The 3 E's

I once asked an athlete, "Why do you play so hard for this coach, but not for other coaches?"

Her response was, "I don't know; he just makes me feel like I can do anything."

In his book Uncommon Leadership, Ben Newman writes:

One of the foundation keys to effective leadership is motivating your people. If you can't inspire others, the only other way is to lead by force.

Is leading by motivating and inspiring more effective than leading by force, and how do we do this?

Today, I had the pleasure of listening to Mike Moses, a former commissioner of the Texas Education Agency and former superintendent of Dallas ISD speak to a group of educators about leadership and the type of leaders he hires.

He says that we are in the 'people improvement business,' and when hiring leaders, he looks for the 3 E's:

1 - Energy
2 - Enthusiasm
3 - Excitement

When we have energy, enthusiasm, and excitement, and when we help our students and athletes find a direct connection between what we are teaching and their success, we can motivate and inspire them to run through walls for us.

Today, tomorrow, and forever, live and lead with the 3's and find ways to motivate and inspire the people you work with, serve, and lead.