Simon Sinek sets out how great leaders inspire action in his TED TALK. How we inspire others comes from that inner place in us, what we believe in, what we are truly passionate about. It is about inner authenticity.
Understanding and tapping into that inner passion regularly comes up in coaching.
I believe It is at the heart of great coaching, when the coachee goes beyond simply improving skills and behaviours and understands and taps into what it is that fundamentally drives him or her. It enables leaders to become great leaders, inspiring others to follow them, not because of what they say and the words they use, but because of why they are saying it and their own authenticity. Without this inner 'why' many leaders and organisations find themselves in the all too common saying / doing gap, with lack of trust and follower dis-engagement.
As the the Overview of the GoodWork Project sets out:
People who work are not always aware of the forces that ultimately matter to them. While focusing on the “how” questions—how to get a job, how to keep the job, how to get ahead—many forget the “why” questions that they began with: Why take this path? Why aim to achieve this objective? Why behave in this way? It is the “why” questions that remind us of our truer aspirations and ambitions. Because everyone, everywhere, wants to live an admirable life, a life of consequence, because we all would like to pass “the tombstone test,” the “why” questions cannot be ignored for long without peril to one‟s personal stability and enduring success. It is like ignoring the rudder on a ship—no matter how much you look after all the other moving parts, you may end up lost at sea.
'We follow those who lead, not for them, but for ourselves. And it's those who start with 'why' that have the ability to inspire those around them or find others who inspire them'.
Good leaders and good followers both need to be aware of their own 'why' questions.
As Mark Levy says 'meaning is where your power resides.' Listen to his audio download 'The fascination factor' or reading his e-book on his web site Compelling
