Have you ever wondered how to be taken more seriously and viewed as an authority in your work? By learning a few practical strategies and reframing ideas, you can show up and be taken seriously in any situation.
Know Your Personality
When you want to be taken seriously, typically, you are looking for others to see and hear your contributions. The first step toward accomplishing this goal is to understand your personality. I recommend taking a personality assessment to grasp your strengths and what makes you tick. Myers-Briggs is my “go-to” because it allows you to learn about yourself and other personalities. When you know if you are an introvert or an extrovert, whether you are ruled by emotions, feelings, thinking, or intuition, you begin to develop self-awareness that can impact your success. By knowing who you are and how you are perceived, you can adjust your strategy and show up the way you want to be viewed.
Develop Strategies That Work for Who You Are
Once you have studied the data on the components of your personality that make you unique, you are ready to create a strategy that works for you. For example, if you know you are an introvert in a room full of extroverted people who tend to rule the room, you must develop a plan for being heard. Amazon’s Jeff Bezos was masterful at overcoming this problem. He gave each person in the room a handout and didn’t allow anyone to speak until they had all read the information. This leveled the playing field because everyone operated from the same data set.
By developing a strategy like this, an introvert lets everyone encounter the message they wanted them to hear, allowing them to establish authority within the group. This is just one example of how you develop strategies based on your personality. Extroverts will most likely approach a meeting entirely differently – the key is finding a way to be seen and heard that works for who you are.
Be Prepared for Curveballs
Be prepared for someone to throw a curveball and try to rattle you – this is an effective strategy that others will use to keep you off balance and for them to gain authority. If you are falling for their plan to throw you off – that is on you. When they use a strategy to make you look unprepared and foolish, they are really trying to make you feel inferior, stumble, and pull back so they can take the top spot. It is up to you to keep this from happening, and I have some fantastic tricks for dealing with these tricky situations.
My number one favorite tip for dealing with people like this is to pause, say “hmmm,” – laugh, say “okay,” and move on and completely ignore what they said. This works because if you give it fire, you just lost. Ignore it, and let it go. The other option is to say, “That is an interesting point, let’s put it in the parking lot, and I will discuss it with you later,” and move on. Either way, you do not allow the person trying to throw you off to accomplish their goal.
Stay In Control
The most critical part of being taken seriously is always being in charge; stay in control. If you want to be taken seriously as a leader, whether you’re an entrepreneur, a business owner, a founder, or a startup, the most important thing you can do is always stay in control. Whether you like it or not, you are in control of the conversation and how other people make you feel is on you – it’s not on them. They only win if you let them succeed.
At the Growth Architect, my goal is to help you develop a plan to give you the strategies you need to build authority and be taken seriously. If you want to learn more about how to be taken more seriously, watch my video, and contact me when you are ready to develop your growth strategy!
Let’s grow!
Beate
Beate Chelette is The Growth Architect & Founder of The Women’s Code, a training company specialized in providing companies an ROI on Balanced Leadership. She has been named one of 50 must-follow women entrepreneurs by the Huffington Post. A first-generation immigrant who found herself $135,000 in debt as a single parent, she bootstrapped her passion for photography into a highly successful global business and eventually sold it to Bill Gates in a multimillion-dollar deal.
Beate works with business leaders and supports organizations by developing and providing training the training, tools, and expertise to create and maintain a balanced, equal, and inclusive work environment that fosters creativity, employee engagement, and corporate growth.
Recent clients include Merck, Women’s Legislative Caucus of California, Cal State University Dominguez Hills, Small Business Development Centers (SBDC), NFTE, CreativeLive, the Association of Corporate Growth, and TracyLocke.
Beate is the author of the #1 International Amazon Bestseller “Happy Woman Happy World – How to Go From Overwhelmed to Awesome” a book that corporate trainer and best-selling author Brian Tracy calls “a handbook for every woman who wants health, success and a fulfilling career.
To book Beate to speak or train please connect here. Your Time Is Valuable!