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Personal Development | Inspiration
The Power of Your Influence
You have far more influence than you realize
Are you aware of how influential you are? Whether you realize it or not, you have influenced every person you have ever met, and they have likewise influenced you. But how does this happen, and what results from it? Read on to learn more!
Influence
How aware are you that you affect everyone you connect to with every word you speak and everything you do? Yes, everything you say and do in the presence of others affects them. You are not only affecting them; you are conditioning them as well.
Who you are and how you show up results from how you think. How you think determines your demeanor, every word you speak, and every move you make. How you think is the core of who you are and determines how you come across to others. I came upon this line of thought the other day when I read the following quote:
“Read not books alone, but men, and amongst them chiefly thyself.” Francis Quarles (1592–1644)
Quarles’ words made me consider how we are affected by everyone we see and how they condition us during each interaction. Of course, this goes both ways as they are also affected and conditioned by every person they see, including us.
What factors into influence?
Your thoughts create who and how you are around others, but how do you affect them? By your demeanor (attitude), what you say, and your actions.
Your attitude influences everyone around you, whether you speak a word or not. You pick up much information by observing how people look and move.
A 1967 study claims that 55% of communication is in our body language, 38% is in our tone of voice, and only 7% is in our actual words! Also developed around this time was something called the 60/40 formula. This formula represents the importance of our facial (60%) and vocal (40%) components, which determine how others perceive your attitude.
Such studies show you communicate a great deal without speaking a word. Notice how little the words themselves add to your communication! Is it any wonder you affect and…
