7 Secrets of Inspirational Leaders

By Les Gore

American business professionals are uninspired. Surprised? Don't be. The fact is, only 10% of employees look forward to going to work and most point to a lack of leadership as the reason why, according to a recent Maritz Research poll. "But it doesn't have to be that way. All business leaders have the power to inspire, motivate, and positively influence the people in their professional lives," according to a recent story in BusinessWeek Online.

Carmine Gallo, a communications coach and author, and the focus of this article-did his own research, and in his new book, Fire Them Up!, reveals techniques common to the leaders who best know how to inspire their employees, colleagues, customers, and investors. I'm often asked to define and identify the qualities and attributes of great leaders. I think Gallo has pretty much nailed it.

Techniques to help you inspire and motivate your employees, colleagues, and customers.
For the past year, Carmine Gallo has been interviewing renowned leaders, entrepreneurs, and educators-from different backgrounds, generations and industries-who have an extraordinary ability to sell their vision, values, and themselves.

Together, they possess all the tools he believes "you need to transform yourself into an extraordinary, electrifying, and enthusiastic leader who communicates with power, passion, confidence and charisma!"

After studying their communications "secrets", Gallo came up with seven techniques that he believes can easily be adopted in your own professional communications with your employees, clients, and investors.

1. Demonstrate enthusiasm-constantly
Inspiring leaders have an abundance of passion for what they do. You cannot inspire unless you're inspired yourself. Period. Passion is something that can't be taught. You either have passion for your message or you don't. Once you discover your passion, make sure it's apparent to everyone within your professional circle.

"Richard Tait sketched an idea on a napkin during a cross-country flight, an idea to bring joyful moments to families and friends. His enthusiasm was so infectious that he convinced partners, employees, and investors to join him. He created a toy and game company called Cranium."
"Walk into its Seattle headquarters," Gallo says, "and you are hit with a wave of fun, excitement, and engagement the likes of which is rarely seen in corporate life. It all started with one man's passion."

2. Articulate a compelling course of action
Inspiring leaders craft and deliver a specific, consistent, and memorable vision. A goal such as "we intend to double our sales by this time next year," is not inspiring. Neither is a long, convoluted mission statement destined to be tucked away and forgotten in a desk somewhere.
A vision is a short (usually 10 words or less), vivid description of what the world will look like if your product or service succeeds.

Microsoft's Steve Ballmer once said that shortly after he joined the company, he was having second thoughts. Bill Gates and Gates' father took Ballmer out to dinner and said he had it all wrong. They said Ballmer saw his role as that of a bean counter for a startup. They had a vision of putting a computer on every desk, in every home. That vision-a computer on every desk, in every home-remains consistent to this day. The power of a vision set everything in motion.

3. Sell the benefit
Always remember, it's not about you, it's about them. In Gallo's first class at Northwestern's Medill School of Journalism, he was taught to answer the question, "Why should my readers care?" That's the same thing you need to ask yourself constantly throughout a presentation, meeting, pitch, or any situation where persuasion takes place.

Your listeners are asking themselves, what's in this for me? Answer it. Don't make them guess.

4. Tell more stories
Inspiring leaders tell memorable stories. Few business leaders appreciate the power of stories to connect with their audiences.

Gallo was working with one of the largest producers of organic food in the country. He couldn't recall most, if any, of the data they used to prove organic is better. But he remembered a story a farmer told. He said when he worked for a conventional grower, his kids could not hug him at the end of the day when he got home. His clothes had to be removed and disinfected. Now, his kids can hug him as soon as he walks off the field. No amount of data can replace that story.
"And now guess what I think about when I see the organic section in my local grocery store?", he says." "You got it. The farmer's story. Stories connect with people on an emotional level. Tell more of them."

5. Invite participation
Inspiring leaders bring employees, customers, and colleagues into the process of building your company or service. This is especially important when trying to motivate young people. The command and control way of managing is over. Instead, today's managers solicit input, listen for feedback, and actively incorporate what they hear. Your people want more than a paycheck. They want to know that their work is adding up to something meaningful.

6. Reinforce an optimistic outlook
Inspiring leaders speak of a better future. Robert Noyce, the co-founder of Intel said, "Optimism is an essential ingredient of innovation. How else can the individual favor change over security?" Extraordinary leaders throughout history have been more optimistic than the average person.

Winston Churchill exuded hope and confidence in the darkest days of World War II. Colin Powell said that optimism was the secret behind Ronald Reagan's charisma. Powell also said that optimism is a force multiplier, meaning it has a ripple effect throughout an organization. Speak in positive, optimistic language. Be a beacon of hope.

7. Encourage potential
Inspiring leaders praise people and invest in them emotionally. Richard Branson has said that when you praise people they flourish; criticize them and they shrivel up. Praise is the easiest way to connect with people. When people receive genuine praise, their doubt diminishes and their spirits soar. Encourage people and they'll walk through walls for you.

By inspiring your listeners, you become the kind of person people want to be around. Customers will want to do business with you, employees will want to work with you, and investors will want to back you. It all starts with mastering the language of motivation

Les Gore is founder and managing partner of Executive Search International, a Boston-based, nationally recognized search firm and a 25-year veteran of the "recruiting wars."
http://www.execsearchintl.com

Models - The Leaders In Fashion Now Are Taking The Lead Again In The Struggle To Be Healthy

By Sacreeta Veneficus

The sad day, the Models died.

This decade will certainly go down in history, as one of the most significant movements known for women. Yes we won the vote, yes it's laughable to our youth when they hear a woman self praise for obtaining Corporate Leadership.

"That's old news, haven't women always run the roost?" Our young would say.

To which we reply. "No little one, they had to fight for that right!"

But what about image?

What about the Models, who have been tortured for over three decades by starvation, by enduring insults regarding any meat they may have on their bones, by being told to lose the weight or find another job? They must have thought the rest of us simply didn't care. What must have they thought of us for not standing up for them, for letting such travesties continue?
They had to dwindle down to a dying breed, a dying breed indeed. But no more!

London took action against anorexia, and are reformatting their Modeling criterias.

A new revolution of Models will take rebirth from the ashes of the dark cloud. That the dark ages of Fashion has ended. It sincerely is a triumph.

"Hay gals, its ok to eat now! If you don't, you can't work here!"

Now that's not a joke, and here's why.

No more under-aged Models will be strutting the catwalk in London. London says no! Although they should reconsider the age limit of 16, as that is still young, Milan is reportedly strapping the age limit to 18. England is one of the first countries to be combating the ongoing struggle that Models have faced for over three decades. The battle of anorexia.

London has announced that under-aged Models will be rejected by the agencies, infact, they are already upping the stakes.

The movement to keep their models alive and functioning healthy is actually being taken quite seriously. They are now going to be enforcing health tests on the Models, with drug testing being on the list. A few models in London have already been rejected for work due to being underweight!

Milan is also joined in the glorious fight to keep the models healthy, and now you must be 18 or over to walk the catwalk there! It is commendable that these countries are waging campaigns to encourage healthier Models, defending the welfare of these young girls.

Why now? Why the sudden change? Its like the twilight zone for Models!

A little recap over 2006/2007: It saddens me to report on these events, and my heart goes out to the girls families.

With the death of three models this year, both dying from the repercussions of starvation, the modeling world had no choice but to respond. The general public could finally stand up and ask the question lurking in the back of their minds for over thirty years.

Why does a Models weight have to be far below the level of acceptable percentage of body fat, according to their height and age?

In other words, why are you starving the girls, retiring them far too young, and believe that's Couture? Its ok, we have his attempt to justify, in the form of a public comment a little further on down the list.

It took the death of two models, sisters infact, for that question to become socially acceptable to utter! And equally acceptable for Designers and Agencies alike to comfortably address.

Back in February of this year, 18 year old Eliana Ramos, a Uruguayan Model, died in her Montevideo home. Preliminary tests pinpointed malnutrition as the cause of her sudden death, she had what they call generalized infection brought on by anorexia. She was fasting before an upcoming catwalk gig.

Her death came only six months after her older sister Luisel Ramos died in Montevideo , Uruguay , after exiting the catwalk on route to the dressing room. She fainted and died of heart failure. She was 22 years of age, and had been starving herself days before the catwalk event, so reportedly told by her father. The 180cm (approx 59) had dwindled down to 40kg (88lbs) on a diet of lettuce for over three months. At the time of her death, she had a body mass index of 14.5. (below 18 is considered to be starvation - and anything less than 22.0 to be underweight.)
In November 2006, Ana Carolina Reston, 21, who modeled for designers such as Giorgio Armani, was a Brazilian model. She died from kidney failure, brought on by starvation, the evening before an international photoshoot. She was hospitalized for three weeks, suffering from kidney failure before it finally took her life. She weighed 6 stone (84 lbs), despite she was 5ft 7.
She lived on apples and tomatoes, and would vomit anything else that she dared pass by her lips.

Didier Grumbach, the head of the French Couture Federation, says: 'To say that we should regulate just one profession among many to avoid young girls getting thin, when everything in our society encourages them to do so, is unreasonable.' (17 November 2006)

Fortunately for the rest of the world, London and Milan, who have eagerly embraced merging Fashion with healthy models, and have left the old way of thinking behind! Because they understand that society is molded by the Fashion Industry, not the other way around!

For all those aspiring Models out there, take a deep breath, have a good rest, and enjoy your dinner. Baby the world is changing for the good, and you are the youth of today, embrace it, love it and live it.

Sacreeta VeneficusSenior Staff Writer

RKA Cinema Society,Bronx, NY

Actor/Writer/Casting/Producer/College Instructor

http://www.roncinetv.com

http://www.rkacinemasociety.com