Applying Influ ence Down and S ideways 67
The Favor Effect
The principle of reciprocity has an odd twist, which we refer to as
the favor effect. Its source is a maxim cited by Benjamin Franklin:
‘‘He that has once done you a kindness will be more ready to do
you another than he whom yourself have obliged.’’ In other words,
if you ask someone for a favor, and he or she complies, that person
will be disposed to do you another favor. As evidence, Franklin
relates in his autobiography the story of a fellow legislator in the
Pennsylvania House, a political opponent who had been personally
hostile to Franklin. Franklin decided that he would win the man’s
friendship, not by being servile, but by—of all things—asking a spe-
cial favor:
Having heard that he had in his library a certain very scarce
and curious book, I wrote a note to him expressing my
desire of perusing that book and requesting he would do
me the favour of lending it to me for a few days.
1
The man immediately sent Franklin the book, which Franklin re-
turned shortly thereafter with a note expressing his gratitude for
the favor. Their relationship then changed dramatically:
When we next met in the House he spoke to me (which he
had never done before), and with great civility; and he ever
afterward manifested a readiness to serve me on all occa-
sions, so that we became great friends.
2
Modern social psychologists have confirmed Franklin’s maxim
through experiments, demonstrating that the giver of the favor
ends up being more positively disposed to the asker than he was
before the favor was requested. However, owing to the limited
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68 Increase Your Influence at Work
scope of these experiments, readers should be judicious in trying
to apply this approach. Franklin’s new friend probably took great
pride in his personal library, and Franklin’s request to borrow one
of its rare holdings would naturally have been highly flattering. In
effect, Franklin tipped his hat to the man’s literary prowess and to
the value of his collection. Thus, consider asking a favor from a
person who is proud of having a particular resource or capability.
For example, if you need help in negotiating with a difficult yet
important client, you might ask for help from a person who prides
herself on her negotiating skill. By asking the favor, you, in effect,
recognize that person’s special talent, as if saying ‘‘I came to you
for help because you’re such a good negotiator.’’ People appreciate
that kind of recognition and ego boost, especially when they feel
that their special talent is not recognized or is undervalued. Your
recognition of a person’s special talent will create a bond between
the two of you, opening a channel of influence.
Building a Network of Support
Back in Chapter 3 we cited building a network of support as a tactic
for creating the bargaining power you lack as an individual em-
ployee. A network gives you ‘‘strength in numbers.’’ Being part of
a support network also gives you an opportunity to exert influence
over your peers, many of whom may be part of that same network.
While membership in a network is valuable in itself, active
membership will maximize your potential for influence. By active
membership we mean being a positive contributor. A positive con-
tributor does more than enjoy the benefits of membership. He or
she is quick to offer help (information, resources, advice) to others
and takes the lead when others hold back. These practices generate
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Applying Influ ence Down and S ideways 69
IOUs on your behalf and make you more visible within the organi-
zation.
Here are three practical steps you can take to expand your net-
work and influence:
1. Volunteer for task forces and special projects. Membership in
these will give you opportunities to work with people in other
parts of the organization, often at different levels. Also, by
participating in the decisions and recommendations made by
these entities, you will be influencing your organization’s direc-
tion.
2. Introduce yourself to peers in other departments. Meet with
them informally to learn of their concerns and responsibilities,
and how your departments can work together more effectively.
Make it a point to eat lunch with a different peer each week.
3. Form a community of interest around a topic considered
important within the broader organization—for example,
energy efficiency, telecommunications/IT improvements, inno-
vation, quality. Communities of interest meet periodically to
share ideas, information, and best-practice solutions for
common concerns.
These action steps are not risky, difficult, or time-consuming, yet
they will make you and your ideas more visible and influential
among your peer group.
The same principle of reciprocity applies to online social-net-
working sites, such as LinkedIn. By adding contacts to your net-
work, you make a tacit agreement to help them when you can, and
expect them to reciprocate.
Implementing Peer Influence
We can not leave this sect ion withou t refer ence to peer influence,
or peer pressure, which is the influence that group values and
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70 Increase Your Influence at Work
behavior s exert on in dividuals . Yo u’re su rely famili ar with thi s
form o f influence. We experien ced it ourselv es recently whe n a
regularmemberofourmorningfitnessgroupdroppedoutwith
the inten tio n of adop tin g a ‘‘do it your self’’ a ppr oac h. ‘‘I know
all the exerc ise r out ines,’ ’ he tol d us lat er, ‘‘so I figured I’d do
them a t home on my own a nd s ave the mon thly fee.’’ After a
month, our friend gave up on h is self-di rected fitness routi ne and
returned to the group . ‘‘It just wasn’t the same,’’ he s aid . ‘‘I nstea d
of goi ng for a full minute of push -up s, I’d put in thi rty to forty
seconds, then qui t. Instead of our usual ten-mi nut e run-spri nt-
run-spri nt routine, I’d jog for ten minutes. I just did n’t have the
willpowe r to do the sp rin ts. ’’ Our friend also admitted to skipping
many workout days .
Why had our friend’s plan failed? In his own words, it was the
absence of peer pressure: ‘‘Without the trainer and you guys there
to push me on, it was easy to slack off.’’
Examples of peer influence in the workplace are not hard to
find. When people are working late to meet a group deadline, few
people will have the nerve to say, ‘‘It’s five o’clock. I’m going
home.’’ When a work group adopts high standards as a value, woe
to whoever does shoddy work. Even when it lacks authority to pun-
ish individual malefactors, the group has the power to withhold the
respect and acceptance that most people crave.
How can you put the power of peer influence to work? One
way is through example. Let’s say that you’re the informal leader of
a cross-functional team. You have no power over other team mem-
bers. They’re your peers, not your subordinates. But a big deadline
looms and you’d like to influence them to work late every night for
a week or two in order to finish the job on time. If you ask them
politely to pitch in, and then very visibly continue working past
five o’clock, you may get one or two of your peers to join in. And
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Applying Influ ence Down and S ideways 71
when the others see you working late together, peer pressure will
encourage them to join in. People naturally feel uncomfortable
when they are out of line with the larger group.
Personal example is a powerful influencer. A team of research-
ers confirmed this in an experiment they conducted in a busy New
York City subway station. There they counted the number of people
who tossed money into a street musician’s hat. They then altered
the conditions. Whenever someone was approaching, an accom-
plice of the researchers would stride by and tip the musician. This
influenced others to do the same. In fact, a person who witnessed
someone tip the musician was eight times more likely to drop
money into the hat!
3
That’s peer influence at work.
If you want to influence peers or others through example, what-
ever you’re doing must be visible, as in the case of the musician
tipper. Let’s suppose you’d like your workmates to be more energy
conscious. The following strategies could be implemented to create
wider visibility:
? Use company media. You might write an article for the
company newsletter that features the energy-saving strategies used
by people in several different departments.
? Cast the desired behavior in a favorable light. You might
ask the company to create a monthly award program through
which it honors individuals or departments that have done the
most to reduce energy use.
66666
You can accomplish a great deal by applying appropriate tactics of
influence to your subordinates and peers. But the greatest payoff
may come when you apply them to the most important individual
in your workplace life: your boss. You’ll read all about how to do
this in Chapter 5.
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