17 Mar How Do Effective Leaders Inspire Others to Do Things They Don’t Normally Want to Do
They might have forgotten to tell you one of the main reasons they hired or promoted you to lead a team or an organization. You’re placed in your current leadership to make others do what they don’t normally want to do.
Unlike when you were just a team member, your success isn’t measured based on your individual output. Your success is evaluated according to the collective outcome of the people you lead. The latter requires going beyond self-motivation to motivate others to meet their individual and corporate goals.
One big mistake some leaders make is that because they’re highly motivated to do extraordinary things without any external motivation, they assume that everybody is wired this way and refrain from developing their abilities to motivate others to do amazing things.
Yes, the best motivation comes from within; it is intrinsic. However, we have seen extraordinary leaders in the work and marketplaces inspiring others, some the entire nation and even generations, to go the extra mile and do things they didn’t normally desire to do by themselves.
Some also mistakenly think that what motivates them will also inspire others. They use a one-size-fits-all approach and end up frustrated, blaming the people they try to motivate for not responding to their attempts.
If you’re interested in reading more, check the excerpt below from my Book entitled “Soft Skills That Make or Break Your Success: 12 soft skills to manage yourself, become a team player, and lead your team to absolute success”. One of the soft skill competencies discussed in the book is the ability to Inspire Others. In the excerpt, you could be able to hear the perspectives of two leaders from different industries: The Military and Art.
Check it out and let me know your thoughts…
Soft Skills That Make or Break Your Success: 12 soft skills to manage yourself, become a team player, and lead your team to absolute success (Excerpt p. 207)
…People are attracted to skillful leaders who motivate them to become more, do more, and achieve more. Leaders who belittle others are limiting and can easily repel people. These kinds of leaders are unable to tap into the unlimited potential of their people. They cannot take them to the next level.
Unfortunately, many think that the ability to motivate others is a gift than a soft skill that can be developed. And therefore, they don’t proactively invest their time and resources in learning how to motivate others. Even those who believe this competency can be developed think that motivating others is all about giving pep talks, being charismatic, and exuding passion and energy to inspire others to do extraordinary things. Though being charismatic and speaking with enthusiasm motivates some. It’s not enough to motivate all people consistently.
Dwight D. Eisenhower, who motivated and led hundreds of thousands of ally forces during the June 6, 1946 (The D-Day) war, believed that “Motivation is the art of getting people to do what you want them to do because they want to do it.” Throughout his military career as a General and political career that culminated as the 34th President of the US, Eisenhower clearly understood that people are diverse with differing passions, desires, needs, and personality types. Accordingly, he tailored his motivational approaches that consistently inspired his people to do what he wanted them to do gladly and with enthusiasm.
Hollywood’s highest-paid star in 2012- Leonardo DiCaprio, revealed what really motivates him. To many people’s disbelief, he dismissed that winning Oscar wasn’t his motivation. He acknowledged, “I don’t think anyone would say that they wouldn’t want one [Oscar]. I think they would be lying.”
You may then ask, “What drives DiCaprio to perform extraordinarily in those roles he has been playing for decades?” He admitted that he never expected to win Oscar, which was not his motivation when he played these roles. He shared what motivates him. “I really am motivated by being able to work with great people and create a body of work that I can look back and be proud of.”
Like DiCaprio, each team member has things that motivate them. If you discover what motivates them, you’ll inspire them to do extraordinary things well beyond what they have already believed they can achieve. Henry Kissinger- the 56th Secretary of State of the US, said: “The task of the leader is to get his people from where they are to where they have not been.”
Remember this. Your organization has a vision of where it would like to reach. In most cases, at any given time, there is an apparent gap between where the organization is and where it would like to arrive. You’re hired to take the lead and contribute your share to filling this gap by continually motivating your team. However, taking your team to unfamiliar places requires developing extraordinary motivational ability by understanding their sweet spots and things that inspire them.
To learn more about the book, click here…