How To (Truly) Inspire Others

Happy Thursday,

We’ve all met at least one extraordinary leader in our lives.

They’re the people who make us feel motivated, excited, and as if we’re bubbling over with ideas.

They make us want to jump in with our suggestions and make us super driven to get moving (“That’s AMAZING!”)

It’s so easy (and maybe a bit lazy) to assume these leaders are “just born with it.” But chances are, that’s not the truth—the ability to inspire others is a learned skill.

You’ve crossed paths with leaders who have made a concerted effort to develop a certain soft skill, and (surprise!) it’s called the Inspire style of influencing.

So what makes this a skill versus a trait, and what does it involve?

Understanding the Inspire Style

The Inspire style is about how well you can paint a vivid picture of your vision. It involves leveraging emotion to get others excited and invested, often by connecting them to the “Why” behind your idea.

There’s no need to micromanage, overexplain, or rehash data repeatedly when you’ve developed this style into a strength. Rather, you naturally ignite your team with drive and passion.

There are a couple of reasons I chose to make it the subject of this week’s newsletter:

1. It’s one of the key influencing styles in the Sphere of Influence 360, the framework that many of our workshops revolve around
2. It’s one of those sought-after skills that (I repeat) can be cultivated as long as you believe in your ideas and are willing to learn.

What’s required, then, to become a gifted “Inspirer?”

Crafting Your Inspire Skills

“Inspirational communication” might conjure images of someone with a huge vocabulary, someone who speaks poetically and passionately using dramatic storytelling.

It’s not really that complicated.

Inspiring others means evoking emotions or delivering your message with passionate energy.

It’s about three things:

1. Acting Independently: Embracing your own independent mindset to express your observations and beliefs confidently. You can improve by practicing how you articulate your perspective: focusing on your unique point of view and standing firmly to your convictions.
2. Generating Support Early On: Can you build support for your ideas ahead before you speak? Hint: it takes time and strategic planning. It means learning to clarify your vision, outline your motives, and gradually introduce your plan to key stakeholders like your teammates. It means actively inviting critique and incorporating others’ feedback to strengthen your proposals. (Suspend your ego!)
3. Highlighting Your Strengths: How well do you identify and show your unique strengths and qualities? Developing your Inspire skills involves seeking feedback not just on your ideas but on your standout attributes. Then, leveraging this knowledge of your strengths to inspire others’ confidence and trust in your leadership. The “Hard” Communication Skills

Now, I’d be lying if I told you there weren’t a few more “in the moment” communication skills to master.

But with the above three points as a foundation, the following two tips should hopefully come quite naturally:

Inspiring others means evoking emotions or delivering your message with passionate energy. In terms of language, it means figuring out how to paint your picture of the future to inspire positive emotions—for example, by emphasizing the benefits for your team members. So, use positive language, leverage clarity, and show some conviction.

Second, be future-oriented, relatable, and practical. If you’d really rather not use metaphor to convey your message, at least try to avoid jargon. It can alienate your audience. Don’t be afraid to repeat your vision in a way that reinforces its importance.

Over to You

At TTGG, we believe in learning by doing. So, as always, here are some questions that build on the points I’ve just shared:

1. Think about 2-3 recent interactions with your team. How effectively did you communicate your vision, and how did it impact their engagement and enthusiasm? (Be honest, and make notes if it helps you compare!)
2. Consider your unique strengths and qualities as a leader. How can you leverage these attributes to inspire and motivate your team members?
3. Moving on to you and your unique learning style…What steps can you take to enhance your Inspire skills further and cultivate a culture of inspiration within your organization? How might you personally apply the insights and strategies you’ve just read into your leadership approach?

The Inspire style may be more or less important to your role than you’ve realized.

Do you feel it’s a strength that would serve you well? If so, how might it help you? And if not, what communication skills do you feel would be more useful?

I’m always here for a chat. Shoot me a DM, and we can discuss your answers to any of these questions.

Speak soon.

— Govert