| "How do you make people trust your judgement enough that they'll take your suggestions seriously?" This is arguably the single biggest issue I've faced in over 20 years as first a programmer and since 2001, an architect. The result? Trust is easy to get. I'd argue that credibility precedes it, and that's also easy to establish. The caveat is that it requires social skills, and must be done at the outset. Building relationships that establish trust and credibility requires not focusing on building relationships. When a new project starts I focus on three things - understanding the current situation, establishing a business objective, and bounding the scope. I do that by getting off my arse, meeting people, finding out what they need to succeed, and listening. And by not talking, but mostly prompting or re-stating someone's problem in my own words, I build the trust I need from them. [Edit] It's a bit badly articulated because I'm still formulating the idea, but over the last few months I've tried to put my thoughts down - http://www.wittenburg.co.uk/Entry.aspx?id=8ec91ced-b3a4-4b07... |