Start With Currencies, Not Titles
Identify the currency driving a stakeholder before making a request.
Influence starts when you understand what the other person is protecting. What to notice first Cohen and Bradford call influence a matter of exchange, not status. People back work when it helps them protect or gain something they care about. In practice, the most common currencies are workload relief, lower risk, visible credit, access to information, stronger relationships, autonomy, and confidence that the change will not blow up in their hands. When you miss the currency, you usually become louder, more repetitive, or more political. None of those fix the actual problem. When you are leading across peers, the first…
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