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(Written by Allie Vecchiet*) In Sara White’s post last week, she discussed the importance of reflecting on the types of impressions you make on others especially considering how hectic a pharmacy leader’s day can be. She explained that pharmacy leaders interact with many people throughout the day and that the ability to be an effective leader can depend on how those people view you. Have you ever considered whether your colleagues perceive you as a “persuadable” leader? How do you perceive leaders who are persuadable and open to changing their minds compared to those who are steadfast in decisions? In “Persuadable,” business consultant Al Pittampalli explains how research now shows that in an ever-changing world, a genuine willingness to change ones mind as a leader is the ultimate competitive advantage.

In today’s healthcare environment, we have access to more knowledge, data and analytics than ever before, which explains the need for being persuadable as leaders since our worlds are unpredictable, ultracompetitive, and fast changing.

Here are the seven practices of persuadable leaders Pittampalli shares:

1. Consider the Opposite: Noticing evidence that supports our beliefs is easy, but information that cuts against our current opinions is difficult. Ask yourself, “What are some reasons I may be wrong?” or “What’s an alternative explanation for this information?”
2. Update Your Beliefs Incrementally: In order to be persuadable, we need to move from thinking in black and white to thinking in shades of gray. Try using the “three strikes rule” - change your mind about a belief or opinion once you’re hit with three pieces of counterevidence.
3. Kill your Darlings: Try to destroy your most favored beliefs, or “darlings.” Some of our most favored beliefs take the form of “all is well.” We want to believe that all is well with our team or with our pharmacies, but forcing ourselves to remain open-minded that those beliefs are wrong leads to huge growth.
4. Take the Perspectives of Others: In order to lead effectively, we need to be understood. But in order to be understood, we need to first understand. As leaders, we’re inherently less dependent on others and therefore, less incentivized to take other people’s perspectives. However, research shows that combining positions of power with understanding other’s perspectives has synergistic effects.
5. Avoid Being Too Persuadable: When gathering advice for an upcoming decision you need to make, you reach out to a few people. They offer valuable opinions and insights you hadn’t considered before, which increases the quality of your decisions. However, per the law of “diminishing marginal returns,” for every new person you ask, the information is likely to be similar to a previous opinion and you’re no longer receiving a lot of new insights and spending more time debating what the best decision is.
6. Convert Early: Be an “early adopter.” Leaders have an even greater ability to accelerate change by changing their minds compared to the new, brave souls who adopt technology before the majority. Because of their status, leaders are more likely than others to transmit social norms and new ideas in an impactful way.
7. Take on Your Own Tribe: Research shows we’re more likely to listen to people whom we find very similar, preferably fellow members of our own tribe or team. Conformity like this is a problem because it forces people to believe things without evaluating the reasons. This presents an opportunity. Instead of futilely arguing with people outside of our tribes and telling them “you’re wrong,” what if we brought change to our own teams by employing a much more persuasive statement, “We’re wrong.”

Questions to Consider:

1. What persuasion practice above have you either consciously or subconsciously used as a leader?
2. Do you think people perceive leaders who are persuadable or change their minds as weaker than those leaders who are very steadfast in their opinions? Have technology advances and healthcare’s rapidly changing environment helped encourage leaders to be more agile and persuadable to unexpected results or truths?
3. What are the pro’s and con’s of being a persuadable leader? Which scenarios, types of decisions, or leadership positions benefit most from a persuadable leader?

*Allison Vecchiet, PharmD

PGY2 Health-System Pharmacy Administration Resident
Nationwide Children's Hospital
M.S. Health-System Pharmacy Administration Candidate 2016
The Ohio State University College of Pharmacy

Email: Sturm.42@osu.edu