How Great Leaders Think Differently (In Order to Inspire Action in Others)

Great leaders think a little differently than the average employee. How do they think differently? And what impact does it have on their ability to lead others? Find out in this short episode of IN:60.

Welcome back to IN:60, the best place for tips and techniques on how to be a better leader, a better manager, and … a better human being.

In today’s episode, we’re going to talk about how great leaders think in order to inspire action in others.

Let’s do this.

Okay, a quick shout out to Anisa Daftari, who left a great comment in last week’s episode about stress reduction techniques.

Every week, I select one comment for recognition. If you make a comment below, I’ll send you a free digital copy of my latest book, Digital Marketing Growth Hacks.

Okay, let’s talk about how great leaders think so that they can motivate their team members into action.

Today’s technique was taught to me by a mentor of mine named Jerry Brown.

Jerry used it primarily as a way to think about marketing, but I’ve found it to be a super helpful tip for everything from marketing to business to leadership.

It’s called Thinking Backwards and if you use it as the foundation of your leadership, it’ll be a game-changer moving forward.

Now, most executives who are in leadership positions enter into a conversation from their perspective on out.

In other words, they engage with an employee, a team member, or a mentee by thinking about they want to say and pushing that thought out to the employee.

But great leaders flip that formula on its head.

Instead of communicating from their perspective out, they reverse it and communicate from the receiver’s perspective in.

In other words, they get inside the mind of the person they’re talking to, understand their motivations, and then work backwards from there.

Let me give you an example of how this works.

When I consult with clients, whether it’s here or overseas, I always start by asking the members of the team what it is they want to be doing in 5 or 10 years.

Do they want to be running the department? Do they want to own their own business? Or do they want to have a more easy-going, low-stress lifestyle.

There are no right or wrong answers.

All I’m trying to do is to understand what motivates them. What drives them. What gets them out of bed in the morning.

Then, I say “Okay, let’s make that happen. Let’s craft this engagement so that you can reach your 5- or 10-year goal.”

By flip-flopping that communication – by getting inside the mind of the receiver and moving backwards from there – I’m able to be sure my communication is hitting the spot.

In other words, I’m able to make sure that I’m speaking to them with their self-interest as the focal point of the communication.

We’ll drill down on this concept in future episodes of IN:60, so if you like what you heard today, be sure to subscribe, give us a like, and hit the bell so you’ll be notified next time I upload an episode like this one.

And in the comment section below, let me know if this idea resonates with you and if you’re going to put it into action in your role as a leader.

My name is Jamie Turner. This has been IN:60. And I’ll catch you next week.

Jamie Turner is an internationally recognized speaker, author, and management consultant who was recognized as one of the top 10 best speakers in the world by CarreerAddict (along with Ariana Huffington, Daymond John, and Gary Vaynerchuk). His client list includes The Coca-Cola Company, AT&T, Microsoft, Verizon, SAP, T-Mobile, and Holiday Inn. You may have seen Jamie in Forbes, Inc., Entrepreneur, Business Insider or the Wall Street Journal. He’s also a regular guest on CNN and HLN where he contributes segments on marketing, persuasion, and leadership.