Be an Encourager

When times are tough, it is easy to jump on the woe is me band and sing the sad song, but the job of a leader is to be an encourager. Perhaps you have heard a statement that so many philosophers and even parents have said, that our thoughts affect who we are and directly connects us to what we become. If we become what we think about then our performance and behavior can be changed by having someone who encourages us and helps us to see our potential instead of our mistakes. Leaders encourage those around them to learn how to express themselves so they can become more than they already are. As I work with corporate executives, I find those that have the greatest productivity from their team are the ones who encourage their team members to think and to express their ideas. These leaders create a platform for sharing and reward people for bringing forth ideas.

Our brain is a very powerful tool and when a leader encourages us to bring our brain to work and then encourages us to use it, great ideas grow. To use a gardening analogy, thoughts are seeds and our brain is a garden. Given the right conditions a garden or brain can grow anything – nourishing food or poison. Much the same as the earth grows what is sowed, so our brains also grow the thoughts (the 'thinking seeds') and the encouragement that we hear. Our brain cultivates these thoughts and this information giving us the nutrient and sustenance we need to grow, to deal with issues, and to solve problems. The challenge becomes to control what is planted in the brain – and to sow the right 'thinking seeds'.

There was a student named Tommy who struggled in school. He had difficulty keeping up and after much frustration with Tommy’s challenges his teacher dismissed him telling his mother that Tommy would not be able to succeed. Tommy was then schooled at home by his mother who believed in him and gave him encouragement to believe in himself. Well, Tommy grew up and became known by most as Thomas Edison, an inventor of over 1,000 patents, including the phonograph and the first electric light bulb. Who do you work with that could blossom if they were encouraged?

If you are in the workplace, remember you are doing more than renting time from your employees, you are spending your money to have them there. Spend some personal time encouraging them and you may be surprised that they do more than show up for work and that they are more productive at work. As I talk to employers around the world about working with the younger generations, they have come to understand that encouraging is the link that makes their young employees more responsive and that encouragement cost them nothing and got them everything that they were wanting.


Bring a program to your City: Schedule a program while Cindy is in your area.
2009 Confirmed Upcoming Events Public can attend:

Federally Employed Women Beach, Cocoa Beach, FL March 4-5: http://www.ksc.nasa.gov/groups/few/
Then click on TRAINING – Cindy is presenting on Unleashing our Leadership Potential FAPE Conference, Daytona Beach, FL April 15-16:
http://www.meetingmakersinc.com/Register/FAPE_Reg.asp
Cindy will be speaking on: Three topics: Personality Styles: How to influence how we interact, Reaching Across the Generations, and Achieving Cohesiveness with Ease: Teambuilding to Increase Your Teams Potential Annual Gulf Coast Symposium, Houston TX, May 21: Cindy will present on Raising Presentations to New Heights (HRCI program) South Brevard SHRM, Melbourne, FL, June 11: The Diversity of Change an approved HRCI program Florida Association of Public Health Nurses Palm Beach, FL, August 4