Positioning is the way you combine all of your knowledge of influence to actually influence others.

Because as you employ the various theories you have been learning so far, you chisel and sculpt the persona that you project outwardly to people. Think of positioning as the conscious effort to become a person of great influence.

Here are some tips to improve your ability to position yourself when you really need to influence others:

1. Take note of your mannerisms when you are talking to people. Avoid mannerisms that may mirror anxiety to other people. Some people are extremely inquisitive when it comes to other people‟s mannerisms and the best ones can detect if you are really confident or if you are just pretending to be confident.

2. Think genuine or authentic when you are positioning yourself as a person of power or influence. You need to walk and talk the part, literally, when the situation calls for it. You need to communicate that you must be believed. Live and breathe the persona that you want to convey through your body language and vocal communication.

3. Keep your hands moving along with the message – or keep them still. Unnecessary hand movements can also affect your final message. Use your hands to emphasize and wow your audience – not to annoy them because you don‟t care about how you look.

4. People often break bread when they want to talk about extremely important things. If you need to sell something to someone, you try to invite that person to dinner, etc.

If you do this often, make sure that your etiquette and table manners are nothing short of impeccable. If you have to sign up for a short etiquette course (yes, there are actually etiquette courses!), do it.