Ane of the skills I've had to develop over the years is the ability to influence people to embrace and accept dramatically new and unfamiliar ideas. In my first career every bit a designer, I've learned it is best to accept at least three solutions for consideration, non just 1, and to invite stakeholders early on on to participate. When people feel they have ownership of an idea, they are more likely to get onboard and become your champion.

What if you don't accept any champions yet? Try these approaches to win over your critics:

  • Seek out your nigh influential critics and get to know them.Invite them to lunch or coffee on a ane-to-ane basis and attempt to understand their perspectives. As Cicero said over 2000 years ago, "If yous wish to persuade me, yous must think my thoughts, feel my feelings, and speak my language. You tin can also try reaching out to your critics' circumvolve of influence, so they might influence your critic. The of import matter is to listen and empathise.
  • Notice out what drives your critics. Left-brain thinkers want logic and reason, so you demand to build a example that appeals to their senses and mitigates their fears. Right-encephalon thinkers want to know what your large thought is, and the affect it will have (on people, the business or community).
  • Frame your offering holistically using whole-brain thinking:Draw the context (problem or opportunity) the big idea in terms of desirability, the impact of the idea in terms of viability, and the plan of activeness in terms of feasibility. I find if I can present a progressively new thought with flawless logic, I will get purchase-in, if the client sees value in information technology.

Making your pitch to an audience

John Kotter and Lorne Whitehead, authors of Buy-In: Saving Your Adept Idea from Getting Shot Downward (2010) offer these tips:

  1. When making your pitch prepare for the lions.Anticipating how opponents could attack your proposition is the first pace to existence prepared to accost them. What possible conflict of involvement (or appearance of a conflict of involvement) exercise you lot or your thought's other proponents have? What might happen if the idea is delayed? Don't scheme to go along potential opponents, even the sneakiest attackers, out of the discussion. Let them in. Let them shoot at you. Even encourage them to shoot at you!
  2. Invite your attackers in the room.Of course, ane reason to have the opposition involved is that they may find legitimate holes in your plan and help you to gear up them. But the most of import reason to bring in the opposition is to attract attention. The biggest impediment to existence heard is that your audience is probably tuned out and uninterested. Controversy piques interest; information technology engages otherwise bored, overwhelmed or distracted audience members and tells them that maybe this coming together is more than interesting than they thought it would exist. Getting others engaged, and winning them over, tin turn a "sure, why not?" vote into a "heck, yes, and what can I do to help?" vote.
  3. Proceed your answers brief and based on common sense,non bogged downwardly in details.
  4. State your case and stop. Talking the other side into submission is a risky tactic.
  5. Exist respectful at all times.Chances are y'all're not going to change the mind of someone who is adamantly opposed to yous, but if you are sufficiently respectful and knowledgeable, you stand a amend chance of winning over the undecideds, who would be turned off by sarcasm and anger.
  6. Sentry the remainder of the audience.Unless you're making your pitch to an audience of one, the others in the audience will requite a proficient indication of where you stand. Are they nodding when you talk? Do they whorl their eyes when your opponent makes a point? Are they texting or otherwise non paying attending? Keying into the balance of the room--not just your opponent(s)--tin help you adjust your presentation (or know when to cease talking).

"Making your case," say the authors, "especially in front of a hostile audition, takes both moxie and practice; but whether y'all're advocating for a practiced idea or speaking out confronting a bad ane, preparation and mutual sense are your best friends."