Unleash the Inspiring Leader within Yourself - Part 1

October 8, 2021

This quote from Steve Jobs vividly describes the difference between a leader and a manager:

«Management is about persuading people to do things they do not want to do,
while Leadership is about inspiring people to do things they never thought they could.»

Over the past ten years – first as a consultant for Executive Search & Leadership Potential Analysis and later for Outplacement / Newplacement – I met hundreds of executives and accompanied them in unleashing their potential, developing new perspectives and shaping their professional future according to their ideas. In the process, I discovered the characteristics and behaviors of inspirational leaders who achieve extraordinary results with their teams. Learn more in this article.

1.     Inspirational leaders have a clear vision they share with others.

Inspirational leaders strive to make a difference, add value to people and achieve real change. They know their «why», their purpose in life and have a crystal-clear focus. With pleasure they share their vision with others, and their enthusiasm has a contagious effect on those around them.

When you read these lines, you might think of the great visionaries of our time, Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, Elon Musk or Richard Branson, and your courage might leave you. It's not about having a vision of that magnitude or building an empire. It's about articulating your vision for your sphere of influence, for your department, for your life, and experiencing how encouraging it is to get it out there.

Please note that you do not confuse vision with goals. «We want to be the market leader» or «We will increase sales by 10%» are not visions, they are goals. A vision creates meaning. Just like the vision of Wikipedia: «Imagine a world in which every single person is given free access to the sum of all human knowledge.»

2.     Inspirational leaders are role models and have followers.

The management guru, Peter Drucker, formulated:

«The only definition of a leader is someone who has followers.»

Although this definition seems too minimalist to me, inspirational leaders are people others like to follow. Full of charisma, they describe images of the future that convey meaning and appeal to others emotionally. This is about more than just inspiring words. Inspirational leaders are always aware of the impact they have on the people around them and live the mindset, energy and change they aspire to. As role models, they inspire their peers to share their vision, pursue new goals and achieve extraordinary things.

3.     Where people rise above themselves, visions become reality!

To realize their vision, inspirational leaders surround themselves with people who perform at the highest level in line with their vision. They create a culture of trust, clarity and appreciation so that others can reach their full potential. In this way, they awake the joy of creativity, continuous development and high performance and empower those around them to overcome their own limitations as often as possible, see challenges as opportunities for novel solutions and go above and beyond.

Finally, four questions for self-reflection:

-       Cross your heart: on a scale of 1-10, how inspiring are you as a leader (10 = highest score)?

-       What is your vision – for your professional and private life?

-       Where do you serve as a role model? Where are you the change you strive to make?

-       How do you spur the people around you to continuous development?

I am eager to hear your feedback and look forward to sharing more key behaviors of inspiring leaders with you in the next article.