I asked a room of people to raise a hand if they were a leader. Half did

Influence, and nothing else

Leadership is not about titles or positions. It is about influence. As my mentor John Maxwell puts it: leadership is influence, nothing more and nothing less.

So — are you a leader? If you exercise influence over another person, then yes.

You may be a mother at home with influence over your children. You may be a schoolteacher with influence over students. You may run a team at work with influence over the people on it. If you exercise influence over others, whether a few or a great many, you are a leader.

True leadership cannot be assigned, appointed or awarded. It is given. All a position or a title can do is buy you a little time, to either gain or lose influence.

George Powell

Harry Overstreet put it well: the essence of all power to influence lies in getting the other person to participate.

So how do you gain influence?

Nine steps to increase your influence

Some of what follows comes from a course I am certified to teach with the John Maxwell Team, Becoming a Person of Influence.

1. Have integrity with people

Dwight D. Eisenhower put it this way: “In order to be a leader a man must have followers. And to have followers, a man must have their confidence. Hence the supreme quality for a leader is unquestionably integrity. Without it, no real success is possible, no matter whether it is on a section gang, a football field, in an army, or in an office. If a man's associates find him guilty of phoniness, if they find that he lacks forthright integrity, he will fail. His teachings and actions must square with each other. The first great need, therefore, is integrity and high purpose.”

2. Nurture people

Ask yourself: do I value my position more than my people, or do I value my people more than my position? When you love your people more than your position, and seek to lift them to a higher level, you will gain influence.

3. Have faith in people

By far one of the greatest gifts you can give another person is to express belief in someone who does not believe in himself.

4. Truly listen to people

One important principle I am learning in my own quest to become a better leader is to listen with the intent of understanding, rather than with the intent of responding. Truly listen. As Paul Tillich said, the first duty of love is to listen.

5. Seek to understand people

People do not care how much you know until they know how much you care. So in order to grow in influence, seek first to understand before being understood.

6. Determine to enlarge people

The late Zig Ziglar expressed it well: “You'll always have everything in life that you want if you help enough people get what they want.”

7. Navigate for people

“A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way.” — John Maxwell

8. Connect with people

Connecting increases your influence in every situation, whether one to one, in a small group, or with a large audience. Leaders who have learned the art of connection are able to communicate their ideas persuasively, establish buy-in, and attract followers.

9. Empower people

Great leaders do not hold power over others. They empower others to get the job done.

Are you a leader? If you have influence over others, you are. Can you increase that influence? Yes, you can. And when you do, you can achieve success at home, in the marketplace, and in every other area of your life.