Why leaders need to get the sparks flying

There are countless theories on what makes a great leader. But based on my experience – both as CEO of BluprintX and in previous roles – it really boils down to one main thing. Having the courage and conviction to get the sparks really flying in your team. 

Getting teams to jell together is a basic principle of leadership. But your job as a leader is not to maintain a harmonious status quo. Quite the opposite in fact. The most successful teams are built of strong individuals where tension gently bubbles away beneath the surface… bringing the right level of energy and ideas to spark innovation. 

It’s your job as a leader to find these people. The people that have an opinion. The people that dare to try. The ones that are not afraid of failure. But by their very nature, these individuals will inevitably clash with one another at some point. And that’s exactly what you want. 

It’s down to you to make sure the tension doesn’t stretch too far that it has a negative effect. You need to steer the ship so that it leverages the sparks to drive growth and success. Maintaining this level of energy in a business is the only way to achieve continuous development but it needs to be managed carefully – which is not easy. 

Leading in this way takes a lot of time and energy. Not only to build the right team in the first place, but to constantly monitor, guide and support the individuals as they face their personal challenges (and battles) in this dynamic environment. 

But I can tell you from personal experience, this is the real meaning of leadership. And it’s the only strategy that I’ve seen consistently deliver results and business success, time and time again.