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Motivating people -how do leaders do it?

Written by: Hemant Karandikar

Article Overview: Good leaders expand the horizons of what is possible through a stream of ideas. They make work worthwhile. They go beyond knowledge and skills and evaluate, counsel, and place people using a framework of values and critical-to-work behaviors. They ensure process improvements. Great leaders develop good leaders by investing their expertise and time in people. Such great leaders regenerate their organizations. They are truly regenerative leaders.

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Motivating people -how do leaders do it?

Business success and growth are based on not just large enough markets and competitive offerings. Given that access to technologies, materials, labor, and markets tend to get equalized fast, motivated people make the biggest and the most lasting difference. Therefore, getting people to give their best is high on agenda of any CEO or a manager. A lot gets written on the subject and many companies start initiatives for motivating people. There are frameworks like Maslow's hierarchy of human needs and buzzwords like 'empowerment', 'employee engagement', 'top down and bottom up communications' etc.

All these are valid concepts. But, how does a leader ensure empowerment? Does he she simply tell people that they can take their own decisions? How does a leader engage people? By birthday parties, picnics, and blogging? Most leaders soon come to realize that the above things and others like pay & perks are necessary but not sufficient.

Good leaders

Good leaders expand the horizons of 'what is possible'. They have some really big ideas and a stream of small but energizing ideas. Their energy rubs on to their people. Indeed, a walk around in a workplace can reveal a lot about the 'leader'. If you find people walking in briskly, head held high, you can be certain about the leader's high energy levels.

Good leaders ensure that right projects and effective work processes are in place and that competent people with right values run them. This cuts down a lot of wasteful work like reworks, reminders, and explanations for errors. Such wasteful activities are big drains on energy levels.

Such leaders also understand the importance of trust and feeling trusted. They articulate fundamental values like integrity and fairness and also work related behaviors like meticulousness, discipline, alertness, belief in first principles etc. They know that these values, beliefs, and traits have a disproportionately large influence on success or failures in reaching goals. Therefore, good leaders evaluate, counsel, and place their people using a framework of fundamental values and work-specific critical-to-success behaviors. They go beyond knowledge and skills.

Great leaders, regenerative leaders

Great leaders do all above. But they go further. They invest their considerable experience and time in developing their people to be good leaders. There is no greater satisfaction than that they get by helping their people to progress. Such great leaders regenerate their organizations. They are truly regenerative leaders.

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Article Tags: alertness, birthday parties, business success, buzzwords, drains, employee engagement, energy levels, explanations, fairness, first principles, frameworks, fundamental values, good leaders, hierarchy of human needs, high energy, horizons, motivating people, picnics, reminders, work processes

About the Author: Hemant Karandikar
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Hemant Karandikar advises companies on business & brand strategy, on business transformation, and for achieving breakthroughs in business processes. He leverages this expertise in product creation projects for companies along with his design associates. He coaches business leaders and executives for developing leadership skills. Hemant founded Exponient Consulting and Learning Leadership. Previously, Hemant was Managing Director, GWT Global Weighing (now Sartorius Mechatronics) and held position of General Manager at Philips India. He is an alumnus of Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay, India.

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