3 Es For Leaders - Engage, Empower, Encourage!

"Enflamed with the study of learning and the admiration ofvirtue; stirred up with high hopes of living to be brave...and worthy..., dear to God, and famous to all ages."- John Milton

Leaders are by definition "stewards" of the trust, hope andbeliefs of others. To perform their acts of stewardship,leaders must practice and master three essential tasks:

=> Engage people

=> Empower people

=> Encourage people

Many leaders have a problem applying those 3 "E"s to theirleadership goals, actions and conversations. Here are a fewstrategic ideas you can use to inject the three "E"s intoyour leadership styles and behaviors.

Engage the Hearts, Minds & Wills of People!

"No seed shall perish which the soul hath sown."- John Addington Symonds.

When you plant a positive vision into the fertile fields oftheir hearts, minds, wills and emotions, your venture issure to succeed.

Your task is to help your partners, associates, peers andconstituents or clients to

=> Connect with,

=> Believe in,

=> Commit to,

=> Organize for

performing that mission-critical activity, reaching for adesired objective or completing some specific task.

The intent, consistency and integrity of your leadershipstyle, behaviors and attitudes must demonstrate theworthiness of your visionary ideal or principles.

In a word, you use your dreams or ideals to motivate andinspire the confidence and commitment of others.

Empower the Skills, Performance & Competencies of People!

Empowering people means

-> linking them with the knowledge, resources, assets andprocesses they need,

- preparing them for the tasks, activities, objectives,challenges and problems they will work through,

- directing them to the sources of tools or materials,supplies and resources, specialists or networks to enabletheir efforts,

- guiding them in identifying, classifying, mapping ormodeling, learning, analyzing, evaluating, innovating andcreating, managing, venturing and leading for anysituation.

By empowering, we mean facilitating the supply of energy,mass and capability to perform the work at hand. To providepeople with the energy of a belief, competence or meaning.

"True hope is swift, and flies with swallow's wings;Kings it makes gods, and meaner creatures kings."- William Shakespeare

Leaders encourage us to have hope, we use that hope to addspeed and give flight to our dreams, our hope transforms ourlives into the lofty desires of kingly beings, andtransmutes our efforts into a reality of kingly treasures.

Encourage the Endeavors, Strengths & Confidence of People!

When you lead by encouraging people, you give them a:

=> purpose for being, for their inclusion, for making adifference and contribution, for reaching upwards or towardsa higher plateau

=> obligation to the mission, to help others, to fulfill anideal, to belong, to a higher power or greater good

=> trust in the common purpose, in goodness of others, loveand mercy of God, in a promising potential for the venture,

=> affinity with a noble or worthy enterprise, with otherpositive or success-oriented people, with a great andrighteous goal

You encourage people because you realize they will becometransformed by the hope of a positive image or possibility.

"None without hope e'er lov'd the brightest fair,But love can hope where reason would despair."- Lord Lyttleton.

Love is an act of the will, to love is a willful decision toshow a loving concern, care and compassion for another -love gives hope the solid support of a strong foundation.

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"Growth is the only evidence of life." - John Henry Newman

If it is possible to encourage an energizing yet positivegrowth of people, then you are engaged in a worthwhileendeavor.

When we analyze the styles and behaviors of our greatestleaders like Christ, Gandhi, King, Churchill, Tolstoy andMother Theresa, they share a common trait - they applied allthree "E"s to their practice of leadership.

Leaders in government, business and public services caneasily find ways to use one or more of these key actions -

1) They can engage the hearts or minds of people throughcompelling ideas or inspiring principles;

2) They can empower the ability and desires of people byconnecting or educating them through applied energy;

3) They can encourage the commitment and heroism of peopleby showing them the hope or belief in a better reality.

Try out these concepts - when you do, you'll see a realimprovement in your leadership effectiveness!

"We have two lives about us,
Two worlds in which we dwell,
Within us and without us,
Alternate Heaven and Hell:
Without, the somber Real,
Within, our hearts of hearts, the beautiful Ideal."
- Richard Henry Stoddard.

It's up to you to decide, do you believe there are 3 "E"s in"leadership"? Stretch forth your hope and see the possibility - engage, empower, encourage your people to win!

Copyright © 2005, Mustard Seed Investments Inc.,All rights reserved.

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About the Author:
Bill Thomas presents "The Leadership Toolkit" - seriousleadership training for professionals, managers, executives,entrepreneurs and specialists. Discover how to energizeyour leadership skills, boost your confidence and get newknowledge through our articles, newsletters & programs at:
http://www.leadership-toolkit.com/tools.html
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