Come On Baby Light My (Team’s) Fire

March 18, 2015 / Suzi McAlpine /

When was the last time you were really fired up and motivated?

What was it that made you feel this way?

If you’ve ever had a boss who took the time to find out what ‘lights your fire’, you’ll know how powerful it can be.

Discovering what motivates people leads to a whole lotta good stuff.

For one, it builds trust. Taking the time to talk to someone about them and not just the task at hand shows you genuinely care.

For another, it makes you a better leader. Knowing what propels each member of your team means you can give them the fuel they need to succeed.

Every business leader is charged with getting stuff done through other people. It’s pretty darn difficult to do this without understanding what actually motivates people in the first place.

So if you’re a boss, don’t wait for the next performance appraisal or formal career planning session to find out what lights your direct reports’ fires.

Have that conversation NOW…and see what unfolds as a result.

As Nicholas Epley says in his book Mindwise -“Would bosses be smarter if they recognised their employees as fully mindful human beings who care about doing a good job, instead of seeing them as lesser minds who care only about getting a pay check? I think so.”

As a side note, I highly recommend adding this book to your leadership repertoire. You can order your copy by clicking on the image below.

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Suzi McAlpine

Suzi McAlpine is a Leadership Development Specialist and author of the award-winning leadership blog, The Leader’s Digest. She writes and teaches about accomplished leadership, what magic emerges when it’s present, and how to ignite better leadership in individuals, teams and organisations. Suzi has been a leader and senior executive herself, working alongside CEOs and executive teams in a variety of roles. Her experience has included being a head-hunter, an executive coach, and a practice leader for a division at the world’s largest HR consulting firm. Suzi provides a range of services as a Leadership Development Specialist, including executive coaching, leadership workshops and development programmes for CEOs, leadership teams and organisations throughout New Zealand.