Managing up is part of peoples’ jobs. Being able to respond to superiors when you don’t agree with their position is a key skill. Many organizations foster this sort of feedback – particularly those that recognize the importance of radical candor. That said, when the time comes, speaking truth to power – especially when it is an unpleasant truth – can be intimidating. Do it poorly and you can fast-track yourself to “naysayer” category or, in the worst case scenario, sabotage your long term career prospects in your organization. Do it well and you’ll cultivate trust with leaders and demonstrate that your input should be sought and considered in broader decision-making situations. In short, your power to impact and influence will only grow. Here are seven things to consider when you speak truth to power.
Pick your battles
Sometimes you can get in the habit of fighting every battle – no matter how inconsequential. Fight too many battles and it can quickly make you seem like a real downer or roadblock. Step back and try to determine if the situation is important enough that it is worth spending some political capital to try to influence on. Choose your battles wisely.
Good bosses don’t want “yes people”
After you have figured out how important the issue is, the next step is to consider the character of your boss or leader. Do they encourage dissenting opinions or seem to surround themselves with sycophants. As you prepare your argument, the facts that support it and the way you will deliver it to your boss or organizational leader, it is a good thing to remind yourself that you aren’t doing your job if you aren’t providing some additional perspective to the boss.
Listen deeply, shift perspective
Most people just want to be heard. This includes people leaders. Start your conversation by spending time listening to their viewpoint. Make sure you understand the nuances of what they are saying and why. In a classic active listening technique – repeat it back to them. By actively listening and understanding their perspective, you are also building trust with the leader. Trust is a critical component when you move to disagreeing with their point of view.
Stick to facts, not feelings
This is a key guideline for many civil servants. By staying away from emotions and feelings (or acknowledging them as such) you inoculate yourself (somewhat) from charges that you have your own agenda. If you can, walk through some agreed on facts and then move into territory where your opinion diverges from theirs. Explain your thinking concisely and as you are doing so, gauge how they are taking the information. Consider how the facts and your logical approach can tie into their broader needs. Is there an overlap that will allow them to save face while also pivoting their approach? If so, find a way to give them an out. Powerful people, more than others, might need to save face and will rarely want to admit they are wrong.
Be confident in your opinion
If you find yourself offering a contrarian perspective on a subject, it’s critical to believe in what you are saying. After-all, if you don’t appear to believe in what you are saying, how can you expect someone else to? A good way to do this is to give some deep consideration around the logic of your reasoning. What are the three main arguments and facts that back up your stance. Stating these with confidence after due consideration (as opposed to on-the-fly) is a good first step. Watch out though. You don’t want to come across as arrogant. Overconfidence embedded in the way you are giving your feedback is a sure fire way to give your boss or leaders a reason to discount or dismiss your advice. While your advice may be sound, the delivery of it needs to be equally considered and modulated.
Make it personal
Difficult conversations are generally best done in person as opposed to by email or text. By phone or Skype are a distant second. Doing it in person allows you to judge the emotional cues of the leader and whether they’re hearing where you are coming from. Being in person will also give you time to adjust your message or approach.
Move on with it
You may speak your truth and the boss still chooses to override your advice. You feel frustrated – after all, you listened deeply, stuck to the facts, stayed confident, but not arrogant and did it all in person. What more can you do? Unless your leaders are asking you to contravene your ethics by pushing you to do something morally dubious, I believe you have a responsibility to get with the program and do your utmost to help the leader achieve their objectives. Avoid the gossiping and complaining and if things go off the rails and never get into finger pointing and “I told you so”-ing. If you’re a leader, that’s the last thing you want to hear from a team member. If you are still smarting and just can’t get over it, it’s probably time to think about leaving your role.