---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: To influence others, we must know what is…"
description: "\"To influence others, we must know what is influencing them... and they must know that we get it.\" — Bill Crawford"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d7/bill-crawford-3824_influence_to-influence-others-we-must-know-what-is_2048942.png"
---

#  To influence others, we must know what is influencing…

![“To influence others, we must know what is influencing them... and they must know that we get it.” quote by Bill Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d7/bill-crawford-3824_influence_to-influence-others-we-must-know-what-is_2048942.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d7/bill-crawford-3824_influence_to-influence-others-we-must-know-what-is_2048942.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d7/bill-crawford-3824_influence_to-influence-others-we-must-know-what-is_2048942.png)

> “To influence others, we must know what is influencing them... and they must know that we get it.”

[Bill Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-crawford/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Understanding others' influences and making that awareness explicit builds trust and effective persuasion.

**In simple terms:** Know what drives others and show you understand.

Key Takeaway

Make influence transparent.

Themes

communication trust leadership

Mood

thoughtful strategic

Type

advice insightful

When to use this quote

- team meetings
- negotiations
- marketing campaigns
- coaching sessions

Key Concepts

psychology social dynamics

Questions to Reflect On

- How can you reveal influence without seeming controlling?
- What signals show you truly understand others?

A Different Perspective

People may resist if they feel manipulated.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Influence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/influence/) [Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/power/)

## Related quotes

> [“We have every piece of data on 200 million people,” he said, ticking off his fingers. “We have their bank accounts. We know how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yudhanjaya-wijeratne/we-have-every-piece-of-data-on-200-million-people-he-said-ticking-off/)

[Yudhanjaya Wijeratne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yudhanjaya-wijeratne/)

> [In order to become more influential with those who are resistant to our point of view, we must be willing to start with what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-crawford/in-order-to-become-more-influential-with-those-who-are-resistant-to/)

[Bill Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-crawford/)

> [That's the way it is with influence, you know; if you don't use it all the time, people will forget you have it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-deasy/that-s-the-way-it-is-with-influence-you-know-if-you-don-t-use-it-all/)

[Mary Deasy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-deasy/)

> [And you know, almost in a perverse way, I wish it had been undue influence because we know how to correct that. We get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kay/and-you-know-almost-in-a-perverse-way-i-wish-it-had-been-undue/)

[David Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kay/)

> [The future is not inevitable. We can influence it, if we know what we want it to be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-handy/the-future-is-not-inevitable-we-can-influence-it-if-we-know-what-we/)

[Charles Handy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-handy/)

> [My influence is everywhere. You know when you're touching people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/the-dream/my-influence-is-everywhere-you-know-when-you-re-touching-people/)

[The-Dream](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/the-dream/)

> [None of us can be proof against the influences that proceed from the persons he associates with. Wherefore, in books and men, let us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-mason/none-of-us-can-be-proof-against-the-influences-that-proceed-from-the/)

[Charlotte Mason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-mason/)

> [One of the surest ways of making a friend and influencing the opinion of another is to give consideration to his opinion, to let…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-carnegie/one-of-the-surest-ways-of-making-a-friend-and-influencing-the-opinion/)

[Dale Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-carnegie/)

> [God's Word must be so strongly fixed in our minds that it becomes the dominant influence in our thoughts, our attitudes, and our actions.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-bridges/god-s-word-must-be-so-strongly-fixed-in-our-minds-that-it-becomes-the/)

[Jerry Bridges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-bridges/)

> [To be effective at selling ideas, at being a lobbyist, influencing other people, you have to be very sure of yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/duncan-green/to-be-effective-at-selling-ideas-at-being-a-lobbyist-influencing/)

[Duncan Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/duncan-green/)

> [This is more in regards to celebrities. What we've got to understand is that we are the influencers of the hip-hop culture, the black…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/demetrius-shipp-jr/this-is-more-in-regards-to-celebrities-what-we-ve-got-to-understand/)

[Demetrius Shipp, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/demetrius-shipp-jr/)

> [“Each day you are leading by example. Whether you realize it or not or whether it's positive or negative, you are influencing those around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-liano/each-day-you-are-leading-by-example-whether-you-realize-it-or-not-or/)

[Rob Liano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-liano/)

> [Leadership is not about titles, positions or flowcharts. It is about one life influencing another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/leadership-is-not-about-titles-positions-or-flowcharts-it-is-about/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Deterrence is still fundamentally about influencing an actor's decisions. It is about a solid policy foundation. It is about credible capabilities. It is about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-robert-kehler/deterrence-is-still-fundamentally-about-influencing-an-actor-s/)

C. Robert Kehler

> [Influencing people is dangerous. Their acts and thoughts become your illegitimate children. You can't get away from them and Heaven knows what they mayn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-bibesco/influencing-people-is-dangerous-their-acts-and-thoughts-become-your/)

[Elizabeth Bibesco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-bibesco/)

## More by Bill Crawford

> [Making changes isn't about stopping the problem, it's about starting the solution.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-crawford/making-changes-isn-t-about-stopping-the-problem-it-s-about-starting/)

[Bill Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-crawford/)

> [Worry, shame, and fear can't be the energy with which we deal with food and weight. It only spurs us to eat more food…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-crawford/worry-shame-and-fear-can-t-be-the-energy-with-which-we-deal-with-food/)

[Bill Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-crawford/)

> [One key to creating a meaningful life, is choosing what we want to feel, and for how long.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-crawford/one-key-to-creating-a-meaningful-life-is-choosing-what-we-want-to/)

[Bill Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-crawford/)

> [The problem with lethargy is that doing nothing validates the fear that nothing can be done.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-crawford/the-problem-with-lethargy-is-that-doing-nothing-validates-the-fear/)

[Bill Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-crawford/)

> [Want to change your experience of life? Change the problem to the practice field.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-crawford/want-to-change-your-experience-of-life-change-the-problem-to-the/)

[Bill Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-crawford/)

> [Becoming critical in the face of criticism, only inspires more criticism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-crawford/becoming-critical-in-the-face-of-criticism-only-inspires-more/)

[Bill Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-crawford/)

> [Children don't know that they are lovable until they are loved. They need to see it in our eyes before they can accept it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-crawford/children-don-t-know-that-they-are-lovable-until-they-are-loved-they/)

[Bill Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-crawford/)

> [Creating a meaningful life has less to do with how we feel about our past than what we do about our future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-crawford/creating-a-meaningful-life-has-less-to-do-with-how-we-feel-about-our/)

[Bill Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-crawford/)

> [There are only three things we 'have to' do in this world we have to be born, we have to die, and we have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-crawford/there-are-only-three-things-we-have-to-do-in-this-world-we-have-to-be/)

[Bill Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-crawford/)

> [Stress is an indicator of our belief in the value and validity of our worries and fears.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-crawford/stress-is-an-indicator-of-our-belief-in-the-value-and-validity-of-our/)

[Bill Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-crawford/)

> [You can't use stress, anxiety, frustration, and worry to deal with your stress, anxiety, frustration, and worry. It's like pulling up to a burning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-crawford/you-can-t-use-stress-anxiety-frustration-and-worry-to-deal-with-your/)

[Bill Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-crawford/)

> [You can't 'cope with' change anymore than you can 'manage' stress.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-crawford/you-can-t-cope-with-change-anymore-than-you-can-manage-stress/)

[Bill Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-crawford/)

> [When faced with conflicting thoughts and emotions, we must decide what to trust, what we fear, or what we know. What's important is that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-crawford/when-faced-with-conflicting-thoughts-and-emotions-we-must-decide-what/)

[Bill Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-crawford/)

> [To spank or not to spank isn't the question the question is whether whether we are teaching a quality we want our kids to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-crawford/to-spank-or-not-to-spank-isn-t-the-question-the-question-is-whether/)

[Bill Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-crawford/)

> [Love will keep us safe when we commit to choosing the kind of qualities, characteristics, and relationships that we would recommend to someone we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-crawford/love-will-keep-us-safe-when-we-commit-to-choosing-the-kind-of/)

[Bill Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-crawford/)

[Explore all 121 Bill Crawford quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-crawford/)

## More Influence quotes

> [My coach, Robert Allen, helped me a lot. He had more influence on my growth as a player than anyone else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lamarcus-aldridge/my-coach-robert-allen-helped-me-a-lot-he-had-more-influence-on-my/)

[LaMarcus Aldridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lamarcus-aldridge/)

> [Life is not about how much you have but how much you have affect others life positively.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-not-about-how-much-you-have-but-how-much-you-have-affect/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [DECIDE, v.i. To succumb to the preponderance of one set of influences over another set.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/decide-v-i-to-succumb-to-the-preponderance-of-one-set-of-influences/)

[Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/)

> [ Teaching might even be the greatest of the arts since the medium is the human mind and spirit. My three \[great teachers\] did not… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/teaching-might-even-be-the-greatest-of-the-arts-since-the-medium-is/)

[John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/)

> [I really like a lot of American country stuff, so my music has that influence, but I don't like to be set within a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jade-bird/i-really-like-a-lot-of-american-country-stuff-so-my-music-has-that/)

[Jade Bird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jade-bird/)

> [Words can only have an effect on you if you choose to listen to them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernajoy-vaal/words-can-only-have-an-effect-on-you-if-you-choose-to-listen-to-them/)

[Bernajoy Vaal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernajoy-vaal/)

> [Treason implies responsibility for something, control over something, influence upon something, knowledge of something. Treason in our time is a proof of genius. Why,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/treason-implies-responsibility-for-something-control-over-something/)

[Antoine de Saint-Exupery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/)

> [... a fellow can't predict what he will pick up in the form of influence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/a-fellow-can-t-predict-what-he-will-pick-up-in-the-form-of-influence/)

[Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/)

> [We believe a scientist because he can substantiate his remarks, not because he is eloquent and forcible in his enunciation. In fact, we distrust…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i-a-richards/we-believe-a-scientist-because-he-can-substantiate-his-remarks-not/)

[I. A. Richards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/i-a-richards/)

> [It seemed to me that the human beings I met reacted pretty much the same to the same stimuli. Different idioms,yes. Circumstances and conditions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/it-seemed-to-me-that-the-human-beings-i-met-reacted-pretty-much-the/)

[Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/)

> [Every man is a missionary, now and forever, for good or for evil, whether he intends or designs it or not. He may be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-chalmers/every-man-is-a-missionary-now-and-forever-for-good-or-for-evil/)

[Thomas Chalmers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-chalmers/)

> [My influences are jazz, blues, European classical music; they are rock music and pop music. So many kinds of music. World music from different…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rokia-traore/my-influences-are-jazz-blues-european-classical-music-they-are-rock/)

[Rokia Traore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rokia-traore/)

> [Influences come from everywhere. I don't really feel like I had too many influences for the first record because I grew up listening to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/avril-lavigne/influences-come-from-everywhere-i-don-t-really-feel-like-i-had-too/)

[Avril Lavigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/avril-lavigne/)

> [It was both necessary and desirable for us to be so strong at sea that no Sea Power could attack us without risk, so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernhard-von-bulow/it-was-both-necessary-and-desirable-for-us-to-be-so-strong-at-sea/)

[Bernhard von Bulow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernhard-von-bulow/)

> [Obligation is what's leading us to toward successful, and what keeps us moving towards the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wazim-shaw/obligation-is-what-s-leading-us-to-toward-successful-and-what-keeps/)

[Wazim Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wazim-shaw/)

[Browse all 7,121 Influence quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/influence/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "To influence others, we must know what is influencing them... and they must know that we get it.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Bill Crawford"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-crawford/to-influence-others-we-must-know-what-is-influencing-them-and-they/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Influence"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-crawford/to-influence-others-we-must-know-what-is-influencing-them-and-they/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d7/bill-crawford-3824_influence_to-influence-others-we-must-know-what-is_2048942.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d7/bill-crawford-3824_influence_to-influence-others-we-must-know-what-is_2048942.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d7/bill-crawford-3824_influence_to-influence-others-we-must-know-what-is_2048942.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“To influence others, we must know what is influencing them... and they must know that we get it.” — Bill Crawford",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Bill Crawford",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-crawford/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "To influence others, we must know...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-crawford/to-influence-others-we-must-know-what-is-influencing-them-and-they/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-crawford/to-influence-others-we-must-know-what-is-influencing-them-and-they/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
