"Unless you are a child asking your parents for something small, the language of requests does not work very often. Key People of Influence **use the language of opportunities**. This is where **you win, by helping someone else win**. When you want something, you express it in a way that works for the person you want assistance from. "Here are some examples: ‘I need more sales coming in. Would you like to follow up on some hot leads and get 10% of the money you bring in?’ ‘I need my team to get motivated. If I could see an improvement in performance I would happily share some of the upside with you. What kind of conditions would make that deal a win for you?’ ‘I want more qualified leads. If we can get more targeted leads, we will save a lot of wasted time and money; I would be happy to share some of those savings with you. Would you like to get involved in that project?’ ‘I want a better deal on supplies. If I ordered in bulk, would you be able to offer me better terms?’ "Great business people **speak the language of opportunity** all the time. In the next week, see if you can eradicate all requests from your language and adopt a policy that you only offer opportunities." ([Location 1966](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B00NVQE4T8&location=1966)) --- **Tags** -- [[quotes]], [[asking-questions]], [[counter-intuitive-thinking]], [[team-work]], [[influence]], [[collaboration]] **Source** -- [[20250303112500 - B - Key Person of Influence]]