Energy Bar Resources
Resources to help engage and influence
Do you need to get others interested in your important idea? Or, maybe gain their support for a critical project? Or, maybe you need to influence a group of stakeholders in an upcoming presentation?
Start with the Energy Bar
Watch the 3-minute video to learn how to use The Energy Bar. The Energy Bar is a leadership pocket tool for use as both a starting point for gaining support and influencing a person or group, and as a management tool to keep your project on track. (Feel free to also use it as a team in meetings and planning sessions.)
Once you know where the energy is for your particular challenge, scroll below through the Energy Bar Resource Center, where you will find common challenges matched with lots of helpful resources.
Challenges
Not sure where their
energy is today?
If you need people to be interested, willing to try something, or be strong supporters, find out where their energy is today in three areas where their energy could signal support or resistance. Watch the video below about “the list”, then read the Magic List.
You need them to be interested, but they are grumbling.
Grumbling makes it harder to get your point across or even to find out who might be supporting you. If this description fits, then turn to the resources below for help. Begin with the video which shares the story of a group of extremely smart people who were able to put their egos aside and learn from each other.
You need their support,
but they strongly oppose.
This score is the most challenging. Your energy is moving one way, and the person you are trying to influence is moving in the opposite direction. There are no quick, easy fixes for this situation, but if you are willing, there are steps you can take to change this situation.
You’ve gotten people interested, but now you need them to take action.
The good news is you’ve got them interested in your idea or project. Now, you face the challenge of getting them to take action, so your idea can become a reality. Start by finding out why they are interested.
You need them to try out your idea, but they’re not interested.
You probably need people to be willing to give your idea a chance—pitch in, offer feedback, try it out, and just generally go along with the change. The problem is they aren’t interested. Your idea doesn’t trouble them; they just don’t believe it affects them. Their lack of interest could hinder your progress.
People don’t think your idea affects them.
People don’t believe that this idea or change affects them. They aren’t against you, they just don’t think that what you’re talking about applies to them. It might actually be something different. It could be their lack of interest really masks something deeper. While it may seem that they are sitting there, quietly bored, their opposition runs deeper, but you can’t see it since they aren’t talking.
You need strong support, but all you hear is grumbling.
You need support for your idea or project but all you get in return is grumbling. You’ve got to find out why they are grumbling. It could be that they don’t understand, or they don’t like it, or they don’t trust you or who you represent. Use these tools to turn resistance to support.
You need strong support, but no one is listening.
It can be very discouraging when you feel like no one is listening when you really need them to. There are two big reasons they may not be showing interest. Either they don’t believe it affects them or showing disinterest is safer than showing their fear or anger. There are things you need to do before you address either of these issues.
You need them to say yes when you ask for help, but they are likely to oppose.
You must find out why they are going to resist you so strongly. It’s no time for guess work, there are specific steps you need to take to learn about their reasons for such strong opposition.
You just need them to be interested, but instead you’ve got their opposition.
It’s important that this individual or group gets interested in what you’re talking about, but at the moment they are clearly opposed to your idea. If that describes the challenge you are facing, consider the following things to get started.