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Q&A with Robert L. Dilenschneider, Author of "Power and Influence: The Rules have Changed"
What are the key lessons from Power and Influence?
Technology is with us and if you do not understand it and adjust to it all will be lost. At the same time you must have something to say. Find the right message is a lost art.
There are many lessons to be learned from the successes I have seen. In Power and Influence I offer anecdotes and illustrate the acquisition and amplification of power. You will read about well-known people I’ve encountered during my long career and you will read about everyday people whose savvy and good sense enabled them to succeed. The most successful leaders I know don’t get caught with their technological pants down in a warp-speed world.
Is technology the key to success in all facets of business?
You must see technology as only an enabler. It’s not a substitute for clear thinking. A Blackberry or Treo makes it possible to communicate instantly but your message has to be clear for it to make sense. This is why I emphasize the importance of logic, good thinking and solid reasoning, as well as decent writing: No matter how skilled you become with technology, the basics of forming, parsing, and punctuating your argument have not changed. You still need to communicate your thoughts sensibly and pithily.
How have the advances in technology changed your own work life?
My expertise in print media—the primary revenue generator for my international public affairs boutique, The Dilenschneider Group—was being challenged in the market place. What was growing in demand as tools of influence were the social media, that is, online chat rooms, bulletin boards, blogs, and podcasts, that were introduced early in the new millennium. I had little choice but to modify the way I did business.
Apart from your own experiences, how did you go about researching technology’s impact on people’s careers?
To find out what I wanted to know about making a professional transition to an era of enhanced technology, I literally took to the streets. I interviewed, formally and informally, about a thousand winners in this flat-world economy. What did they have in common that empowered them to achieve success despite all the dizzying change surrounding them and their careers? My subjects ranged from teenagers to eighty-somethings.
What was the consensus from the “Power Players” you interviewed?
I found that some of the winners had had to “get it” the hard way: through a collapse of their businesses, erosion of their brand names of reputation, lack of career mobility, being digitally ambushed, or just sensing that they were not players anymore. This technology shock was so overwhelming that most professionals couldn’t ignore it, although some still do.
How does the Power and Influence work in providing guidance?
When the research was completed, I ultimately arrived at ten principles for succeeding in a technology-driven volatile economy; Accept, adapt, and accelerate—or atrophy; Be prepared to start over—again, and again.; Think innovation—forget about just keeping up,; Seize the opportunity in every crisis; Look beyond the new rules to connect; Take the heat and never compromise; Keep focusing on your strengths; Keep growing your network by shaving it; Seek acclaim but practice humility; Search for the power but never forget to share it.
You make a good point, that CEOs used to be in their chairs for at least ten years; now their tenure is less than five years. Why do you think that is?
I used to receive thirty to forty letters a day. Now I get one or two and a ton of junk mail. Ten years ago I never thought of “logging on.” Today I’m glued to some device or other that transmits my messages 24/7. There is a lot of speculation as to why the length of tenure has been cut in half: pressure from investors and Wall Street generally, board concern over litigation and corporate direction. Frankly, I think one reason is that many CEOs did not grow up in a tech era and have not mastered the rapid movement that technology has created and with which one is forced to keep up.
What about the people who aren’t CEOs…who are trying to make their mark?
In this age of corporate downsizing, mergers, out-sourcing, layoffs and mass dismissals, you are going to have to come to terms with the fact that there is little job security. The era of the paternal corporation that took care of people from crypt to cradle is over. Many studies show that a typical professional in this early part of the new millennium will need to change jobs six or seven times. That means you have to be prepared to start over and over again.
Power and Influence puts a lot of emphasis on blogs—what blogs do you suggest to read on a daily basis?
These days I am at risk or at a loss if I don’t read certain blogs, such as those maintained by Mickey Kaus, Howard Kurtz [of the Washington Post], Arianna Huffington, and Andrew Sullivan, who provide keen insights on issues ranging from politics to business to media. I don’t think anyone has an idea of the precise number of blogs out there, although Google’s chief executive officer, Eric Schmidt, estimates that a blog is created every second.
So, what’s your strategy in keeping up with mainstream media?
With all of the technology out there I try to read eleven newspapers every weekday and six on the weekend, read at least two books a week and constantly listen to and watch the news; CNBC is turned on right next to my desk and Fox and CNN are steps away. I realize that not everybody has the ability to monitor the media that intensively; I do it because I’m in the communications business. I’d also urge readers to look at The Economist and The New Yorker each week and tune into some of the original programming found on PBS [Public Broadcast Station].
What do you hope readers get out of this book?
I will tell you how you can get the power to advance your interests in life and how you can get the power to make a difference in your profession. Ultimately, this book is about how, through acquiring the power and influence that you seek, you can have a positive impact on the society you inhabit.
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