Hedges - The inspiration code: how the best leaders energize people every day

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Inspirational leadership is an absolute requirement for creating and sustaining high-performing teams. The Inspiration Code provides practical and insightful guidance on how to leverage skills like listening and cultivating purpose to create an inspired and engaged workforce.

John Sigmon, Chief Human Resources Officer, AARP

The Inspiration Code is a clear, practical guide to communicating in ways that move others to action. Were in a time of unprecedented change, where leaders must communicate enthusiasm, vision, and imagination to energize their teams to take big leaps. If youre a leader who wants to drive change, inspire a team, or simply be a better manager, read this book now.

Atif Rafiq, Chief Digital Officer and SVP of IT, Volvo

If were lucky, weve had inspirational leaders whove invested in us, and helped us to be and do more. We know how critical they are in our own trajectory. The Inspiration Code is a guide to paying it forward, by helping all of us to be the type of leader who builds careers and improves lives. This book will light a spark!

Carol Seymour, CEO and founder, Signature Leaders

To Emery, Smith, and Mike
for the everyday things.

This whole thing began with a light.

And that got me looking for the spark.

But let me back up before I get ahead of myself. For the past decade Ive worked as a leadership coach. Its the most rewarding job I can imagine. I work with senior leaders and CEOs at all kinds of companiesfrom global brands that everyone knows to upstart businesses just making their mark. My job is to help leaders communicate in ways that inspire and motivate others. I help them drive change, set visions, get people excited, and lead teams into the future. I get to work with smart and dedicated people, all over the world, who are at the top of their game and who care deeply. Theyre making good things happen.

As part of my work, I also write about the concepts that Ive seen to be effective, to present them in a practical way for anyone trying to advance a career. No matter the type of organization or level of professional, whether speaking one-to-one or one-to-many, certain behaviors are universal. In 2011, I wrote a book called The Power of Presence that got me out there in a more expansive way, delivering workshops and keynotes to all kinds of corporate groups, in lots of different settings. And thats when I began to notice the light.

At the beginning of my talks, as a sort of icebreaker, I asked the audience to think of someone who has inspired them. I wanted to have the participants map this inspiring person back to the attributes of leadership presence in my book to make the concepts relatable. Now, when you speak in public, it would be nice to have a room full of people on the edges of their seats, fully engaged, just waiting for you to begin. But just as often, youre there on the podium at 8:00 a.m. on a Tuesday looking out at a tired group of people, distracted by their phones, who showed up only because they were voluntold to do it. Theyve seen lots of speakers and now theyre looking at you to see if youre worth their time.

Hence, my icebreaker: When I introduce this discuss-an-inspirational-person exercise, at first people reluctantly move toward their discussion partners, some with barely stifled its-one-of-those-workshops groans. But then they start talking about the people who have inspired them in their lives. Thats when I see it. Almost immediately, peoples faces light up. Smiles break out. Hands gesture intently. Eyes shine. Theres excitement in their voices.

When I ask if anyone wants to share their stories, hands shoot up. Ive heard about first bosses, coaches, parents, colleagues, friends, teachers, managers, CEOs, strangers, family members, direct reports, and co-workers. Ive heard stories about everyday occurrences and ones that are unique and memorable. The situations and people vary greatly, but I noticed great similarity in what these inspirational people did. And it wasnt anything momentous or grand. The inspirational people mentioned communicated in certain, specific ways that made this kind of light shine in peoples faces even decades later.

My curiosity piqued, I began wondering how can we have more of that in our workplaces. What effect would it have? Companies are spending millions of dollars to get inspirational leadership behaviors into organizations, and yet, these efforts fall flat. There has to be a way to get closer to this true inspiration that has a lasting impact on others. And so I embarked on my own research to take a deeper dive into what really inspires others, and to outline the very behaviorsor sparksthat create this kind of enduring, energizing light.

Couldnt we all use more of it? Turns out, all it takes is the right conversation.

In our lives, we have lots of conversations. We have them one-on-one, in groups, in public settings, in meeting rooms, in auditoriums. We have them at home, at work, at the dentist, in line at the DMV, in the car, on walks, and sitting with a beer in the backyard. Nearly all of these conversations flit in and out of our consciousness. We barely remember them.

But every once in a while, we have a conversation that changes our lives. You know the kind. It feels different. It crackles with energy. It has a zing. It makes time stop. Deeper and more real, it lands just right. After we walk away, were not quite the same as we were before. These are conversations that change how we think about ourselves, that open our minds to what were capable of doing and show us whats possible. They infuse us with hope, determination, and confidence. They lift our mood, bringing joy and lightness. They fuel our ambition, validate our current choices, or inspire us to make new ones. These arent ordinary conversations, but conversations that count. Theyre inspiring and unforgettable. They marinate. We save them in the recesses of our minds. We recount them from time to time. We carry them around like talismans to fortify us for days, months, or our entire lives.

When people describe those who inspire them, they talk about these conversations that count. Theyre the right words by the right person at the right time. Those who inspire might not even realize what theyve done. And yet, look what theyve done.

Looking at my own story, I can precisely map the conversations that inspired my decisions and shaped who I became.

I grew up in a small factory town in West Virginia. It was literally gritty, with a limestone quarry in the middle of the town that deposited grit on our cars, outside our windows, and in the bottom of glasses of water. It was a town where people felt lucky to land factory jobs that came with decent wages and guaranteed pensions. Almost 40 percent of my high school class didnt make it to senior year.