an entrepreneur who opened the door to financial freedom for thousands of women

Mary Kay Ash,

an entrepreneur who opened the door to

financial freedom for thousands of women

●

Sam Walton,

the legendary businessman who built the

largest retail chain in the world from scratch

●

Pat Summitt,

head coach of the University of Tennessee

Lady Volunteers, the winningest women’s basketball team

in the nation and an example of how to model and develop

self-directed teams

●

Thich Nhat Hanh,

a Vietnamese Buddhist author and spiri-

tual leader who has dedicated his life to peace

●

Zingerman’s,

a community of food-related businesses

founded and operated by Paul Saginaw and Ari Weinzweig

that has flourished by empowering people and recognizing

their needs for growth and development

●

Crazy Horse,

the Sioux warrior who sacrificed his way of

life and his life for the good of his people and thereby

serves an example of heroism

●

Ernest Shackleton,

the legendary polar explorer, whose

leadership legacy is that he did not lose a man, even

though he lost his ship

These leaders are an eclectic mix. They come from different

walks of life, and a few come from different periods in history.

There is a unifying theme, however: Each of them knew, or

knows, how to create conditions in which people can motivate

themselves. Some, like Ernest Shackleton and Earvin “Magic”

Johnson, are gregarious and outgoing; others, like Crazy Horse,

are more soft-spoken, letting their example do the talking. Thich

Nhat Hanh, Frances Hesselbein, and David Hackworth are elo-

quent communicators as well as outstanding manager-leaders.

Pat Summitt and Colleen Barrett are coaches, one of young

women, the other of an entire organization. Mary Kay Ash and

Sam Walton were entrepreneurs, as are Paul Saginaw and Ari

Weinzweig. Each has or had a unique style that drew people in;

INTRODUCTION

xv

people wanted to participate in whatever the leader was doing,

whether it was playing a sport, running a business, or defending

his or her people.

There is a perception that leaders who motivate are cheer-

leading, rah-rah types. Again, some are and some are not, but

all

of them lead more by example than by oratory. All of them are

incredibly hardworking and committed. Leading an enterprise,

whether it be a community or a business, requires tremendous

effort; and that effort is particularly demanding when you have

pledged to create a culture in which people matter as contributors

and individuals. That effort is mentally, emotionally, and even

physically taxing. It requires discipline and will.

There is no one model for how a leader must behave as a

motivator, and for that reason I have included many different

individuals in the hope that readers can learn from their unique

approaches and find something that they can apply to their own

lives or their own leadership opportunities.

In truth, there are many thousands, even millions, of effective

motivators. These are the men and women who make our organi-

zations go; their refusal to accept the status quo, coupled with a

genuine affinity for people, prods them and their organizations

forward. Their example, as well as their interaction with others,

creates a state of raised expectations. They make people around

them better. All of the leaders profiled in this book do or have

done this. But I fully realize that motivation occurs every

moment of every day throughout the world. It occurs when the

light goes on in someone’s heart or mind or spirit, and she says,

“Yes, I can do that.” The reason for the yes comes from within,

but more often than not, it was someone close to her, either per-

sonally or through the media, who nudged her forward. That is

motivation in its fullest form.

Additionally, each of these leaders has an inspirational story

to tell. All of them have faced moments of truth that might have

humbled a lesser individual. Each rose nobly to the occasion, and

in the process became a stronger, more effective leader. And

while the lessons that these leaders learned from these occasions

xvi

INTRODUCTION

have helped them to create the conditions in which motivation

can flourish, you can apply many of these same lessons to your-

self as a means of stimulating your own internal motivators.

PRACTICAL AND PROVEN

Great Motivation Secrets of Great Leaders

concludes with a

handbook that distills key messages and leadership lessons that

leaders can apply to foster a culture in which motivation can

flourish for their people, their organizations, and themselves. The

combination of leadership principles and stories gives this book

a framework upon which managers can build as they learn how to

link their individual actions to organizational results. It is my sin-

cere hope that readers will find within these pages practical and

proven techniques for bringing people together, getting them

excited about the endeavor, and releasing their energies toward

mutual goals.

2

Good luck, and enjoy the process!