Lead and Motivate—Not Just Your Team, But Yourself Too

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Lead and Motivate—Not Just Your Team, But Yourself Too
By: Joelle Jay, Ph.D.
Issue: June 2010

As a business leader, you know one of your key tasks is to keep your team motivated. To do so, you need to constantly remind your people of the company’s vision, hold them accountable to targets and goals, mentor them and support them in their work. But how does the one who motivates others every day stay motivated as well?

When it comes to leaders, motivation is really about engagement. How engaged are you in your work? How committed are you to the results you’re supposed to be getting? Are you pushing forward with a sense of purpose and drive, or are you simply going through motions? To be your best, you need to give serious thought to what makes you flourish and succeed.

When you are motivated, you are a wholehearted participant in your own life. You know what’s important to you and you use it as a guide. You feel confident, energized and engaged. However, when you are unmotivated, you “lose your edge.” Your energy goes down. Your stress goes up. You may even feel guilty and resentful. You might be bored, either in an “I-can’t-take-this-anymore” way or in a dull, channel-surfing kind of way. Whatever way a lack of motivation hits you, one thing is for sure—it’s not a fun place to be.

Whether you feel your motivation waning or you want to keep your current high level of motivation on a roll, the following suggestions will help you stay at your best.

Stay connected to what you’re doing.
It’s one thing to do the work you’re paid to do; it’s another thing to be fulfilled by the work you do. If you’re strictly doing your job for the money, or the title, or the company car, you could find that over time it’s harder and harder to actually do the job. However, if you’re connected to what you do—if you’re connected to what excites you—you’ll feel motivated to keep going because you’ll be achieving a bigger purpose for yourself.

The key is to know your values—the principles, standards and qualities that guide you. To uncover your values, recall a time in your life when everything was “just right.” You can choose something from your personal life or your work. Ask yourself what it is that makes it a peak experience? Write down any ideas that come to mind—words, phrases, images and symbols. Circle the words that meet the definition of values as principles, standards and qualities. There’s no right or wrong. Simply use your own words and your gut to tell you what your values are.

Know what it takes to get better.
Motivation comes from constant learning about how to be better. You should always be asking yourself, “What am I trying to achieve?” and “What do I need to learn to reach my goal?” Realize that this isn’t about taking a workshop or reading a book. It’s about challenging yourself to take on something new and to stretch yourself into a new level of results. When you practice learning as an element of personal leadership, you stay motivated and you get better results for yourself and for your work. By learning, you empower yourself to have, do and be whatever you choose. And with empowerment comes confidence. You don’t second-guess yourself or worry you’ll fail because you know if you get it wrong you’ll be able to figure out how to get it right.

Find the right support system.
When you’re a leader, all the people below you lean on you. You guide them, support them. However, when you’re on top, you don’t have anyone above you to lean on. That’s when you need to look outside of your organization, your role or even your industry for the people who can cheer you on, mentor you and help you be your best.

Look for people whose style you like—people who inspire you by the way they lead and the results they get.

The more carefully you build your support team, the more powerful it will be. You don’t just ask people to mentor you because you like them; you make them a part of your team because they enhance you. The people on your support team help you stay motivated because they expand you by giving you access to what you don’t know.

Maintain a sense of balance.
While maintaining a work/life balance is not a way to stay motivated, it is a way to keep from becoming de-motivated. When you’re serving everyone else you have to remember to fill your own tank. Remember that being an effective and motivated leader should not come at the expense of quality of life, and quality of life should not come at the expense of business results. Work and life should be able to co-exist, happily and successfully. The key is to define what that balance looks like for you.

What helps you restore your energy and find that sense of peace, rest and renewal? Even if you can’t carve out chunks of time, at least create some mental space where you can relax, turn off distractions and let yourself go.

Motivate the Motivator
Staying motivated in today’s economy and work reality can be difficult for anyone. But when you take responsibility for motivating yourself and others, you become a true inspiration and can better reach your goals. As a result, your vision, your potential and your efforts all leave a mark. As you progress there will be times you’ll lose heart. You’ll get busy, you’ll get tired, you’ll forget and you’ll have setbacks. But you won’t get lost. When you follow these four guidelines, you’ll have a solid foundation for your continued success, now and in the future.

Joelle K. Jay, Ph. D., is an executive coach and the senior managing partner of the leadership development firm, Pillar Consulting. She strategizes with business leaders to enhance their performance and maximize business results. Joelle is the author of "The Inner Edge: The 10 Practices of Personal Leadership." For more information visit go to www.TheInnerEdge.com.