By | Pearl Nash | hackspirit.com
You have a leadership position of some sort, or maybe you’re a central part of your circle of friends.
Either way, you want to shape your group in the best possible way you can.
Clearly, communication has a lot to do with being influential. And even subtle mistakes can cause offense or lead to resentment.
Thankfully, you’re about to find out what they are, so you can make sure to avoid them.
Watch out for these 7 subtle communication mistakes that limit your influence.
1) Giving direct orders rather than asking questions
As a leader, you may be in a position to give people orders. This by definition means you already have some influence over others.
But the way you do it can either increase or limit your influence.
In the famous book How to Win Friends and Influence People, one of the tips that Dale Carnegie gives is to present orders as questions.
So instead of saying “make that presentation for me, and send it by the end of the day”, you can ask “How about prioritizing the presentation next?”
Of course, this may depend on your group dynamics, personality, and the communication style of your team members.
However, this will help the person feel like you’re working with them and value their input too.
