Powerful Student's Stories #6 - How People Destroy Their Own Authority Without Realizing It

You ever notice how the people who try the hardest to prove they’re the authority often come across as the least convincing?

I’ve seen trainer colleagues do this—throwing around their credentials, making sure everyone knows they’re the expert in the room. And honestly? It never works. If anything, it just makes people more skeptical.

Me? I’d never do that.

I don’t walk into a room thinking, I’m the authority here. I don’t pull out a certificate and say, Look, this proves I know what I’m talking about. That’s just not how respect works.

Instead, I stay curious. I listen. I ask questions. And sometimes? I learn from my own students. That’s the real trick—because when people see that I’m genuinely interested in them, they naturally become interested in what I have to say, too. Authority isn’t something you declare—it’s something others decide to give you.

And the funny thing? The less you try to be the authority, the more you actually become one. There are so many little verbal cues, tiny moments where someone either builds trust or breaks it. If you’re forcing it, people feel that. But if it’s genuine, they just start following your lead naturally.

So yeah… if you ever feel the need to say you’re the authority, you’ve probably already lost it.