How To Develop Your Personal Power To Get Things Done

Anyone can hold power and influence others. You don’t need a corner office or hold an important job title to get things done.

One of the first things you notice when someone is promoted to a leadership or management position is, they discover they have a new sense of power. A degree of power comes with their role. Power and management go hand in hand.

You also have power even if you are not in a management or leadership position. It’s how you use power determines how successfully you can get things done. 

Power Gradient

We all encounter this relative power level called a power gradient every time you interact with others. There are times you feel powerful, and other times you feel intimidated.

Have you ever heard the saying, “Perception is reality?” Of course, you have. This is true of power sources. You give power to others and to yourself, sometimes too much or too little.  If a person gives up their personal power and imparts it to you, the power is real, whether imagined or not.  Sometimes, you might be mistaken, but the outcome can be the same as if the power is real or not.

Power attracts power similar to a magnet. Some people are attracted to power and lots of it. Others are repelled by a lack of power. Some people respond to power willingly and others reluctantly. Some fear power, depending on the power source.

Think about this, “If you have power and don’t know it, do you really have it?” or “If you have power and don’t use it, do you have it at all?”

Power exists in many walks of life. For example:

• Power differences between a boss and worker
• The power a parent has over a child
• Power struggles between an older and younger sibling
• The power a judge has to sentence a criminal
• An educated person has more power and options than an uneducated person
• The difference of power between a skilled and unskilled person
• A police officer has the power to fine a speeding driver or make an arrest
• The power a school bully wields over their victim

“Power is the capacity or ability to get things done … to exercise control over people, events, situations and oneself.” Cohen

Inheriting power

When people are first appointed to a management or leadership role, they not only inherit a degree of power, they will use their power in many different ways, depending on their previous experiences with power.

Their power base can either empower you to get things done or intimidate you into being submissive depending on how you respond power.

Power can be divided into two main types:

• Personal Power (the power you have from within)
• Legitimate Power (external power bestowed upon others)

Understanding power sources

Researchers French and Raven (1959) described five bases of power as follows:

Legitimate Power

Legitimate power comes from the belief that a person has the formal right to make demands and expects others to be compliant and obedient.

Reward Power

Reward power is the result of one person’s ability to compensate another person for compliance.

Coercive Power

This power base comes from the belief that one person can punish others for non-compliance.

Expert Power

This power source is a result of a person’s high level of skill, knowledge and expertise.

Referent Power

Referent power is the result of a person’s perceived attractiveness, worthiness and the right to gain the respect of others.

In 1965, Raven added a sixth power base; Informational Power resulting from a person’s ability to control the information that others need to accomplish something.

By understanding these various power sources, you can begin to learn to use power sources in a positive way to get things done.

Legitimate Power

Legitimate power is the power inherent in a position that comes from an elected, selected, or appointed position of authority. For example, the leader of a country, president or prime minister, leaders within an organization, President, CEO, Managing Director, appointed managers and supervisors, or even a captain of a sports team. Their power base relies on being appointed to a legitimate position of authority.

Rewarding and punishing subordinates is seen as a legitimate part of a manager’s power base. It’s based on a social norm that requires people to be obedient. A policeman has a legitimate power to make arrests. A CEO has a legitimate power to hire and fire employees. A customer with the appropriate level of authority has a legitimate power to make purchases.

Legitimate power is external to the individual; therefore, as easily as it can be given, it can also be taken away. It’s temporary power, and they only have it for as long as that person is in that appointed position. A president can lose an election, a CEO can be fired, a sports captain can be injured and removed from the team.

Be careful to understand, because a person inherited legitimate power, that doesn’t make them a leader. A leader is someone who has genuine followers because they respect and like the leader not because of a title or position they hold.

Legitimate power can be used to get things when used to inspire others to action based on shared values. Legitimate power can also be used to threaten others into compliance known as reward or coercive power.

Reward Power

Reward power is the power to provide something of value to another person.

It’s based on the right to offer a tangible, social, emotional, or spiritual reward to another person or entity, for doing what is asked or expected of them. It’s also based on the right to deny a tangible, social, emotional, or spiritual reward to another person or entity for failing to comply with what is asked of them. Like legitimate power, it is an external power source that can also be taken away at any time.

People in power are often able to give rewards such as a promotion, a raise or even a desirable assignment. These types of rewards are controlled by people in power. Rewards don’t always need to be tangible, verbal recognition is also a reward. A simple “You did a great job”is a form of reward power. Reward power used to motivate employees can work to get things done. However, using reward power to coerce others into doing something they don’t want to, can backfire.

You might also experience reward power when dealing with customers. Some customers will revel in their power to reward you with their business when they buy from you or, put unreasonable demands making it difficult for you to do business with them.

When a person uses up the rewards or, if the rewards are perceived as not having enough value, their power base instantly weakens.

Coercive Power

Coercive power is the power to punish or withhold positive outcomes. For example, to cancel supply or withdraw support.  This also includes the threat to act and the actual act itself, characterized by statements, like “As long as I am in this position, you will …..” or “Do this for me and I will….”

The main idea behind the concept of coercive power is that someone is forced to do something they don’t want to do. Force may include physical, social, emotional, political, or economic means. Again, this is an external power source.

Threats and punishment are common coercive tools used wield power over others. A manager or leader might use coercive power to imply or threaten an employee with being fired, demoted or withold privileges.

Some customers may use coercive power in their dealings with you, for example, “I’ll give you the order if you…..” If this happens you would ask yourself, “is this the kind of buyer seller relationship I want to have?” It’s just not sustainable nor does it build trust.

As a short term measure, coercive power can be used to get things done depending on the circumstances and the person. If an employee is constantly late for work, a simple, “if you are late again you will lose your job” might be appropriate and enough for them to change their behavior.

Being constantly threatened with coercive power diminishes trust, confidence and respect. The problem with overusing coercive power is that good people will leave. When a manager or leader uses coercive power too often, it can be also be seen as bullying which exposes an organization to litigation.

Expert Power

Expert power is based on knowledge, experience, and special skills or talents. When you have the knowledge and skill that someone else requires, you then have expert power. This is a very common form of power and is the basis for many business collaborations, both internal and external to an organization.

When people perceive or assume you possess superior skills or abilities, they award power to you accordingly. Expertise can be demonstrated by your reputation, credentials, certifying expertise, and actions as you go about your everyday business.

You can continue to build expert power by subscribing to industry newsletters, joining industry groups, keeping an alert for relevant news articles that affect your industry, and by up-skilling yourself through professional development activities.

Expert power is often used to get things done.

Referent Power

Referent power comes from one person liking and respecting another. Referent power is sometimes called charismatic or attraction power. Think of Nelson Mandela, Theodore Roosevelt, John F.Kennedy and Martin Luther King; they had attraction or charismatic power. So did Hitler!

Referent power refers to the ability of a leader to influence followers because of their loyalty, respect, friendship, admiration, affection, or a desire to gain approval.

Referent power is gained by a person with strong interpersonal relationship skills and becomes important in leading and managing others because it is more about collaboration and influence than command and control.

Celebrities have referent power and can influence what people wear and who to vote for. In the workplace, those with referent power make others feel good and as a result, tend to have a lot of influence over others.

The problem with referent power is that it can be abused quite easily. For instance,  a charismatic person who lacks integrity can use their power to hurt or alienate others as well as gain an advantage in the workplace.

Developing personal power

If you’re aware of these sources of power, you can better understand why you and others are influenced by those with power and decide whether you want to accept the base of power being used. It helps you build your skill sets and to recognize your own sources of power.

The two most important power sources for you to develop to get things done is your expert and referent power.

One of the key elements in leading others and getting things done is developing influence and having credibility. If you are the appointed manager or leader, it doesn’t mean others will automatically listen to you or follow you. You must establish yourself as a credible leader. Building your personal power is one key to growing your influence over others and to use your power base wisely.

You also don’t need to hold a title to exert your personal power over others. Many a colleague has influenced others in a positive way to get things done through their expert and referent power.