Fan the Flames Tool
Leadership isn’t merely organizing resources or delegating tasks. At its core, leadership is seeing the potential of every team member and communicating, encouraging, and supporting them to unleash that potential to achieve what they hadn’t thought possible.
In short, great leaders fan the flames of success. If you want to see your people succeed in their work and lives, I highly encourage you to fan the flames. Here’s how to do it:
- See
When a team member does something well, make sure you see it. Keep your eyes open and be on the lookout to catch your team members doing things right.
- Acknowledge
Not only do you need to see your people doing the right things, but you need to let them know that you see their efforts. Don’t just passively watch, proactively acknowledge what you saw and why it matters.
- Encourage
Let your people know to do more of the good things. Challenge them to double down on good behaviors and point to the results they are achieving. Also, take the time to talk to others about their excellent work.
- Reward
One of the best ways to fan the flames of success is to reward their efforts. Be sure to align your incentives with the behaviors you want to see from your people.
This week’s tool and video are designed to help you fan the flames of success. The tool’s illustration is a fan with four blades – as in, fan the flames. The central hub of the fan encourages you to model the right behaviors, and the blades remind you to see, acknowledge, encourage, and reward.
fan the flames of success
Patrick Leddin, PhD is a speaker, global leadership consultant, and The Wall Street Journal bestselling author of The Five-Week Leadership Challenge. Patrick is an Associate Professor at Vanderbilt University with a thriving leadership blog and podcast, and 25-years of leadership experience. He offers an unparalleled mix of academic rigor and real-world experience.