How to Have a Positive Influence on Those Around You

Effective leaders that drive results strive to positively influence the lives of those around them. Focusing on being a positive influence encourages others to follow you. It motivates your team, drives morale, and creates tangible results in your operations.

 

Embrace the Burden

Leading a workplace comes with an emotional cost. Embrace the burden of carrying the emotional weight of your team. This emotional cost, along with the energetic toll that follows, is sometimes referred to as the “Curse of the Capable.” This burden is offset by the extraordinary outcomes your team members deliver when they feel supported.

 

Be Strong for Your Team

Notice when members of your team are struggling and in pain. These are opportune moments to be a stabilizing force for your employees. Give them your time and acknowledge their individual circumstances. This helps them feel supported, especially if you remain strong and pick up their slack. Leaders who step up during challenging times increase loyalty and camaraderie in the workplace, two essential traits of an effective team.

 

Be Actively Engaged

Employees are inclined to go above and beyond normal expectations for leaders who are willing to engage them. You may be surprised at the impact your attention has on them, and in turn, the impact they have on your end results.

Being engaged is not only critical in supporting your team, it is a great way to learn about the details of your division’s operations. There is a wealth of untapped knowledge in your employees, and they may have solutions to problems you have been trying to solve. Use them as a resource.

 

Respond Objectively

How you respond to what you hear is just as important as listening itself. Avoid the natural inclination to defend oneself in the face of a critical employee. If you take a few breaths and allow yourself to consider what is being said before speaking, you can distance yourself from an unhelpful emotional reaction. This will allow you to gain clarity and to respond in an objective and supportive manner.

 

Better Yourself

Leaders who are committed to bettering themselves stand apart from the rest. Employees are inspired by leaders who are willing to admit their fallibility. It is from this acceptance that it is possible to evolve as a leader, and to reach new heights of success.

Many leaders have gaps of knowledge, biases and prejudices to unlearn, and struggles to overcome. Surrendering to the learning process allows your employees to do the same. This opens up an opportunity for your team to find better ways of accomplishing goals by learning from its mistakes.

Innovative leaders bring new ideas to the table specifically because of their willingness to fail. They are constantly experimenting, trying to find the best path forward. If you create a community of innovation, opportunities for success abound.

 

Catch People Doing Good

Employees want to be recognized for their successes, achievements, and high performance. An employee who is criticized may lose motivation and shut down. Over time, they may continue to make the same mistakes you criticized them for. Employees are more open to criticism after they have been praised for their efforts.

By focusing on their achievements rather than their failures, you can raise their energy and motivate them into further success. This will help your team members feel valued and respected. They will feel encouraged to work even harder to reach new levels of effectiveness.

 

ABOUT BRAINWORKS

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