As a Leader: Influencing Behavior in the 21st Century

Let me tell you a story. I worked for an organization that had many teams. I was fortunate enough to work within two teams that were polar opposites; this gave me a firm understanding of the effects that leadership had on human behavior. Leadership in the first team was commanding and controlling, while leadership in the second team was trusting and empowering. The second team could connect employee values to the overall objective, which in turn influenced employee attitudes, commitment, and trust. The result was higher morale, productivity, retention, and loyalty within an effective and unified team. Leadership in the second team knew, that when you understand why people behave, you are better prepared to influence how people behave. The field of understanding and influencing behaviors is called Organizational Behavior, and as a leader, it is imperative to understand how to influence behaviors - ethically. Of course, you can command and control your employees, but such transactional leadership often devalues human potential and innovation when used exclusively. Influencing behavior in the 21st century begins with the study of knowledge about your employees and the application of behavioral modification techniques.

My name is Kenneth Warren. I earned a Master's in Business Administration and a Bachelor of Science in Management after an enlistment in the United States Army and a deployment to Afghanistan. Before that, I was in a band for nearly ten years. We toured the U.S., the Middle East, and Asia; performed with international acts such as Bon Jovi and the Gin Blossoms; and were featured on TV networks such as MTV and E! Entertainment.

Because of my exposure to diverse leadership styles, I decided to utilize my business and management background to create a course that helps leaders transform their leadership position into a role that influences organizational behavior. The course material demonstrates this through the study and application of the following behavioral elements: I begin with a discussion on values and personality, then I dive into the importance of emotional intelligence. Influencing perception, attitude, and motivation are explored. Then I talk about the behavioral effects of stress and trust. Finally, I explain the significance of effective communication and how it can be used to ethically persuade employee behaviors. These topics are crucial in prolonging a positive impact on your employees, and the learning objective is to help you do that.

It doesn’t matter if you are a new or seasoned leader – if you aren’t familiar with these topics and how you can utilize them to influence behavior, then this course is for you. If you are familiar with these topics, then a new perspective may help you approach uncooperative employees with a fresh mentality.

By the end of the course you will be equipped to:

Influencing Behavior in the 21st Century:

• Understand the connection between leadership and organizational behavior.

Assumptions & Values:

• Make the connection between values and behavior.

• Conduct an audit of your values.

• Connect employee values to organizational objectives.

Personality:

• Gain insight into your personality and your employees' personalities.

• Think of your personality as a brand to be managed with personality regulators.

• Implement employees according to their personality strengths, while developing weaker traits.

• Work with clashing personalities.

Emotional Intelligence:

• Understand how leaders use Affective Events Theory.

• Learn how to mitigate emotional labor.

• Use the Emotional Intelligence Framework to improve your personal and social competence.

• Utilize empathy to solve problems and impact employee competence.

Perception:

• Understand how perceptions are formed which then reinforce and influence behaviors.

• Learn how self-perception improves impression management.

• Compare perception and reality.

• Understand how social perceptions can create stereotypes.

• Use Attribution Theory to view the world objectively.

Attitude:

• Shape the attitude-behavior link.

• Manipulate behavioral factors contributing to job satisfaction and organizational commitment.

• Consider the alignment between employees and their environment and job.

• Trigger positive attitudes with organizational justice.

• Learn how attitude contributes to absenteeism and turnover.

Motivation:

• Motivate employees with their innate needs.

• Motivate employees with their thought processes.

• Learn how to use the seven classic motivation techniques.

Stress:

• Take advantage of stress to increase morale and productivity.

• Understand role demands and how to reform them.

• Practice Corporate Athleticism.

• Experience Flow.

Trust:

• Examine how trust and credibility are earned.

• Understand the effects of high-trust organizations.

• Develop a culture of trust.

• Learn about empowerment.

Communication:

• Examine the views of communication.

• Understand how communication influences behavior.

• Outline the eight basic components of communication.

• Learn about active listening.

• Utilize body language.

• Explore the principle of self-disclosure.

• Improve your perception of your audience.

• Communicate effectively by understanding generational differences.

Persuasion:

• Differentiate between influence and persuasion.

• Learn how to use the principles and purposes of persuasion.

• Develop your charisma through the Platinum rule.

• Understand Aristotle's three elements of persuasion.

• Utilize the two rhetorical strategies of persuasion.

• Explore the appeal to emotions.

• Implement the alignment of emotional expression and emotional feeling.

If you aren’t satisfied with the course, you have a 30-day, no-questions-asked, money-back guarantee. So, if you want to know more about influencing behavior in the 21st century, take this course. I hope to chat with you in the Q&A room.

***Full course script available for download in Lecture 2***