Inspired Leadership

Chapter 1Dare to Dream

Every inspiring leader is a dreamer first.

When I try to convince a leadership team that they can achieve something that's extraordinary, I always say to them, “Never start with the numbers. Start by imagining what this business could be.” As an inspiring leader your first goal is to change the definition of success, and commit to a bigger, better dream. This may scare you at first. But we will make that leap. It may take you a while to see the power behind the commitment to dream but, if you can't commit, then the rest of this book will have little meaning for you.

This chapter will introduce the fundamental principle of inspiring leadership. At the end of it, you will be ready to use dreams to inspire your team.

Over the years I have found that this works for teams, and businesses, that are large and small. People often say to me: “It's all very well for you, because you make all the decisions for the company. That's easy. I just run a little department.”

And I say, “It makes no difference. Do it for yourself. Nobody is going to tell you you're wrong when your team and your results start to improve.”

Being a Leader

If you're going to lead this change, we need to agree on what a leader is.

Warren Bennis invented the study of leadership in companies in the 1950s, and he had strong views on what leaders are, and are not. Having grown up in the Great Depression ...