Achieving your highest performance means doing what you never considered possible. Metaphorically, according to Ana Dutra, CEO of Korn/Ferry Leadership and Talent Consulting in “Sprinkles of Pixie Dust” in The New York Times of December 11, 2011, ‘…all executives have ambition, but don’t believe they can fly.’
I believe it is the responsibility of managers to sprinkle Tinker Bell‘s pixie dust to help their staffs achieve what they can dream of. If we show them how to dream, how to set personal goals, and know how to handle tough periods, they can indeed fly, benefiting themselves, their organization and their clients.
Motivating others to dream requires several specific skills:
- Creating the right climate in which people want to do their best
- Adapting one’s style to each direct report and/or team member
- Empowering others
- Inviting input from each person
- Making each individual feel as if their work is important (without being false)
In my experience, there is no greater feeling as a manager than to see your staff succeed beyond their dreams. Indeed, it is the reason I decided to pursue my new role as executive coach.