MORE CONVINCING THE DECISION MAKERS
Carson Block
GETTING THE GREEN LIGHT: SOME STRATEGIC TIPS FOR MOVING DECISION MAKERS TO “YES”
It can start like this: a compelling vision burning itself into your brain, and sometimes all the way through to your fingers on a keyboard. Or perhaps wrapped around whatever writing implement is at hand on any scrap of paper you can scrounge, including that empty fast-food bag tumbling around on the floor of your car. These moments have also been known to be captured on the proverbial cocktail napkin. The moment of inspiration doesn’t care what tools (if any) you have to capture it. It is here, by golly, and you better pay attention.
So you do. In a flash you not only see the impact you want to have, but also the route you will take. You see the potential hurdles and how to route around them. You can also clearly see what resources you need. It’s doable—it’s all doable! This can be real!
And your next thought is “If only ‘they’ would let me do this, it would change the world, or at least our library.”
It’s at this point that many incredibly great, life-altering ideas die a stillborn death. The idea of having to secure permission—and better yet support—for your idea makes you freeze in your tracks. “I get it,” you think to yourself. “My friends will get it. But how will I make them get it?” In almost diametric opposition to the passion powering your inspiration, you shrink at the thought of having to (ugh) explain its awesomeness. Your shoulders go from broad to sunken. “Maybe this isn’t such a great idea after all,” you think to yourself as you try to reconcile your great passion with the next step in bringing it to life. You are now at a point of decision that is just as important as the original inspiration. Will you go forward—or will you drop it?
Unfortunately it’s not enough to just be inspired—you also need to make it happen.
Of course, the scenario above may not reflect your own experiences. For some, moving decision makers to “yes” is a walk in the park. These people seem to be born with the skills and intestinal fortitude to consistently get their ideas on the table. If that describes you—move along citizen; there is probably nothing for you to see here. For others, though—those who need a little help in bridging inspiration with all of the actions required to make it happen—read on.
WHAT’S THE SECRET TO SUCCESS?
The secret to success in convincing decision makers isn’t as much a mystery as it is good old elbow grease. It begins with really knowing what you want to accomplish and articulating it clearly. It is brought to life through a combination of skills, strategy, technique, and endurance—and lacking any of those, single-minded and sloppy determination will do just fine. It’s more than just “selling it” but also bringing it to life. One without the other is just puffery; the two together create a promise kept.
In the pursuit of “yes,” your goal is to play cupid and help your decision maker or makers fall in love with the idea just as much as you have.
We often refer to this concept as getting someone “on board”—and I think what we most often mean by that phrase is something that goes beyond a simple acknowledgment or agreement, but a deep and shared commitment and belief in the new project, service, or effort: the sorts of commitment that will cause a decision maker to join, support, and happily embrace the entire journey from idea to execution to impact—the sort of belief that will drive your decision makers to champion your work within their circles of friends and colleagues, and evangelize your ideas in areas only they have access to.
SETTING YOUR CONTEXT
In this book, Ben Bizzle is talking about efforts involving technology and marketing in libraries—two areas that have come into our operations like a thief in the night. In the not-too-distant past, both were interesting but often considered nonessential to the library.
Today, we must start with the assumption that technology (which is just one set of tools to accomplish our goals) permeates every aspect of library operations, and that marketing (which can simply be telling our story) should be fundamental to our daily efforts.
But what if your decision makers don’t share that assumption? Having a shared understanding is essential, so if your decision makers don’t understand—or worse, don’t agree—with the role of technology and marketing in libraries, that’s where you need to start. Tread carefully here—although it’s likely that you are already immersed in these worlds; try not to assume the other person is a Luddite or out of touch with the modern world. There are legitimate reasons to be cautious about the use of technology, and some have had bad enough experiences with marketing that they consider it a four-letter word.
KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE
Let’s back up for a second. Who are your decision makers? This is a good thing to think through—and perhaps chart out. Start with your own boss, of course, but also including the library director (if the director isn’t already your supervisor), trustees, board members, city council members, and any others. Who needs to be looped in, and how? Even if your primary contact is your boss, thinking through this sphere of influence will help strategize a successful run at clearing the path for your ideas and efforts.
After getting your immediate decision maker or makers on board, a supporting strategy is thinking through what they need to solicit support from those in their circles—including their own supervisors, colleagues, constituents, and friends. Generally this includes equipping them with talking points—or simply stated concepts that help them quickly characterize and illustrate what you are doing—or what you want to do.
SMALL TALK
One approach is to think in terms of building relationships with your decision makers—and using a number of informal, casual conversations to explore the topics. In this way you can make it safe for your decision makers to share their own opinions, and create the opportunity to bring more information to the table—the sort of information they might need to really understand and get behind your efforts.
Through these conversations, your goal should be to build a shared purpose with your decision makers. Not only will you have a chance to give them more information about what you want to do—but you will also have the golden opportunity to learn about their needs, including their own vision, goals, agendas, and political pressures. Once you learn what these factors are, you can refine your approach to create the classic win-win situation.
KNOW YOUR TALKING POINTS
For the following tips, let’s say that you’re looking to get approval to use a specific social media platform to raise awareness of the library in the community. You have a key problem, though—your decision maker doesn’t use social media, and therefore doesn’t really understand it.
Your assignment is now simple—you need to help them understand the key elements of social media. Try this:
Answer these questions—in this sequence—for yourself. Challenge yourself to create concise, clear answers that any layperson can understand.
▪ What are social media, and who uses them?
▪ Why are social media important in our society?
▪ Why are libraries using social media, and how do they typically use them?
▪ Why do you want to use social media—and what do you specifically hope to accomplish?
The answers to these questions are now your talking points for your conversation—whether it happens in a series of small informal conversations, or in a single sitting—even formal ones such as trustee meetings or a presentation to your boss.
ARTICULATE CLEARLY WHAT YOUR IDEA IS AND ISN’T
This is also known as setting appropriate expectations. Even those with limited experiences with social media have heard about marketing campaigns that have “gone viral”—messages that grew from reaching just a few people and then mushroomed to millions across the globe. How often does that really happen? Maybe it’s likely in your case—and maybe it’s not—but it’s up to you to set reasonable expectations. Decision makers should understand that whether you’re creating a new website, starting a marketing campaign, or building a social media audience, results don’t happen overnight. Don’t underemphasize the importance of your idea, but don’t set yourself up for failure with unrealistic projections either.
LOVE THE HATERS
You’re likely to meet some resistance when introducing new ideas, such as social media marketing. When you encounter resistance, be sure to have a conversation with the person or people who don’t like it. Explore with them what they’re concerned about. Many times, if someone isn’t a social medium user, they don’t see how it can be an effective marketing tool. In that case, you’ll want to show some real examples of how it can be used effectively. In other cases, they might be concerned about the two-way communication social media tends to bring up. Some folks are afraid of direct feedback. Again, this is an opportunity to immerse your audience—maybe invite them to participate with you using social media if they haven’t used them before. Let them experience its value for themselves.
HAVE YOU PICKED THE RIGHT TOOL FOR THE RIGHT JOB?
To a hammer, every problem resembles a nail. Another assumption about “getting someone on board” is that his or her resistance is wrong. But actually, it may be quite right. Don’t invalidate other ideas before considering their value. We’re all capable of making mistakes or having our ideas improved upon. Always be willing to adapt, or even abandon, an idea if offered valid reasons why it won’t work.
PLANS ARE USELESS; PLANNING IS INDISPENSABLE
A final word about accomplishing goals: as someone who leads and participates in a lot of planning efforts in libraries, one of my favorite quotes comes from President Dwight D. Eisenhower: “In preparing for battle I have found that plans are useless, but planning is indispensable.” What I take from that quote is that the most important part of a plan is having the vision of what you can accomplish. The discipline involved in creating the path to the goal is also mightily important—it forces us to consider scenarios and commit to thoughts, actions, and deadlines. Sometimes, though, we find that the road we thought would get us there isn’t heading in the right direction (this is when the “plan” can be “useless”). It is okay to abandon the wrong path to pick the right one that gets you to your goal. Be flexible. One person can’t accomplish everything alone. Remain open to the ideas of others and collaborate with them in your shared quest to build a better library.