Law of Influence

Law #2 of John Maxwell's The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership is:
The Law of Influence: The True Measure of Leadership is Influence – Nothing More, Nothing Less

This law tells us that if you don’t have influence, you will never be able to lead others. Maxwell notes that leadership is NOT mere titles and reviews 5 myths about leadership…5 positions that many often assume equate to leadership [but do not necessarily]:

1. The Management Myth- “Leadership is about influencing people to
follow; management focuses on maintaining systems and processes…
...Managers maintain direction…Leaders create change.”
2. The Entrepreneur Myth- Entrepreneurs are “skilled at seeing
opportunities and going after them,” BUT they are not necessarily good with people
and thus may not have the necessary influence to lead.
3. The Knowledge Myth- He gives examples of college research
scientists, who are absolutely brilliant…but not leaders. While knowledge is
important for good leadership, knowledge does not equal leadership.
4.The Pioneer Myth- “To be a leader, a person has to not only be
out front, but also have people intentionally coming behind him, following his
lead, and acting on his vision.’
5. The Position Myth- “It’s not the position that makes the leader;
it’s the leader that makes the position.” [Stanley Huffty]

Maxwell then discusses what leadership IS. He lists some leadership factors important in distinguishing those who emerge as leaders and others who are unable to lead despite trying.
- Character- Who They Are- True leadership always begins
with the inner person.
- Relationships- Who They Know- The deeper the
relationships, the stronger the potential for leadership.
- Knowledge- What They Know- Without knowledge, no one can
become a leader.
- Intuition- What They Feel- Leaders have the ability to
deal with intangibles like energy, morale, timing and momentum.
- Experience- Where They’ve Been- Experience encourages
people to give you a chance to prove your ability.
- Past Success- What They’ve Done- Having/building a good
track record gives people reason to trust your leadership ability.
- Ability- What They Can Do- People want to know their
leader will lead them to victory.

Applying the Law Influence to Your Life
1. Which of the above myths have you bought into? Why? What does this say about your perception of leadership? What must you change in your thinking to make you more open to improving your skills?
2. Which of the above leadership factors do you rely on most to influence others? Rate yourself on a scale from 1 [not a factor] to 10 [you rely on it continually]. -How can you optimize those factors with lower scores?
3. Try to lead in a volunteer organization….It is here that you will learn to lead through influence [since you really have no other leverage]. If you are a connect group leader…you are already doing this!! Yeah!

Reference:
Maxwell, John. The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership: Chapter 1- The Law of The Lid. Thomas Nelson, Nashville, TN; 2007