Is it possible to turn an enemy into someone who gives you the respect you deserve?
Benjamin Franklin was one of the founding fathers of the USA. On July 1, 1731, Benjamin Franklin and his friends, his intellectual members, began The Philadelphia Library Company. The first free book lending library.
He was the only founding father to sign the four key documents that established the US: the Declaration of Independence (1776), the Treaty of Alliance with France (1778), the Treaty of Paris establishing peace with Great Britain (1783 ) and the United States Constitution (1787).
In 1736, Benjamin Franklin was “elected” unopposed as Secretary of the General Assembly in the Pennsylvania legislature. The following year, an influential new member of the legislature made “a long speech” against Franklin and favored Franklin’s opponent.
Despite the speech against him, Franklin was chosen to continue as Secretary of the General Assembly. He also served the state house through his printing business. (Franklin’s company insured the printing business for all “votes, laws, paper money, and other odd jobs for the public.”)
Franklin chose a strategic path focused on building a relationship with this adversarial member by taking an interest in what he was interested in. (Find common ground with him!)
Franklin heard that this vocal but influential opponent “had in his library a certain very rare and curious book.”
Franklin: “I wrote him a note, expressing my desire to read that book, and asked him to do me the favor of lending it to me for a few days.”
Franklin revealed a surprising result of this event in his memoirs. “He sent it off at once, and I returned it to him in about a week with another note, strongly expressing my sense of favor. The next time we met at the house, he spoke to me (which he had never done before), and with great civility; and from then on he manifested a willingness to serve me on all occasions, so that we became great friends, and our friendship continued until his death”.
Instead of avoiding a confrontational warning, Franklin took an interest in something this gentleman was passionate about. This technique is used countless times a day by leaders and other influential people.
We all have situations where we have avoided a conversation or an opponent. Are you willing to humble yourself to ask someone for a favor?
What if you decided to “tune in” to some of their interests? It is possible that he can build a fantastic bridge that could last a lifetime.