How Persuasive are you ?

Image by Esthr via FlickrLet's do a simple test to access our level of persuasiveness, by knowing where we stand, we will know what we should do to to hone the skills that heighten our power of persuasion and, in turn, our charisma.

For each pair of statements below, distribute three points between the two alternatives (A and B), depending on how characteristic of you the statement is. Although both statements in a pair may seem to apply to you, assign more points to the alternative that is more representative of your behavior most of the time.

• If A is very characteristic of you and B is very un- characteristic, write “3” next to A and “0” next to B.

• If A is more characteristic of you than B, write “2” next to A and “1” next to B.

• If B is very characteristic of you and A is very un characteristic, write “3” next to B and “0” next to A.
... and so on.

1A___I work extra hard when necessary because I want to accomplish my goals and because I enjoy the feeling of success.
1B___I work extra hard when necessary because it’s expected
of me and I need to set an example.

2A___I get excited trying to persuade others to see my way of thinking.
2B___I believe in “live and let live” and, thus don’t often try hard to get others to come around to my way of
thinking.

3A___I use a lot of metaphors, analogies, and anecdotes when I am trying to convince somebody of something.
3B___I think people are persuaded by facts, not by my charm as a storyteller, so I tend to stick to logic and data when I’m trying to convince somebody.

4A___I have a well-defined set of goals for the short, intermediate,and long terms.
4B___I have a good, general sense of what I want to accomplish but I rarely express it to myself or others in concrete terms.

5A___I give compliments freely and sincerely.
5B___I’m a little wary of giving too many compliments because it may cheapen their worth or people will think I’m flattering them for my own personal gain.

6A___People often pause thoughtfully when we’re speaking and say to me, “That’s a very good question.”
6B___People rarely comment on my questions.

7A___I often repeat back to another person the gist of what they’ve just said so that I’m sure I understand the meaning.
7B___Repeating back what’s just been said seems unnecessary and time-consuming.

8A___I make it a point to remember others’ names and use them in conversation.
8B___I can remember jokes, songs, recipes, and all manner of other minutiae, but I have trouble with names.

9A___When there are multiple, acceptable courses of action,I usually try to see which one most people are comfortable with.
9B___When there are multiple, acceptable courses of action, I try to lead the group toward what I think is the best plan.

10A___When I’m in charge, I put a lot of effort into explaining to others the “why” of what we are doing.
10B___When I’m in charge, I put my priority on getting the job done and, if time permits, explaining the “why” later.

Scoring:
Please add point totals under “A” and enter here: _________
Please add point totals under “B” and enter here: _________

Now let’s take a look at how you scored on this segment. If your “A” score is significantly greater than your “B” score (and if you were truly honest!), your persuasion skills are fairly strong. The more lopsided your “A” score, the stronger
you are as a persuader. If your “A” score exceeds your “B” by, say, a 2-to-1 margin, your persuasiveness “glass” is far fuller than most.

Conversely, if your “B” score approximates your “A” score, you may have identified an improvement opportunity. And if your “B” score is higher than your “A,” that’s an indication that you need lots of work in this area.