I don’t have daughters, I am a fan of football and I wouldn’t know anything about Taylor Swift except for people I know who have daughters and the media. Am I just jumping on the bandwagon to talk about her?
Nope. 
I was going to check one of my e-mail accounts and came across an article1 on Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s relationship affecting viewership and the economic impact. This got me thinking. What is making her such an influence other than the amplification by the media?
A Story
What makes great movies great? If they are truly great, they have action for the males and romance for the females. My favorite movie is Braveheart, and this is a story of leadership, adventure, fighting . . . and love. Maybe that is why my wife doesn’t mind watching it.
People are drawn to stories. Some of the greatest communicators realize this and use stories to drive their points home. Whether someone is a Chiefs/Kelce fan or a “Swifty” they are getting caught up in the story and intrigued by it.
What story or adventure are you inviting your team into as a leader? This story is a source of great influence and purpose for people and even better when your people are the heroes of the story . . . not you as the leader.
A Pressure
The Kelce brothers have a successful podcast and have been part of Super Bowl winning teams. Taylor Swift has a large following. These facts impact their ability to create influence by harnessing two influence tools.
One of the tools of influence Dr. Robert Cialdini references in his book Influence2 is likeability. Many factors go into likeability such as appearance and similarity, but the bottom line is people follow those they like. In their book Influencer3 Grenny, Patterson, et al. discuss the power of social influence and how respect and connection are required to create a sense of peer pressure.
The second factor of the Swift influence is people like both her and Travis. Both also have created communities where people feel connected to them. People respect them because of their success.
All these are factors every leader can use ethically. When you connect with those you lead and exemplify getting results apart from your position people begin to like you, and word spreads you are a leader to listen to. Over time, just like Travis and Taylor people have followed them because of the influence of others.
A System
Grenny and his colleagues explain that to create change, people must create systems and processes to support vital behaviors. There is genuine, but strategic influence in this story we are seeing. People are interested in the story, but as alluded to in the article I read to trigger this post, systems and processes within media and possibly elsewhere amplify the influence. This is not about whether it is right or wrong, but if we observe we can see that an intentional process is in place to keep us aware of their relationship because of the momentum it creates for the NFL, viewership, and other aspects referenced in the article.
As a leader, our biggest system is the culture of our organization. Culture will either promote or hinder your influence. The “Swifty” culture has amplified the NFL to people who rarely pay attention. Leaders can create a culture that promotes the direction they are leading the team, or the culture can detract from where they are trying to lead.
Take a minute and look at your vision. What is the story you are telling? How is it engaging your team or even attracting people to you or is it not? What could you do to ethically leverage peer pressure and create systems to increase your influence? Are you unclear on the story you are trying to tell and your vision? Contact me for a strategic thinking partner session to help you think into your vision and how you can inspire others to be more committed to where you are leading them. Lead Well.
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- “Taylor Swift helped boost ratings, but her influence extends far beyond the league”, https://finance.yahoo.com/news/taylor-swift-helped-boost-nfl-ratings-but-her-power-extends-far-beyond-the-league-180303062.html retrieved 10/5/23
- Cialdini, Robert. Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion. Harpers Collins: NY, 2007.
- Grenny, J., Patterson, K., Maxfield, D., McMillan, R., Switzler, A. Influencer: The Power to Change Anything. McGraw Hill: NY, 2008