Fed up of feeling powerless at work and want to know how to be more powerful? Whilst traditionally most people have thought power is achieved only by those at the top of the organisation, there are other ways you can gain power no matter what level you are at. In fact, according to Ted Jenkin’s, there are four ways to achieve power within an organisation and only one is based on where you sit in the hierarchy. Keep on reading to find out what the other three ways are and understand how you can gain more power at work.
POWER OF POSITION
This is the traditional way of thinking of having power. The higher up you move in a company the more power you have. Therefore, if you want more power due to your position then you need to look at how you can expand your current role or how you can put yourself forward for a promotion.
POWER OF EXPERTISE
Specialists in their field or industry have power at all stages. The more expertise you have the more power you will have during initial hiring negotiations. If a company wants you for your expertise then you will have more power to meet your needs. Then once you are in a company having an expertise will make you a valuable member of a team. If you are a “go-to” source then you can become invaluable to the company and therefore have more power.
Power of expertise also works outside of a work or corporate environment. As a freelancer or business owner being an expert will enable you to have the power to charge higher fees.
If you feel like your expertise isn’t as strong as is it would be do something about it. You can take extra trainings, get a mentor or even create a case studies that demonstrate your expertise. Do anything that helps to increase your expertise and demonstrates your expertise to others.
POWER OF CONNECTIONS
Your network can increase your power. In some industries, people are hired purely for their ‘little black book’ and whilst it might not be as explicitly discussed in your industry there is no doubt that if you are connected to the right people this will make you more powerful.
If you feel like your connections are letting you down then you need to start networking. Get intentional about what connections you need in your life for more power. Do you need to know industry leaders? Do you need better connections with senior leaders in your company? Would it be beneficial to have better relationships with current and future clients? Work out which type of people would help increase your power of connections and then get networking.
POWER OF PERSONAL AUTHORITY
Personal authority or charisma is based on how you connect and inspire others. There are some people who are able to persuade people to believe in what they are saying and to follow their lead. This is a power that can happen at any level, but is most commonly associated with people in positions of power.
If you would like to increase your level of power through personal authority then you need to look at how to be more charismatic and have more gravitas. A great book to help you with this is Gravitas by Caroline Goyder. This was the book of the month for PropelHer’s Book Club in June 2018 and you can check out my review of the book here.
