“If You Don’t Understand a Person’s Motivations, You’ll Never Be Able to Lead Them” – Tonie Snell-Guajardo
You won’t understand how to partner or support them.
Leadership isn’t about power—it’s about connection. If you don’t take the time to understand what drives someone—what they value, fear, or aspire to—you’ll only get compliance, not commitment. Without tapping into the core of their motivations, you’re just managing tasks, not leading people. Great leadership requires digging deeper, aligning goals and inspiring action by meeting people where they are, not where you assume they should be.
The essence of leadership is rooted in relationships. It’s a cycle of trust and empowerment where leaders create leaders, just as elders create elders. True leaders recognize that their role isn’t to hoard knowledge or control outcomes but to cultivate growth in those they guide. They see potential, nurture it and pave the way for others to rise.
Understanding Is the Foundation of Leadership
People are complex, shaped by their unique experiences, dreams and challenges. A cookie-cutter approach to leadership won’t work. Here’s why understanding motivations is non-negotiable:
- Values Shape Decisions: Knowing what someone values allows you to connect their work to their purpose. When actions align with values, people feel fulfilled and energized.
- Fears Drive Behaviors: Fear often dictates how people react to challenges. Understanding these fears helps leaders support their teams in overcoming obstacles instead of being paralyzed by them.
- Aspirations Inspire Growth: Leaders who understand their team members’ aspirations can provide opportunities that align with their goals, fostering not just success for the team but also personal growth.
When you lead with understanding, you lead with purpose. You build loyalty, foster innovation and inspire those around you to step into their potential.
Leaders as Legacy Builders
Much like elders pass down wisdom to the next generation, effective leaders pave the way for others to lead. This isn’t about creating clones of yourself; it’s about equipping individuals to lead in their own right, with their unique strengths and perspectives.
Imagine a workplace—or a world—where every leader prioritized creating more leaders. The ripple effect would be transformative, sparking innovation, trust and collaboration at every level. Leadership would cease to be a position and become a shared responsibility.
The Leadership Challenge
The next time you face a leadership moment, pause and ask yourself:
- Do I know what drives this person?
- Am I connecting with their values, fears, and aspirations?
- How am I equipping them to lead in their own way?
When we lead with understanding, we create more than successful teams; we create a legacy of leadership that echoes for generations. Leaders create leaders, like elders create elders—and the cycle of growth continues.
Huemagine the impact we could make if we all embraced this approach.
