Inspire

#Beingaleader means you need to inspire people. The successful team is one that wants to go where you are going. You inspire by giving them vision; a reason to go in a particular direction; and the tools to get there.

#Beingaleader is about letting them see where the team is going; to so inspire them to want to be there that they gladly do whatever it takes. This could include inconvenience, overcoming obstacles etc. But the goal or prize is worth whatever the sacrifice is required.

#Beingaleader is about honesty. Honest communication of where your team is going; why they should want to go there; and the steps/ability to help them get there. Inspiration is contagious and fills the team with hope and purpose.

Motivation, on the other hand, is different. Inspiring someone means you push them to do something they now want to do. Externally motivating someone is more a pulling them along to get them to do something they might not want to do.

Motivation should be more of an internal response to inspiration. I don’t think you can really externally motivate someone for any length of time. The team has to get that motivational desire from within. So the progression looks like this: you set the vision and inspire them to want to go there. They then internalize the vision and provide for themselves the motivation to keep going regardless of difficulty.

If you try to motivate through external methods (prize or punishment) you might get obedience but you won’t truly get motivation. This is particularly important to know when dealing with volunteers: people over whom you have no financial or other control. You must inspire them to do something or it simply won’t happen.

#Beingaleader means you recognize the need to inspire your team.