A practical digital workbook for influencing up
You have the idea. They have the authority.
Make the Ask helps you turn a strong idea into a clear, credible request your decision-maker can say yes to.
It moves your preparation off your title and onto your worth, and it ends with one page you carry into the room.
Digital PDF workbook · Instant download · Fillable and printable
Your real worry is not the idea
You are not afraid your idea is weak. You are afraid it will be judged by your title before anyone hears what it could do. That fear is honest, and it sends you toward the wrong preparation.
You cannot borrow authority you do not have, and you cannot practice your way into a level you have not been given. There is a version of preparing that works, and it starts somewhere other than your slides. This workbook walks you through it in the days you actually have.
Every senior yes is a yes somebody has to justify later. Give them the words.
Leave with a one-page plan for your ask.
By the last page you will have completed your Influence Brief. It is your prepared case at-a-glance, built line by line as you work through the book, and you carry it into the meeting to stay focused and on plan.
- Your ask defined in terms that are relevant for the room
- Your credibility positioned so you are the right person for this ask
- An understanding of the specific needs of your stakeholders
- Prepared answers to the three most typical cynics
Seven chapters
The meeting is in two weeks
Why rank answers to worth
The W.O.R.T.H. audit
Build the ask
Prep for the room
The Influence Brief
After the answer
Three people are always in the room
You already know them, even if you have never named them. Most preparation advice tells you to anticipate tough questions and stops there. Each of these three is protecting something specific, and once you know what it is, you stop defending and start answering.
The workbook gives you a worksheet for each of them, the questions they will actually ask, what each one is protecting, and example answers written the way a person really talks.
See the workbookWho this is for
- You have an idea you want to move forward, and you need buy-in from people more senior than you
- You are asking for budget, headcount, sponsorship, or approval to launch something
- You lead a team, a program, or a function without the authority to fund your own ideas
- You want your thinking to carry weight in rooms where your title does not
- You are ready to build real influence at work and willing to do the work in writing
Why trust this framework
- 15+ years
- of public speaking and leadership experience
- 150+
- leaders coached
- LinkedIn Learning
- instructor
- Amazon #1
- bestselling author
About Summer
Summer Alexander coaches mid-to-senior leaders on executive presence, public speaking, and high-stakes communication. Her work centers on a challenge she sees often: the operationally credible leader who now needs to carry that authority into the executive layer and influence across and up an organization.
She holds a Master's in Organizational Leadership and a Bachelor's in Strategic Management from DePaul University, along with a certificate in Educating Adults from DePaul's School for Continuing and Professional Studies. Summer is certified in Insights Discovery and the Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI) and holds a DEI&B certification from the Stanford Graduate School of Business.
With more than 15 years designing and leading leadership development programs, she has led learning functions for global organizations and coached leaders across industries and geographies. Her approach is human-centered and practical, built on creating spaces where leaders can practice, experiment, and grow.
Make the Ask is that coaching, written down: the same preparation she walks leaders through before the meeting that matters.
Questions
You can read it in a lunch break. Finishing it takes about two to three hours of writing, and gathering the information you need may take a few days.
Both. It is a fillable PDF, and the worksheet pages are designed to print cleanly if you would rather write by hand.
Yes. The workbook tells you which pages to do first when you are short on time.
No. It works anywhere you need a decision from someone who outranks you, including nonprofits, higher education, and the public sector.
If you want live practice before the meeting, PrepTalk gives you a rehearsal partner, and one-to-one coaching goes deeper.
You download it immediately after checkout, and a copy is emailed to you.
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Your idea is ready. Make the ask.
Get the fillable workbook and start writing your first ask today.
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