LEADERSHIP and MOTIVATION - Foundation for SUCCESS
Leadership and Motivation go hand in hand. Leadership will be provided if the proper
level of motivation has been established.
Vincent T. Lombardi
The quality of a person's life is in direct proportion to their commitment to
exellence, regardless of their chosen field of endeavor
Vincent Thomas Lombardi (1913 – 1970) was anAmerican footballcoach.
You cannot lead if you are not motivated to lead. In principle, this needs to be
first at the highest level in the organization to assure leadership at that level. To get the proper leadership at
lower levels, motivation also needs to be established there, even though some of the motivation may come from
"because the boss wants it" and there is nothing wrong with that provided the proper arguments are being
used.
The principle of economic priorities
A manager will usually give priority response to items possessing the potential for
the greatest proportion of results from the least investment of available resources
Motivation to provide leadership normally will come from various directions: from
within the person; from his/her from friends and family members; from within the organization - bosses, peers,
colleagues, the management profession; from the neighborhood, from external parties such as clients, legislation,
pressure groups; etc.
Now I am not an expert on motivation, I am a chemical engineer and got my experience
by getting older and keeping at least somewhat in touch with the environment in which I am living. So, don't expect
the right answers here, just some points that you may want to consider when assisting to get the proper motivation
level for leadership in action.
Remember that, when I am talking about leadership here, I do not really mean the
person that climbs on a crate or tool box to provide a pep-talk. That may happen from time to time but what I
really mean is leadership providing direction based on setting objectives and targets in combination with a
well-founded plan - the "management system", which is the main subject of this website.
Some points to consider to motivate leadership in action:
potential loss (= risk) - what can go wrong: direct damage, business losses, human
suffering,
actual loss - what is being lost in comparison to business results, human
suffering
3rd party requirements - including authorities, clients, neighbors - what others demand
or expect
company profile/image - how the company wants to be recognized in their
world
stakeholders - shareholders, employees, customers, neighbors: each with their own
interest and expectations
management profession - how does the manager wants to be compared with colleagues, the
management profession
personal attitude - how the manager as a person feels about taking care of "his/her"
organization/department/people
I like to think that people who are leaders come with a high degree of self-motivation which will
be rewarded by the results that "their" people are able to get and by the motivation they manage to install within
others in their organization, unit or department.
The 17-step process allows management leadership in action when building a
management system leading to management success.
The principle of
participation
Motivation to accomplish results tends to increase as
people are given opportunity to participate in matters affecting those
results
Below is a TEDX Amsterdam presentaion: "From hero to zero - when leaders turn bad", presentation by Mr. Manfred
Kets de Vries on November 6, 2013. Mr. Kets de Vries has spent over 25 years of his professional life at INSEAD, he
started teaching there in 1971, leaving in 1973, and returning in 1984. He is now the Raoul de Vitry d’Avaucourt
Chaired Clinical Professor of Leadership Development. He was also the Founder of INSEAD Global Leadership Centre in 2003.