Invite clients or reports to contribute insight to your approach
Asking someone you lead for their input increases their investment in the outcome.
Why it works
When a leader or coach explicitly requests input from a direct report or client, the helper experiences the Ben Franklin mechanism: "I gave my knowledge to this plan, so I must care about its success." This converts passive recipients of a plan into active stakeholders who have invested their own thinking — which increases both ownership and follow-through.
How to do it
- Before presenting a plan, ask the other person: "What am I missing?" or "What would you change about this?"
- Genuinely incorporate a specific suggestion and tell them you did: "I used your framing for the second section."
- Use this as a standing practice, not a one-time consultation before imposing a pre-formed plan.
Evidence
Participation in decision-making predicts higher commitment to outcomes in organizational psychology research; the Ben Franklin mechanism provides a dissonance-based explanation for this effect alongside the informational and autonomy-support explanations. (observational)
Participatory decision-making research is robust on commitment outcomes; whether the Ben Franklin dissonance mechanism or other routes (ownership, autonomy) is the primary driver is not cleanly isolated.
Common mistake
Asking for input as a formality while having already decided — people detect consultative theater quickly, and it produces more cynicism about participation than no consultation would have.
Practice this with IX Coach
7 days free, then $40/month (~$1.30/day).
More practices for The Ben Franklin Effect, Made Practical
- Ask for a small, genuine favor from someone you want to build rapport with
Request something real and modest — help you actually need — not a pretext.
- Ask for their expertise or opinion — not just their help
Requesting someone’s expert opinion generates more liking than requesting their labor.
- Close the favor with specific, sincere gratitude
Specific thanks reinforces the helper’s positive self-attribution and deepens the effect.
- Build a pattern of small asks rather than one large one
Multiple small favors over time create a deeper liking pattern than a single large ask.
- Use a small ask to repair a strained relationship
In a cool or conflicted relationship, asking for a small favor can reset the dynamic more effectively than doing one.
- Keep asks sized to what the person can easily afford to give
A favor that costs the helper too much produces regret, not liking.
Related concepts
- Cialdini’s Principles of Influence
The six levers of persuasion, the mechanism behind each, and how to use them honestly
- The Rule of Reciprocity, Made Practical
Why giving first is a lever of persuasion — and how to use it without manipulation
- How to Win Friends and Influence People, Made Practical
The durable principles, their likely mechanisms, and an honest read on the evidence
- Active Listening, Made Practical
The component skills, the mechanisms behind them, and an honest read on the evidence