How to persuade your Boss for your ideas

Persuading your boss for your ideas is a very important skill and people do it on a competition basis at a workplace. The idea may not be as great as your colleague but still you have an edge over your colleague if you could persuade your boss for your idea. You have to know the art of selling. You've got to be able to convince someone of your product, your work, your service, your idea.

Want to know how to easily convince your boss for your ideas? In today's world people are becoming increasingly skeptical and difficult to convince. Yet your persuasion skills are vital when it comes to practically any success in the world whether at work or in relationships. You need to know the laws of persuasion for success in anything from asking for a raise to making your ideas heard by the world. Your words will be worth much more if you know exactly how to convince someone using these three laws of persuasion.

Law of Consistency:

If you say one thing one day and come out with something completely different the next, or if your actions just don't match your words your words will soon carry very little value when it comes to how to convince someone. People like consistency because it gives them a stable reference point for judging what you're all about. Consistency is particularly important in the workplace. If you are an observant listener you can use the law of consistency to your advantage. When a colleague says something about a certain idea that is what you want to hear, remember that quote. People are unlikely to want to be seen as going back on their words. If you are smart you can make the law of consistency work for you.

Use power language:

Words like experiment, test, pilot, trial, or prototype work like magic. You can minimize the risk when labeling your effort a test or pilot because tests are designed to be learned from, to be imperfect, to fail. In fact, when you run a test or trial, you win regardless of the outcome. For example, an office manager in a mid-sized office proposed to do the work of a clerk rather than incur the expense of hiring a new person. In exchange, he negotiated a 30 percent increase to be paid in a monthly bonus. He banked on the boss's concern about keeping the headcount low, and also presented the idea as a two-month trial, arguing that if the work was too much, he would be the first to call off the trial. His boss bought the idea in less than 10 minutes.

Do Research:

Do research. It's generally a good idea to avoid asking for money right away. Instead, propose doing a little research first. Ask for approval to call another department or company to get particulars on their program. It's usually easier for the boss to approve spending time than spending money.

Keep it Short and Simple:

This is not the time to bore the boss(es) with all the details of your project. Give them the highlights and, if they ask for detail, have it ready. Many teams use the storyboard concept popularized by Walt Disney: have a simple chart for each major step of the project and conclusions the team made. Then quickly walk the managers through the charts - so they get the flow and feel of the project.

Practice:

Do a dry-run or walk-through of the presentation. If possible, have another person watch the walk-through and give feedback. Make adjustments as necessary.