea that leadership begins with the ability to participate. Harry A. Overstreet put it this way:
“The very essence of all power of influence lies in getting the other person to participate”
Leadership is extremely rewarding, but it’s also incredibly overwhelming to feel the weight of responsibility. Can you imagine how much pressure Jackie Robinson must have felt to perform well on behalf of everyone in the hope that his success would further the cause of racial equality in America? Jackie knew that he would have to know how to win friends and influence people to be successful. He was aware of the taste of responsibility.
When it comes to the topic of influence in leadership, you have to remember all the time that influence with others is either positive or negative. And if you really want to know how to win friends and influence people, you have to choose the positive side of being influential.
You know, the wonderful player Robinson had no doubt that he should have been focused on adding value to others.
It’s the only effective way to stay on top of how to win friends and influence the people in your life.
The feeling of being influential always starts in your heart and head. It grows within you and then you are ready to take this feeling to the outside world. When you want to be sure how to win friends and influence people, you have to decide who you are and what you stand for. Then it is much easier to have a positive influence.
I’m sure Booker T. Washington learned his lesson on winning friends and influencing people by saying these words:
“There is no power on earth that can neutralize the influence of a high, simple and useful life”