Colin Gautrey

Igniting Your Ambition

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"If you were really talented, you wouldn't need to be here, and you wouldn't need us." This is how I opened the first event of a group of our company's brightest and best, joining our top talent development programme. To say my colleagues on the organising team were shocked was an understatement. Not to mention the jolt it gave the audience. Not what they were expecting. Although this was many years ago, the principle still resonates with me. My belief is that really talented people are extremely good at developing themselves. They are highly motivated, have a good Read More

Dismantling Power Bases: Proceed with Caution

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No, this is not a second coming of Niccolò Machiavelli. It is just that sometimes it is prudent to take action to remove powerful opposition – for all the right reasons. When this is on the agenda with coaching clients, what we are doing is evolving a clear strategy and plan of action to substantially shift power towards them. This means that others will lose a significant amount of power when my client succeeds. Which means, the stakes are high. If you think this is something you should do, bear in mind the main pros and cons. Read More

An Audience with Your New Boss

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Bosses generally don't tend to stick around too long these days, and those who do, you probably wish they didn't. Frequently, bosses, being ambitious types, get promoted or move on to more exciting opportunities. That's if they are good. If they are not so clever, they get fired or choose to spend more time with their family. Regardless of why they go, their departure means that you are going to have a new boss to work for. People commonly approach this event with a Read More

I’m Right, You’re Wrong: Influence Undercurrents

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There is a particularly unhelpful undercurrent flowing beneath the surface of many influencing attempts. Over the last few weeks I have spoken to many people. It is part of my research into the challenges that are holding people back from success. In many of them, I am getting the feeling that they hold the opinion that the person they wish to influence is wrong. For example, Jane. She wanted to know how to influence her boss, Lukas. She wanted him to support a particular project she was desperate to get off the ground. Jane took me through the rational argument. It was a no-brainer, "Why doesn't he get it? It's obvious we should do it!" As we talked I could feel Read More

Responding to Unrealistic Demands

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We've all been there. You get a call (or more likely an email) requesting that you do something immediately, or within an impossibly short space of time. Alternatively, they may be asking for something that you simply do not have the resources to be able to deliver. Many times, these requests feel more like orders — people demanding that you do things without giving a thought to what else you have on your plate. In these situations, it is all too easy to react emotionally — especially if the definition of "unrealistic" is stretched to the extreme. Your plans for the day are thrown off course, other people may be let down, and those people may be your loved ones. No surprise that you may feel angry or frustrated by the lack of consideration shown by the person making the demand. If you're struggling to respond to Read More

How to Make Your Agenda Powerful

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While running a webinar for Warwick Business School in 2016, something quite unexpected happened.  This particular event ran quite soon after the publication of Influential Leadership: A Leader's Guide to Influence. It was the first opportunity that I had had to ask a large group of people to identify the sources of power they were currently using. As they placed their marks on my virtual slide, something very interesting emerged. Hardly any of them indicated Agenda as a source of power they used. This helped me to realise that the Power of Agenda is a massive opportunity for those who want to grow and develop their career, regardless of their level of experience and seniority. Let me back up a little. When writing Influential Leadership, I put a great deal of energy into researching and analysing what makes people Read More

Five Reasons Why You Should Use More Force

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Influence by force is common, especially in the workplace. You may be thinking that it is odious and should not form a part of your influencing approach. Yet, used in the right way, and in the right circumstances, it can dramatically accelerate your progress. The purpose of this article is to make you stop and think for a moment. I'd like you to recognise the potential, think about the pros and cons, and then learn how to make careful and shrewd choices about your choice of influencing tactic. Let's start with the reasons why you should at least consider Read More

Deconstructing Self-Confidence

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A topic which comes up time and again in workshops is that of confidence, or rather, lack of it. If you fail to demonstrate your confidence when attempting to influence others, it is likely that you will fail. Why should someone agree with you when they notice the tell-tale signs of your lack of confidence? Perhaps you’re not telling the truth or hiding something. Maybe you don’t believe they should be saying yes to your request. And, you know these lack of confidence signs too. You can probably spot someone who lacks self-confidence a mile off. However, noticing when you are displaying these clues is much harder, partly because at the time when you lack confidence you will be stressed and thinking about a million other things. Fidgeting, hesitating, over-talking, avoiding eye contact and many other signals can all suggest Read More

How Credible Is Your Expertise?

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I've lost count of the number of times someone has told me that they are an expert. Expertise is an extremely potent source of power and influence, especially when it is in high demand and comes from a credible source. Little wonder that everyone wants to be an expert. Credibility is an internal system of judgement we apply to a source of information which helps us to assess its quality and reliability. We will take more notice of a source which appears credible. The criteria for credibility will vary from person to person based on their experience of the subject matter and of life in general. So you need to think carefully about how you are establishing your credibility ― and this is as important to people working inside large organisations as it is to external consultants. When I am coaching someone in this area, I like to stretch and challenge. If someone says they are an expert, I like to see how they answer questions Read More

The Dangers of Integrity

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Before publishing this article, I sent it to a couple of friends. One reacted strongly, telling me I was wrong. I'm just pleased he proved my point entirely! We all applaud people of integrity, don't we? Those who have a well-developed sense of right and wrong: strong values which they apply consistently in their lives. These people become highly trustable because they are reliable. My guess is that we are all still "work in progress" when it comes to integrity, mainly because we are all still learning. Each new experience contributes to our understanding of the world and how to live in it. Values nudge forward and are evolving within us all the time, even if we don't realise it. Yet every step Read More

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