Some people seem to gain influence effortlessly in the workplace. Do they possess some kind of magic? After studying human behavior for 15 years, I have good news. The habits of highly influential people are learnable, not fixed personality traits.
There are specific habits you can build right now to be taken more seriously, grow your credibility, and become someone leadership turns to – even if you’re introverted, still working your way up the ladder, or new to your industry.
Each habit below taps into one of the five types of power in the workplace. Here’s how to start modeling them today.
5 habits of highly influential people
1. They make clear judgment calls
When a meeting starts going in circles, influential people step in and say, “We’ve covered the options. It sounds like we’re leaning toward X, so we’ll get started on that. Sound good?”
This is role power in action – the authority to make decisions within your domain. Most people shy away from role power because they don’t want to come off as controlling. But when every choice turns into a committee decision, it creates more confusion, not less.
Try this: The next time someone raises an issue, don’t let it bounce around like a hot potato. Take charge and assign ownership: “I’ll coordinate with legal. Jordan, can you drive the marketing piece?”
2. They generously celebrate others
Influential people don’t hoard credit. They spread recognition early and often.
This builds reward power, or your ability to give people something they want. When you make others feel seen, they’ll go out of their way to help you succeed too.
Try this: Each week, shout out a team member via email, Slack, or during a meeting. Don’t just say “the team did a good job” – personalize your praise. For example, “Pooja’s idea saved us 10 hours of developer time,” or, “Big shout out to David for his analysis, which flagged this risk.”
3. They project competence without cockiness
You can be the smartest person on your team. But your knowledge means nothing if no one seeks out your input or respects your opinion enough to act on it.
That’s the difference between expertise and expert power. Expertise is your skill level. Expert power is whether people trust you and your insight enough to take action on it.
Try this: Lead with “what if” and “I wonder” statements paired with your experience. It’s a simple way to be a confident, concise communicator without coming off as a know-it-all. For example, “What if we tried adjusting the price? I’ve seen that work with similar products in the past,” or, “I wonder whether we’ve accounted for processing time, since that’s caused a two-week delay before.”
4. They hold others accountable
Even the nicest people have to set limits and enforce them. When someone misses deadlines or breaks the rules, influential people handle the difficult conversation calmly and directly using coercive power.
This ability to hand out consequences is the form of power you want to use the least, but sometimes it’s necessary to uphold standards and keep the culture safe.
Try this: Quit making excuses for someone’s disruptive behavior. Name the pattern, state the impact, and set an expectation. It can sound like, “I noticed you talked over Carol twice yesterday. When people get cut off, they stop speaking up. Going forward, please let people finish their thoughts before jumping in. Does that sound fair and doable?”
5. They pay attention to personal details
What if you could gain power just from being who you are? This is referent power – the influence that comes from people wanting to be associated with you because of your character and values.
It’s less about being charming and more about others admiring how you conduct yourself and wanting to follow your lead.
Try this: When someone shares something personal, jot down a reminder and follow up on it later. It takes 30 seconds to ask, “How was your daughter’s recital?” or “Did the kitchen renovation go well?” – but it creates deep rapport.
The best part? These habits compound. The more you use them, the more natural they become – and the more influence you build without even trying.
