Amanda Downs - Uspire's Director of Commercial Leadership
I don’t know about you, but it’s taken me a while to get going again this January, and if my conversations are anything to go by, I’m not the only one.
As I am sure you do, I need to hit the year running, so I’ve shaken off the slow start well before “Blue Monday” which is, allegedly the day of the year on which the world is the least motivated ( 15th January if you are wondering).
As well as getting outside, in the snow flurries, I’ve taken the time today to revisit my main motivators list from my Motivational Map. I discovered this tool six years ago, working with our long-standing partner, Kate Turner.
In her book “Create Motivation” , Kate has created a ”Performance Triangle” for leaders, encompassing the “What?,” “How? “and, critically, the “Why Bother” of performance.
I love this approach. Organisations work hard to develop and agree vision, values and direction. Skills and behaviour can be trained and coached. Motivation however, is a slippery concept.
When asked who is responsible for the “Why Bother?” for their teams, most leaders will tell me it is them, the leader. In reality, only the individual themselves can motivate themselves. If you haven’t nailed the ‘why bother’? question, all the objective and training in the world will be worthless.
Our personal management style comes from our personality traits and, whilst the way we show up can be adapted, it remains stable.
Our motivators, on the other hand, ebb and flow depending on the situation.
If we ask the right questions and listen hard to understand, we can uncover what gets us and our team members out of bed on a snowy January morning and make sure our spark stays bright this winter and beyond. As Kate says in her book
Motivational Mapping is one of the best tools I’ve seen to create a common language and to encourage conversation around motivation. One of the most powerful tools for a leader is to see a ‘Team Motivational Map’ every year. It’s like a personal engagement survey.
Here are the nine motivators that Kate will explain to us at our session on 25th January.
Back to my own low January mojo. I’ve dusted myself off, switched on my SAD lamps and got out my Motivational Map cards. I’ve set myself some intentions that will feed my three main motivational drivers: Searcher, Creator and Spirit.
To find out what my Mojo Boosting Plan is, join Kate Turner and me on the 25th January at 13.00 GMT for our next Uspire Discover – The Power of Motivational Leadership. I’m sure Kate will share her motivators, and we look forward to exploring what yours are too.
Register now for this incisive Uspire Lunchtime Leadership webinar.
Amanda is Director of Commercial Leadership at The Uspire Partnership. Amanda is our commercial training and coaching expert, and has worked extensively in Europe, EMEA, the US, andAsia. She is an accredited Insights Discovery practitioner and also leads our commercial leadership proposition.
If you want to find out more about how to energise, inspire and motivate your team, get in touch. Amanda@theuspiregroup.com