Good leaders don’t motivate

I continue to come across the notion, in the literature on leadership, that good leaders motivate others. I’m becoming convinced that that is a wrong notion. I think it’s fine that people “get motivated” out of their own internal, intrinsic, agency. And in fact, few things get done without motivation. But I think it’s a risky notion to believe that it’s the responsibility of the leader in any organization to “motivate” others to action. That runs the risk of quickly tipping into the manipulative if not ultimately, the willful—through coercion (manipulation), seduction (charm), or influence (power). And as I like to remind people, regardless of intentions, it is willfulness that does the harm.

However, I do think that what a good leader does is inspire others. The difference here is that motivation influenced by the leader is external to the person. It is an intentional attempt to move another towards an action or goal held by, or desired by, the leader. Inspiration, on the other hand, may be a dynamic that addresses the self. A leader that inspires me draws something from within me. He or she taps into something within my authentic self in a way that resonates with my own values, goals, and desires. Inspiration taps into the intrinsic agency of my own self-direction. As is said, “self attracts self.”

When a leader inspires he or she communicates from the stance of challenge and invitation whose source is the leader’s own self. Attempts at motivating others, however, strike me as too close to external manipulation toward action. Ultimately that is ineffective because external motivation has a very short shelf life. I think both, motivation and inspiration, are resources available to any leader. And, lets just confess that “motivating” others is relatively easy to do and therefore, convenient. Anyone with a modicum of knowledge about stimulus-response dynamics or simple psychology can get someone to do something—whether they like it or not or want to or not. But I think that in the long run, for effectiveness and for cultivating a healthier system, inspiration is a more worthy function and orientation for the leader.

Are you an inspiring leader?