The bravest dog I’ve ever known is a fearless beast appropriately named Rambo. He’s not afraid of anyone and has been known to attack dogs much bigger than him. I actually had to ban Rambo from the dog park when we lived in MD as he had a bad habit of finding the largest dog in the park and chasing it. Actually, most every dog on the planet is bigger than him as he’s a miniature toy poodle.
Rambo is strong and powerful, not because of his size, but because his big adopted brother, a large Rottweiler/Lab mix Sonny steps in when Rambo gets in over his head. His connection to Sonny gives him the power and confidence to be the baddest dog in the park, even though secretly Sonny is the real force.
Proxy power is the type of power you get when you build good relationships with others who have more power, or different power, than you do. It’s not always possible to have all of the available powers by yourself, but if you are deliberate and are willing to go out and establish good relationships by using your personal power, you might be able to tap into others’ power.
How does it work?
You have a proposal you want to get into the CEO’s hands. You have no connection or relationship to the CEO. Because you’re a good networker though, you have managed to build a good relationship with the Finance director who happens to be a golfing buddy of the CEO. You ask your friend to bring up your proposal with the CEO and sure enough, the CEO reads it. You wouldn’t have been able to get this far alone, you simply used your proxy power.
How do I build proxy power?
- Get to know as many people as you can in the organization.
- Through those connections, build relationships with others in the organization by demonstrating professionalism and a strong work ethic. Let your actions and performance give you the credibility to build those connections.
- Take the time to enhance all of your relationships by connecting them to others and by doing what you can to add value to them.
- Strategically map out any proposal or initiative by identifying the key decision-makers and then seeing how you’re in proxy power to them or to those who can influence them.
This may seem like playing politics, but honestly politics is simply using power and influence to get what you and your team needs to be successful. You owe it to yourself AND your team.
This week, do an evaluation of your relationships and an inventory of your power. What you lack, work to build whether it’s by yourself or through your relationships.
Nobody ever messed with Rambo at the dog park. Why should you allow anyone to mess with you?
