Leadership

If you build and manage the spirit of the team effectively, the results and success are undeniable – in any sphere of life…

“If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more, and become more, then you are indeed a leader.”

“If you want to be remembered as soon as you die and are buried, either write things worth reading or do things worth writing about.”

While there are different approaches and perspectives on leadership, in my humble opinion, a true leader has been, is, and will be anyone (regardless of their field of activity) who, through their actions, inspires others for the overall improvement of themselves. The essence of the message in these two famous quotes, the first by John Quincy Adams and the second by Benjamin Franklin, lies in an undeniable truth derived from empirical knowledge – leadership is not about the position (someone can be the president or prime minister of a country but not accomplish anything significant that motivates others towards self-improvement). Instead, it fundamentally concerns how motivating and inspiring someone’s actions are in terms of improving the lives of others who are confronted with those actions (someone else can be a student but inspire others through their actions to better themselves).

The most important component of leadership is the ability to positively influence others. In this regard, let’s clarify one thing right away – nobody is positively influenced by orders. Empirical knowledge has shown that the most effective ways to positively influence others are motivation and inspiration.

1. Motivation

If you think motivating others is something difficult, allow me to confirm that it’s actually a much simpler process than it may seem. The initial premise for motivating others is to understand that others have needs and desires, if not the same, then at least very similar to yours. Others (just like you): (i) need and desire recognition and appreciation for their achievements, no matter how small (acknowledging and valuing the achievements of others is a genuinely motivating act); (ii) need and desire support (the support you offer to others is not just an act of generosity or goodwill but undoubtedly an act of leadership); and (iii) need and desire incentives (monetary or moral rewards as the case may be) when they achieve a specific goal. For these reasons, a true leader always acknowledges and values the achievements of others, unconditionally supports others, and offers incentives to others.

2. Inspiration

A true leader knows that inspiring others naturally occurs when he/she: (i) Practices what they preach to others. Because few take words at face value, but everyone appreciates actions; (ii) Seeks to bring out the best in each person. Since everyone has both positive and negative aspects, highlighting the positive aspects in most cases makes people more self-aware and motivated to maintain high standards in their performance; and (iii) Builds the spirit of the team – To illustrate the importance of the ‘spirit of the team,’ it is enough to refer to this famous saying: “When you walk alone, you walk fast; when you walk with others, you go far.”