Praise for Axis of Influence!

Most authors never get a review this good.  For us, it's even better because the reviewer is also a well-known author!

"Well-researched. Highly readable. Very practical."
-- Dianna Booher, Author of Voice of Authority

Much has been written about credibility--but not more comprehensibly than Lovas and Holloway in this book. They have built upon the work of researchers such as Kouzes and Posner in their link between leadership and credibility and added one KEY factor to the equation: likeability. The authors' central message: Many credible people never find a ready audience for their work, and many likeable people never become credible. But marry the two characteristics--credibility and likeability--and you have a winning combination.

Further, the authors take the ingredients of likeability and credibility and make them tangible--and marketable. In short, their book tells sales professionals, managers, and consultants how their language, appearance, personality, hallway reactions, and marketing materials all reflect these two characteristics.

-- Dianna Booher, Author of Voice of Authority

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Most of us have met people who are knowledgeable and competent, but we don’t care to do business with them. There’s just something about them that causes us to keep them at arm’s length. This is generally an issue of trust. Trust is fundamental to both Likeability and Credibility.

Likeability and Credibility represent the fulcrum where business teeters one way or the other. Your business goes up or down based on how adroit you are at building and using your Likeability and Credibility skills. The question everyone asks is, “How can I get them?” The answer is, you don’t get them; they’re not the result of an event. Instead, you develop them. They are the result of a process – a process that begins with trust.

If I trust you, I will be comfortable enough to engage with you a little longer and see if I like you. If I like you, then I’ll engage a bit longer and give you a chance to demonstrate your Credibility. If I perceive you as both likeable and credible, you have doubled the odds that I will want to do business with you.

What if you have one without the other?
What if you are perceived as credible but not likeable, or likeable but not credible? Can you succeed in business? The answer is “Yes but….” If you are credible but lack Likeability, can you be successful? Yes, but not if your business is heavily dependent on relationships. If you are likeable but not perceived as particularly credible, can you be successful? Yes, but not if your business depends on high levels of knowledge and expertise.

Likeability is the wild card here. Many people argue that Likeability is not an essential ingredient for success in some professions. Interestingly, the legal profession is the most common example put forth. So, let’s look deeper into this question. When I hire a lawyer to represent me, or a surgeon to operate on me, or a consultant to revamp my business, I do not have to like them, as long as they implement their area of expertise.

The question is, If my lawyer were more likeable (in addition to being credible), would that improve his effectiveness? Yes, if he has to present our case to a judge or jury or anyone else. It influences whether I want to spend time around him. Which influences whether I continue to do business with him and recommend him to my network of colleagues. And, the same goes for the surgeon, the consultant and any other professional.

The level of success you achieve and the sustainability of that success are directly tied to both Likeability and Credibility. Without both, you are limited in how far you can go. Put the two together and watch your results go up!

This will make even more sense when we look “under the hood” and see what actually goes on in the brain when people first meet you and make subconscious decisions about you – your trustworthiness, Likeability and Credibility.

This issue was a tiny sample of what you'll find in our book.  Ready for more? Get your copy of Axis of Influence today!