What does INSPIRATION LOOK LIKE IN A TEAM? (Are your LEADERS a source of INSPIRATION or DESPERATION? Part II)

Last time we talked about ENABLING and INSPIRING.

Let’s think of an organization as a vehicle and our job is to drive the organization from REALITY to DESTINATION. ENABLING can be likened to the capacity and capability of the organization. INSPIRING is its fuel. The first one defines WHERE you CAN POSSIBLY GO and the second determines IF you can actually get there. But the two work together. The vehicle cannot go anywhere without one or the other.

We will talk about CAPABILITY some other time. For now, we will focus on the FUEL.

Many mediocre and despised managers substitute something else for fuel instead of INSPIRATION. Many use THREAT OR FEAR. Others use MANIPULATION AND LIES. Others even use CHARISMA to blind people to follow. But none of them work holistically and for the long-term. NONE OF THESE ARE SUSTAINABLE. I’m sure you can imagine how each one can and will fail. (If you are still wondering, don’t hesitate to contact me with a direct message.)

Many mediocre and despised managers substitute something else for fuel instead of INSPIRATION. Many use THREAT OR FEAR. Others use MANIPULATION AND LIES. Others even use CHARISMA to blind people to follow. But none of them work holistically and for the long-term. NONE OF THESE ARE SUSTAINABLE.

So, as a leader*, how does one really inspire his followers?

* Special Note: I qualified this in the previous article but I felt it is critical we are reminded of this here. When I mention ‘leader’ here I don’t refer to individuals in the organizations to whom authority to command, rule or manage other people is given. It does not refer to someone in the hierarchy where other people officially report to by structure. 

Last time we looked into the etymology of the word INSPIRE.

But what does it practically mean to INSPIRE? I think our discussion last time did not put enough flesh to what it really means to INSPIRE.

I think it means to spark something from WITHIN a person so that his desire to do something does not rely on outside force. The person therefore is doing something because he WANTS to (may be even LIKES or LOVES to as often becomes the result of INSPIRATION.)

This leads us to 3 critical questions:

1. DOES INSPIRATION WORK BETTER as a fuel than all of the ones mentioned in the paragraphs above?
2. If yes, WHAT can we do to INSPIRE our followers?
3. HOW do we know if we are successful in INSPIRING others?

These are all fair questions and I believe we should allocate enough space to discuss each one.

Let’s start off with the first question.

Does it work better? I’d say YES, ABSOLUTELY!

Better than THREAT OR FEAR. Yes!

Better than MANIPULATION AND LIES. A resounding Yes!

Better than CHARISMA. Definitely Yes!

What makes me so darn confident? HISTORY. I will not even bore you with sociological, leadership or management studies and treatises. There are many out there and you can read them yourself.

Just look at history and you will see how these 3 forms of fuel failed miserably to sustain or to holistically bring an organization or a nation to success.

How about your own HISTORY? In which of these forms of fuel did you give your 100% effort CONSISTENTLY? In which of these fuels did you surprise yourself FREQUENTLY with the results that you got? In which of these forms of fuel did you feel relaxed or not burdened, enjoyed doing the task, and did not feel stressed or burnt out?

So, let me answer questions 1 & 3 at the same time as follows:

1. Followers are ACCOUNTABLE . They do their tasks freely with no need for follow-ups.
2. Followers are GRATEFUL for the opportunity to do certain tasks because they are growing and surprised with their own results.
3. Followers are PROUD not only of what they are able to accomplish but equally proud of what the team is able to accomplish.
4. Followers seldom ARE and LOOK TIRED.
5. WHINING and BLAMING is a rare occurrence, if ever.
6. They come and arrive to work with a SPRING in their step. And if you track tardiness and absences, they will be exceptionally few.
7. The QUALITY of work is exceptionally high. Errors are few or significantly reduced.
8. People from other teams WANT TO JOIN YOUR TEAM.
9. ATTRITION is significantly lower than company average.
10. Way more than HALF of your team have ABOVE AVERAGE PERFORMANCE. (This is why you can tell HR that normal distribution will not work in your team!)

Now, for the second question – can we wait until next time?!

If you want to know more about this and would like to develop your leaders, feel free to contact us at elar elef.

Till next time. Have a fantastic week everyone!