Elements to Be a Leader

Who Inspires the Inspirer?

Success is more an attitude than an aptitude! And inspiration ihas to enable people to achieve the correct attitude that leads them to be successful.

As a child, my favorite activity was making objects out of plasticine. I had great manual dexterity, and that's why I liked to "make my own toys" with this material. I would create King Kong and destroy him in a bloody fight with Godzilla, with the advantage that I could repeat it the next day again and as many times as I wanted because I was the creator of my fantasies. Over time and with practice, I perfected my skills and began to make more sophisticated figures. At one point, I made Abraham Lincoln and then Pelé, my great football idol at the time. I was blessed with my ability at such a young age. Friends of my parents would say that I was going to be a surgeon or an artist and suggested taking me somewhere to refine my technique. Others, on the contrary, said to leave me alone to enjoy what I was doing so that it would continue to be an activity that caused passion and fun in me and thus not damage my vocation.

In the end, neither of the above options occurred. Over time, that passion for plasticine was transformed, and other interests such as football and new activities captured my attention. I never lost the ability, but by stopping practice, I never achieved the competence I could have reached. What I definitely never had was the motivation to become an artist or surgeon, so my "success" in the plastic arts or manual skills was cut short by my attitude towards the subject.

This brief story is very common; many identify with similar situations. People with extraordinary abilities who never achieve the inspiration to be successful in that field. This is why the right attitude determines our ability to achieve goals in any discipline. It is not enough to develop competence, that is, to know the theoretical bases and practice them; one must have real dedication, a genuine passion for the subject, because otherwise, faced with any problem or distraction, we will deviate from that path.

These principles also apply to the art of leading. If you really want to become a great leader, you must prepare yourself, understand and learn the behaviors to reach this position, apply them, and perfect them through practice, but also have the right motivation and attitude; that is, the real intention of wanting to become a leader.

These three principles—knowledge, practice, and attitude—make leading a more complex endeavor than it seems.

• Knowledge because the behaviors required to be a good leader are often not entirely clear, as there are countless approaches, and sometimes it is difficult to truly understand the work of a good leader, one who enhances the skills and performance of the people they work with, achieving extraordinary results and also transforming their lives.

• Practice because even when it is understood which behaviors allow this to be achieved, it is sometimes difficult to practice them. On occasion, the easiest short-term path is to give orders and direct autocratically, instead of inspiring and developing people, ensuring sustainable results. Many times, one falls into the dichotomy between the immediate result and creating an empowered, successful, and sustainable organization. The short term and the pressure for results lead us to assume purely directive roles in matters that perhaps do not warrant it, instead of leading.

• Attitude, which sometimes becomes more relevant than the previous two, is having the genuine interest in becoming leaders. Motivation gives us the right attitude to embark on the path, not to deviate, and not to be seduced by the deceptive state of comfort and tranquility provided by giving orders and exercising control, without realizing that by doing so, we negatively impact the people we work with, and ourselves, because by not letting go, by keeping all the burden, by not building and empowering for the future, we will be destined to become slaves of our own behaviors. Hence the endless hours of work, the feeling that "the team lacks initiative," the thought that "if I'm not on top of things, they won't get done," all because we have chosen the wrong path, the one that seems easier and in the long run is more complex.

Many times, when I am talking with people about our leadership programs at UNLOCK ENGINE, the following question arises: How do we get bosses, managers, or directors to truly assume the role of leaders? The answer lies in the three elements we have just mentioned: knowledge and practice that allow you to be competent, and the attitude that drives you to want to be a leader. In this last element, the question arises: And who inspires the inspirer? What drives a person to want to transform from a boss to a leader? Because without that drive, it will not be achieved.

Our programs always seek to inspire, to ignite that flame that appears after self-reflection and understanding, to understand that there is something better for everyone, including the leader. It is having clarity that in addition to serving and achieving goals, there can be a better quality of life and personal satisfaction from having helped others transform into their best version.

Additionally, I could assure you that there is no one in the world who does not have a leader, that is, some figure who has the responsibility to inspire them to be better. Even the highest positions report to someone and must account for their actions; moreover, even business owners have to do so. Proof of this was the dismissal of Steve Jobs from his own company, something unusual but true. That's why when we ask ourselves why the bosses who report to us don't make that decision to lead, perhaps we should ask ourselves what we are doing wrong, what we really lack to inspire them.

A clear example of leadership is Diego Simeone, one of the most successful coaches who has managed Atlético de Madrid. In my opinion, a large part of his success lies in his ability to develop the maximum potential of his players. However, there are occasions when very promising players fail and do not achieve adequate performance. On one occasion, questioned about the poor performance of one of his promising players, he commented: "Undoubtedly, when a player does not respond, the first one responsible is me. I feel partly responsible that he has not had the fortune or the possibility to give his best." (1) As leaders, our role is to inspire all the people we interact with. When that is not achieved, the first step is to analyze ourselves. It is characteristic of great leaders to admit when we make mistakes and seek to correct them.

(1) Source: Eurosport Español