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The ability to influence and persuade people is an important skill to have in the business world. Whether you hope to convince your boss for a raise or are speaking to an audience of thousands, you want to be able to help spread your ideas and get your message across. There are many resources available to help you build on this skill, but often times the hardest part about following their advice is coming across as genuine. There are people, however, to whom these skills come naturally. Are you a born influencer? Here are some ways to tell.

Effective Communication

A natural influencer understands the importance of effective communication. You are able to take in information and supply it to others without distortion. People often come through you to figure out what is going on because you are the kind of person who can keep track of what everyone is doing. What sets you apart from others is that you offer genuine information without putting it through the filter of gossip. What you know and offer helps others to achieve their goals. 

Just Enough Information

In today’s age, information is power, but can too much be a bad thing? Yes! Too much information confuses others. As a born influencer, you regulate how much you tell with the intent to reduce your counterpart’s confusion, thereby allowing them to make important decisions. This ability to know just how much information to divulge makes people better at persuasion, according to research from USC. Giving someone too much information without discernment might just give them the wrong message instead. 

High Performance

While you’re focused on achieving your own goals, you may not realize that you have an influence on others. As brain scientists from Oxford have found, high performers can encourage others within the same job area to participate more in making the group succeed. These other group members start to reassess their own performance to that of the high performer. This is especially true when the high performer is humble. 

Attractiveness

This doesn’t mean that you have to be beautiful for people to listen to you. The qualities that make people attractive tend to include honesty, helpfulness, kindness, intelligence, and humor. Being sincere and hardworking helps people feel more confident in following your lead.