What's wrong with firehosing people with information?

A few weeks ago I spoke at the Granicus Digital Engagement Roadshow on the topic of influencing internally.

Influence feels an icky topic for a lot of the people I work with. That's because we've all been manipulated before and left with a sour taste in our mouths.

A salesperson tricking us into buying a higher-priced item that we later regret. Wasting our evening on social media when we only meant to check out one thing. Our manager guilt-tripping us into working weekends.

But influence is not manipulation.

Colin James, a public speaking expert, explains how they both involve changing what somebody else thinks, feels and does. The difference is that manipulation only benefits one person. Influence benefits you both.

As Tracey Bridges said in one of the Beyond Consultation Podcast episodes, "Influence is like trust - people give it to you, usually in exchange for something."

I'm guessing you've had times in your own work where you've had to bring a key person onside... and failed. Often that's because we don't have an existing relationship of trust. And sometimes it's because of how we've tried to bring them onside.

Stop firehosing people with information

Do you ever feel like your work is almost invisible within your organisation or community? You're beavering away - doing the work... but other people don't seem to understand your value.

It's a big problem for some of my clients. They are highly-skilled subject matter experts and they frequently get called on to share that expertise with others.

This is where they trip up. In an effort to share their expertise, they end up sharing too much. They firehose people with information - in their emails, presentations, workshops and events.

I understand why this happens.

You know the value of your expertise and you want to share as much as possible with others.

But information does not create transformation; experiences do.

Experiences need to be relevant, spontaneous and visceral. This makes them stick around in our memory.

As my friend Leeane Hughes says in her book The 2-Hour Workshop Bluebrint, we need to start with the experience in mind.

Instead of firehosing people with information, what they might actually need is a nicely packaged water bottle. Everything they need, and nothing more!