How To Be A Positive Leader

How To Be A Positive Leader taps into the expertise of 17 leadership experts to show you how you can become a positive leader, who empowers everyone around him, whether at work or at home, with small changes, that compound into a big impact.

The bigger your brain, the more social you are. Did you know that? No wonder then, that humans have evolved to be the most social species on the planet. We thrive on social interactions, and the more good ones we have, the more confident, energetic and therefore creative we are.

If your workplace is a hub of high-quality connections – exchanges between two people, where both of them leave feeling more energized – the business is likely to thrive, because people work at their best. For example, if you feel tired after lunch, but talk about yesterday’s soccer game with a colleague, who’s equally passionate about it, that high-quality connection will give you more energy and make you feel better.

Great companies try to maximize the number of these positive encounters, to maximize their capacity to innovate. Google does this, for example, with a great, free cafeteria, where people can hang out, eat well and chat.

To be a good leader, you should help others have more of these connections, starting with your own.

How?

Simple. The next time you talk to a co-worker or family member, give them your full attention. Turn your phone silent, put it away, and just listen. Don’t look at your computer or gaze out the window. Be all there, really try to understand and be helpful.

The difference will show.

Nothing motivates us more than seeing the impact of our work. When you know that the work you do means something, that it changes people and helps them live better lives, you’re much more excited to get out of bed in the morning. For example, when students, who worked at a University of Michigan call center, and had to call alumni for donations, talked to a former scholarship holder before work, their motivation, effort and results (=donations received) increased significantly. However, it’s important to connect with the end user of your product. For example, my Dad’s company sells industrial adhesives, which are then used by, say, car manufacturers to fix damping materials in the interior trim. If their chemists in the lab met a happy car owner, who told them that he loves how silent the inside of his car is, when he drives around, that’d be a much better motivator than talking to the supply chain manager of the car manufacturer. Try to find someone, who ultimately benefits from your work the most, and connect with them. Then, make…