In Leadership, The Eight Ways Of Right Action (Part 2)

In Part 1, I said that leaders who can't have people take right action are ineffective, and I listed four of the eight ways of right action. In Part 2, I'll describe the remaining four ways.

Action must be:

(5) LINKED TO NEED. The people's needs are their reality. If you are an order leader, you clearly do not have to know their needs. You simply exhibit a my-way-or-the-highway attitude. But if you want to motivate them to take action, you need to understand that reality. Because their motivation is not your choice, it's their choice. Your role is to communicate, their role is to motivate, to motivate themselves. It's their choice. It's not yours. So their needs are not only their reality, in the leadership equation, their needs are the only reality. They don't care about your needs. They don't care about your reality. They only care about their reality. Tie the action you want them to take to THEIR NEEDS, not yours. Which means of course that you have to clearly identify their needs.

(6) URGENT: Patience is a virtue, but it can also be a tender trap. Urgency is a results-multiplier. A Roman centurion said the secret to instilling urgency in the troops was summed up in two words, "hit them." His credo lives today in the order leader -- not necessarily in a physical sense but more importantly in a psychological sense. But trying to gain urgency through "hit them" is far less effective than having urgency come from the people's internal motivation. Here's a process to have people take urgent action: IDENTIFY THEIR NEEDS, SEE THE PROBLEMS IN THEIR NEEDS, AND HAVE THEIR TAKING ACTION PROVIDE SOLUTIONS TO THOSE PROBLEMS.

For instance, in a police academy, an instructor came into the room with a note that said CLEAR OUT THIS ROOM IMMEDIATELY. The first cadet ordered his colleagues out. A few cadets left but most stayed. The instructor handed the note to a second cadet who pleaded for his classmates to leave. Again, a few left but most stayed. Finally, the instructor gave the note to a third cadet. This cadet understood how to identify needs and have people take action to solve those needs. He said two words, which emptied the room. "Lunch break!"

People are always willing to take ardent action to solve the problems of their needs. The question is can you identify those needs. Once you do, you hare half way home to getting them to take such action.

(7) DEADLINE: All action you have people take must have a deadline. Otherwise, it might become a low priority for them, and they will not be especially urged to take it. Be constantly monitoring yourself when motivating people to take action by asking, "Have I a put a deadline to this action?" If you haven't, do it.

(8) FED BACK: True motivation isn't what the people do in your sight. True motivation is what they do after they have left your sight. Many leaders get the "head fake" from the people they're leading -- their nodding their heads and saying, "Yes," face-to-face with the leader; but inside saying, "No." When they leave your presence, they do what they want, not what you want. Make sure that the action you challenge them to take is fed back to you, so that you are aware -- and they are aware that you are aware -- of that action.

Leaders do nothing more important than get results, and results come from people taking action.

The trouble is, most leaders have people get a fraction of the potential results because these leaders misunderstand what action really is -- and in that misunderstanding misapply and misuse it.

When speaking to people, keep the eight ways of right action in mind so people take the right action to achieve the right results.

2005 © The Filson Leadership Group, Inc. All rights reserved.

PERMISSION TO REPUBLISH: This article may be republished in newsletters and on web sites provided attribution is provided to the author, and it appears with the included copyright, resource box and live web site link. Email notice of intent to publish is appreciated but not required, mail to: brent@actionleadership.com

The author of 23 books, Brent Filson's recent books are, THE LEADERSHIP TALK: THE GREATEST LEADERSHIP TOOL and 101 WAYS TO GIVE GREAT LEADERSHIP TALKS. He is founder and president of The Filson Leadership Group, Inc. ? and for more than 20 years has been helping leaders of top companies worldwide get audacious results. Sign up for his free leadership e-zine and get a free white paper: "49 Ways To Turn Action Into Results," at http://www.actionleadership.com

---

Having Fun In Leadership

"Don't measure your life by your goals, but rather by what you are DOING to achieve them." ?UnknownOne of the biggest mistakes leaders make is getting so... Read More

Thoughtleading: The Art of Separating Yourself from the Pack

Lately the age-old business dilemma of how to stand out from the crowd has been haunting companies and professional service firms more than ever before. All too... Read More

Are You The Most Powerful Leader You Can Be?

As someone who teaches, manages, parents or influences you'll probably already be aware that powerful leadership is not just about the boss, it's about the team, irrespective... Read More

Why Not Lead With Emotions?

Studies have shown that companies that have acquired competencies to lead with emotional excellence are far more productive and efficient because of the impact emotional excellence has... Read More

Evil, Hostile Grumpy Listeners? Think Again

I hated Kyle Sisk*. A notorious bully, Kyle punctuated my grade school years with misery. He would tease me about my weight, purposely rattle me with shocking... Read More

A Call to Men to Live a Strenuous Life!

Any man would be justly proud to claim even a portion of what Teddy Roosevelt accomplished in just one of his fields, whether politics, hunting, writing, military,... Read More

Leadership ? Push vs. Pull?

At your next staff meeting consider leading your team through the following discussion.This lesson is focused on getting people to think in terms of effective leadership. When... Read More

Common Mistakes Extraordinary Leaders Dont Make

When people make a decision (either consciously or unconsciously) to follow your leadership, they do it primarily because of one of two things: Your Character or your... Read More

Seven Personal Characteristics Of A Good Leader

How often have you heard the comment, "He or she is a born leader?" There are certain characteristics found in some people that seem to naturally put... Read More

Communication Skills & Leadership - Organizational Communications Processes in Leadership Activity

"Sooth 't were a pleasant life to lead, With nothing in the world to do But just to blow a shepherd's reed, The silent season thro' And... Read More

3 Es For Leaders - Engage, Empower, Encourage!

"Enflamed with the study of learning and the admiration of virtue; stirred up with high hopes of living to be brave... and worthy..., dear to God, and... Read More

Are You a Leader or a Manager?

President Ike Eisenhower once demonstrated the difference between leadership and management to his cabinet by putting a piece of string in a straight line on the conference... Read More

Leadership

Webster's defines leadership as : "1. the office of position of a leader, 2. capacity to lead, 3. the act of instance of leading, 4. LEADERS." Dale... Read More

The Three Factors of Leadership Motivation

Leaders do nothing more important than get results. But you can't get results by yourself. You need others to help you do it. And the best way... Read More

Managing Monsters in Meetings - Part 1, General Strategies for Unproductive Behavior

It happens easily. You're conducting a meeting and suddenly a small side meeting starts. Then someone introduces an unrelated issue. Someone else ridicules the new issue. Everyone... Read More