Three Ways to Fuel Energy and Stamina Today
Peter Drucker said, “So much of what we call management consists in making it difficult for people to work.” I hope that’s not you.
Successful managers and leaders don’t drain energy and stamina. They fuel it. (Even if they can’t control pay.)
The three factors that fuel energy and stamina are:
- Clocks.
- Spotlights.
- Page turning.
#1. Clocks.
Know what makes people tick.
People need to become their best selves, not the self you imagine them to be.
People feel energized to bring their best when you respect who they are.
If you’ve been on the receiving end of efforts to mold you into someone else’s image, you know how disrespectful, frustrating, and draining it is.
People need to be more of their best selves, not more of someone else.
Know who your people are, not simply what they do.
#2. Spotlights.
Energy and stamina go up when you notice effort and results.
Don’t protect the feelings of poor performers by not spotlighting a high performer’s hard work and great results.
Anyone who feels offended that hard work and great results earn reward is a low performer.
Hard work might be staying on task even when results fall below expectation.
Reward might be:
- Access to people or resources.
- Public or private praise – noticing the skill, energy, and stamina that produce results.
- New opportunities. The reward for meaningful work is the opportunity to do more meaningful work.
- Promotion.
#3. Page turning.
What you do when someone fails reveals who you are.
A second chance fuels energy and stamina.
People work to not fail when failure is final. But when you help people turn the page on failure, they learn how to work to succeed.
Working to succeed is thriving. Working to not fail insults talent.
Skillful leaders know that failure isn’t final.
What fuels your energy and stamina?
How might leaders fuel energy and stamina in others?
What fuels your energy and stamina? The desire to live another day, along with the visions we have for tomorrow. For a vision today could be a future endeavor for tomorrow
How might leaders fuel energy and stamina in others? Letting them know there is light at the end of the tunnel, pushing others to train their minds enhancing themselves to achieve what they put their minds and skillsets to.
Thanks Tim. You got me thinking about vision and stamina. That seems like a big one. For me, thinking about future contribution, growth, and opportunity is motivating.
I have a sign in my office: “Find energy in choice, connection, and competence.” I think that sums it all up.
Fueling energy and stamina in others comes from making them important to the process. I like the quote above about working to succeed is thriving, it speaks to the use of empathy and a leader steering their employees toward the next success and not dwelling on the negatives for too long but using them to grow for the next challenge.
Dan, you stated, “People feel energized to bring their best when you respect who they are” and this quote holds so much truth. Respect is such a key aspect to bringing energized. If you know that a manager has respect for who you are and what you bring to the table, it brings extra energy to the workplace. This extra energy can also overflow to other employees, upping the energy of the entire organization. Respect is also a two-way street when employees have respect for their manager, they are willing to put more energy into the organization. I think of professional sports teams that have mutual respect between the coaches and players and how that respect translates into wins. Successful coaches can manage and respect professional athletes’ abilities and personalities. There are other factors that go into having a successful team, but mutual respect is a key foundation in that success.