The ABC’s of Leadership (Day 9): Ignite

A leader finds the passion inside others, and seeks to ignite their soul.

The spark from a tiny star can ignite the plains. (Mao Zedong)

Day 9 – ‘I’

ABC’s of Leadership (Ignite)

Passion is hard to coach.  It’s even harder to identify.  Deep inside, we’re all passionate about people, or things we’ve experienced, or want to experience.

It only takes one match to ignite a haystack, or one remark to fire a mind.  (Lawrence Durrell)

In my first post about ‘Appreciation’, I talked about the importance of people. Specifically, I noted that nothing gets done without people, and everything we do is for people.  This is especially applies to leaders.  Passion and engagement drive productivity.  Professor Dan Ariely’s 2012 Ted Talk echos this:

…if you understood how important meaning is, then you would figure out that it’s actually important to spend some time, energy and effort in getting people to care more about what they’re doing. (Dan Ariely)

If you care about your team, actively, and continuously engage them.  Speak to their interest, and get creative; find ways to advance their passions.  You’ll be amazed at the results.

Want more on leadership? Check out my partner Dale Richardson’s thoughts in his Live the Goals podcast here!

“The ABC’s of Leadership” is a web series highlighting principles of leadership.

Each day, we’ll highlight a new focus area and concept.  Done in partnership with Dale Richardson, a Podcast Host and John Maxwell Team certified speaker, trainer and coach, we’ll also offer a podcast exploring each idea further.

Tune in daily!