How can I build consensus around a big idea?

You won’t make it far without this crucial leadership skill. Here are 3 key tips to help you develop it. 

As we look ahead to the second half of 2024, I bet you’ve got some big ideas and changes you want to make happen in your organization. 

But driving change isn’t easy. New ideas always face resistance. And sometimes, getting traction for a big idea can feel like an endless uphill climb.

To turn your ideas into meaningful change, you need to become a great consensus builder. A successful career in leadership just won’t happen unless you have the ability to get people on board with and aligned around big ideas.

Fortunately, it’s a skill you can develop!

That’s why, today, I’m sharing some practical strategies I’ve learned to build consensus—both from my own career and from the other great leaders I get to interview on my podcast, How Leaders Lead.

If you’re ready to get big things done in the second half of 2024, this will help you do it. Let’s dive in!

1. Communicate clearly

Explain the idea. Spend time thinking through your idea, its purpose, and its benefits so you can explain it in a clear and simple way. This may seem obvious, but too many ideas fail to launch because leaders just don’t articulate them well.

If people can’t quickly and easily understand the basic gist of what you want to do, chances are, you need to make it clearer and simpler.

Tell stories. When you want to build consensus, you need to win people’s minds AND hearts. So share the relevant facts and figures that support your idea, but engage emotions, too.

The best way to do this, according to Waze co-founder Uri Levine, is to use storytelling. 

“Story is not about facts,” he says. “It's about creating emotional engagement. And when you're doing that, then people actually sign up … because they want to be part of it.”

As you talk about your idea, tell stories about the people you want to help and the problems you’re trying to solve. Stories are memorable and powerful, and they’ll help you make that all-important emotional connection.

Connect it to the bigger mission. How does your idea align with your organization’s larger vision and strategies? You need to answer that question to build consensus, especially if you’re trying to rally resources and support.

The power of a bigger mission comes up often in the conversation I had recently with Rocky Collis. CEO of the sports coaching app Mustard. By talking about their company’s mission, he’s been able to attract top talent and A-list investors like Nolan Ryan, Drew Brees, Mia Hamm and more.

Give it a listen if you want to learn how to build more consensus by focusing on your mission.

2. Get people involved.

No involvement, no commitment. If you don’t get people involved, you’ll never get their commitment. 

I learned this the hard way when I launched Crystal Pepsi, which, as you probably know, famously flopped. My bottlers told me it needed to taste more like Pepsi if it was going to have the “Pepsi” label on it.

I didn’t listen to them—and sure enough, when it came time to launch it, my bottlers weren’t very committed to it because they didn’t feel heard along the way.

So as you develop your idea, don’t get too attached to it. Leave space for others to shape it with their input. When you get others involved early, you’ll have their commitment later.

Listen actively. Sure, you’ve got to talk about your idea if you want people’s buy-in. But it’s just as important to listen. Show genuine interest in others’ opinions and address their concerns.

I love how Lisa Lutoff-Perlo modeled this in her role as CEO of Celebrity Cruises when she was building consensus for a new class of ships. In her words, “It wasn’t just me saying, ‘This is what we’re going to do.’ It was me saying, ‘There is where we need to go.’ Now, how do we all think we’re going to get there, and let’s share our ideas.”

(Hear the full story—and lots more insights—on Lisa’s episode of How Leaders Lead.)

You need this listening posture if you want to get others involved!

And remember, it’s okay to let people disagree, both with you and with each other. Some leaders think an open discussion will decrease consensus, but actually, the opposite is true. 

People are more likely to get on board—even if they don’t agree—as long as they feel like they’ve been heard along the way.

Give away ownership. It may start as your idea, but in order for it to become a reality, you’ve got to allow others to share the ownership.

Give the most engaged team members responsibility to develop or take charge of different aspects of your idea. This will deepen their sense of responsibility and investment and create more momentum toward broader consensus, too.

3. Don’t be afraid to persuade.

Be open about challenges. Every idea has its drawbacks and challenges. As a consensus builder, it’s your job to address them.

A lot of leaders try to downplay those challenges in order to create buy-in, but you’ll actually be more persuasive if you acknowledge them and get people talking about how they can be addressed.

This is an idea I learned from Kevin Hochman, the CEO of Brinker International, the parent company of Chili’s and Maggiano’s. 

He told me, “It’s critically important not just that you have a well-thought out idea, but [also a] Plan B and Plan C if things go sideways.”

This is especially true if you’re trying to get buy-in from your senior leadership. As Kevin says, “As long as you talk about Plan B and Plan C, and they know that you’ve thought about what could go wrong, it’s a lot easier for them to have your back.”

You can hear more from Kevin in our full conversation on How Leaders Lead.

Show what works. It’s risky for people to back an unproven idea. But when you can demonstrate some credibility, you’ll diminish that risk. This is crucial if you want to create buy-in.

Use facts, figures, and case studies to show that your plan has legs. You may even be able to launch a smaller-scale version of the idea to build your case.

Create a sense of urgency. As any good salesperson will tell you, nothing drives action like a deadline. In your conversations, spell out whatever aspects of your idea are time sensitive. Lay out the risks of NOT taking action. Creating this kind of urgency helps you build momentum and turn conversations into meaningful action. 

Getting buy-in from others is one of the toughest parts of leadership. As you can see, it involves practically every other skill: communication, vision, listening, research, relationship-building and more.

But that’s what makes it so critical! Without it, you’ll find it nearly impossible to build your career and get big things done with the people around you.

I hope these strategies can help you launch whatever big ideas you’re working on right now!

Now, I’d love to hear from you! How do you build consensus around your plans and ideas? What strategies did I miss? 

Drop a quick comment and share what you think. I’d love to learn from you!

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