The very first tenent in the Trusted Strategic Advisor’s Manifesto is, first of all, to become a Trusted Strategic Advisor you must change your mindset and your entire philosophy of work. To have the influence you seek:
- Realize that all problems are management and organizational problems before they are any other kind of problem (including communications). Start where managers and leaders are rather than where you are. Look at the world from management’s perspective first. Your job is to start where managers and leaders are rather than where you are. If you start somewhere else, you’ll end up somewhere else. And you definitely want to end up where management is.
- Treat all management problems as leadership challenges. Your job is to help reduce contention and get to consensus and decisions, maybe even agreement. Stay focused on the problem rather than distractions like what the media might do. Find the truth as soon as possible.
- Leadership resides with those who can maintain more supporters than detractors. Help management and leadership stay focused on what matters. Help the leaders preserve and develop new followers.
What is your personal manifesto – your beliefs, concerns, and aspirations?
Here are some of the common pitfalls or behaviors that prevent people from becoming truly Trusted Strategic Advisors and Influencers.
- Holding on to Staff-Based Assumptions
Failing to adopt the leader’s perspective and instead focusing on your own function or agenda relegates you to being “just a staff person.” - Narrow Functional Focus
Viewing every problem through the lens of your own discipline (e.g., seeing all issues as HR, finance, or communication problems) rather than as management or leadership challenges. - Face-Time Fantasy
Believing that more time spent with the boss automatically increases your influence, rather than focusing on the value and relevance of your contributions. - Whining and Complaining
Engaging in negative talk about management, other staff, or lack of respect for your function undermines your credibility and value. - Time-Wasting and Non-Specific Conversations
Failing to keep meetings focused on what matters most to the leader, or engaging in purposeless discussions. - Providing Unintelligible or Unusable Advice
Using jargon, presenting too many ideas, or failing to communicate in clear, actionable terms that leaders can use. - Withholding or Delaying Information
Not providing timely, complete, and candid information erodes trust quickly. - Partial or Redundant Input
Giving only part of the picture or repeating information the leader already knows wastes their time and diminishes your perceived value. - Reluctance to Be Candid
Avoiding honest feedback or difficult truths out of fear or timidity is a relationship killer. - Criticism and Negativity
Using criticism as a coaching or advising technique leads to defensiveness and marginalization. - Focusing on the Unimportant or the Past
Spending time on issues that don’t matter to the leader’s current goals, or dwelling on past events instead of focusing on future outcomes. - Failing to Develop Real Expertise Beyond Your Function
Not building operational or strategic knowledge limits your access and influence with leaders.
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©2026, James E. Lukaszewski, “Influencing Leaders, The Seven Disciplines of the Trusted Strategic Advisor,” Wiley. Contact the copyright holder at jel@e911.com for information and reproduction permissions. Editing or excerpting forbidden.
