Estimated reading time: 2 minutes

Dan’s Biz Bookshelf: ‘Extraordinary Influence: How Great Leaders Bring Out the Best in Others’

The most important thing leaders do is influence others. They help them excel and realize their potential. As author Tim Irwin says, leaders can “light fires of motivation.” I love that.

Motivation is the key to performance. So, you might think that all a leader has to do is find different ways to motivate their people. But this is not necessarily so. In fact, according to Irwin, we have been doing it wrong in many ways.

Think of phrases like, “I need to light a fire under them” or ‘I’m going to hold you accountable.” These are actually anti-motivators. They might make the boss feel good by saying them, but they have the opposite effect on the person you are saying them to.

In this book, Irwin says affirmation is a much more effective way to motivate your employees. The benefits of affirmation include:

• Buffers stress and improves higher cognitive thinking
• Positively affects a region of the brain affecting how we feel about ourselves
• Improves self-control
• Makes us happier and more productive
• Fosters innovation

Of course, these all make sense. With all these benefits, why did it take us so long to understand this? If you can make people feel good about their actions, they will do better. In fact, through affirmation, you can make your team members want to listen to what you have to say, enabling you to tweak their performance a bit so it improves.

The author introduces the concept of alliance feedback where the leader actually points out the contradictions between the person’s intention and her present behavior in a supportive manner. He points out two kinds of alliance feedback:

• Aspirational feedback: This helps the person find the right way to achieve the goals they aspire to
• Missional feedback: This builds upon the leader and employee’s mutual or collective desire to accomplish the organization’s mission

Leadership is always dependent on clear and concise communication. This book shows how a great leader can use his or her position of influence in a positive and inspiring way to change the lives of not only his team but also their organization.

If you’re truly serious about being an inspirational and influential leader, then buy and read this book.

Dan Beaulieu is president of D.B. Management Group.

Title: “Extraordinary Influence: How Great Leaders Bring Out the Best in Others”

Author: Tim Irwin

Publisher: Published by John Wiley & Sons, 2018

Pages: 208

Price: $24.95