1. EachPod

How to Apply Pressure to Decisionmakers, Without it Blowing Up in Your Face

Author
Kath Patrick
Published
Sun 17 Aug 2025
Episode Link
https://nonprofitpowerpodcast.com/108

We are in a time where more and more, for a lot of decisionmakers, pressure is a necessary component to our advocacy. At the same time, we're operating in an environment where some decisionmakers, including some very high-profile ones, are engaging in retaliatory behavior against people who would oppose them or challenge them in any way.

So I can understand if you might feel a little concerned.

In a perfect world, we would have influential collaborative relationships with every single decisionmaker that matters to us. That's always the goal. We're always trying to make that happen, but it's just not always the case. 

Sometimes pressure is the only option you've got. When you find yourself in that situation, your ability to use pressure effectively becomes critical. It may very well make the difference between success and failure in your advocacy work on that particular thing.


In this episode, we share:

  • Five highly effective ways to use pressure with reluctant decisionmakers
  • Why some decisionmakers actually want you to pressure them
  • How to know when you should use pressure
  • How to know which kind of pressure to use
  • Four things you must be aware of to prevent unwanted consequences
  • The one thing you must have in order for pressure to work for you
  • How to increase your comfort level with using pressure

 

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