leadership Archives - Motivational Speeches and books by Snowden McFall

2 Ways to Increase Your Influence

You Can Have Greater Influence on Others

Brendon Burchard, in his excellent new book, High Performance Habits, shares some excellent tips on how to increase your influence.

Teach people how to think. When you are working with others, whether in a team, on a committee, or your employees, ask compelling questions which make others think. Some might include:
“What do you think about…?”
“What would happen if we tried…?”
“How should we approach?”
“What ideas do you have about..?”
Get others thinking and contributing. Listen to their feedback and don’t shut them down. You influence them by thanking them and considering what they have said. Do this more and more often at every meeting. Let them know you expect new ideas and creative thinking from them.

2. Challenge others to grow. Let them know you hold them to a higher standard. Whether it’s your employees, family members or friends, ask them what their next steps are, how they can get better at what they’re doing, how they can treat others better, how they can improve. Let them know you believe in them and that their excellence inspires them.

You have an impact on others. You have the opportunity to influence others more than you know By encouraging their thinking, their growth and their ideas, you influence and empower others.

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Leaders and Sacrifice

Leadership today requires sacrifice. Not the romantic kind, but the practical, often uncomfortable decisions that protect trust, performance, and people under pressure.

In high-stakes leadership environments, sacrifice is not about working harder or giving more time. It is about letting go of behaviors that undermine resilience, clarity, and long-term effectiveness.

This is where leadership resilience begins: the ability to perform under pressure while choosing people, trust, and sustainability over ego or control.

In his new book Leaders Eat Last, Simon Sinek says leaders must sacrifice for their people. They must be willing to put the needs of others before their own needs. It’s a choice: to look after the person on either side of us.

These sacrifices are not abstract ideas. They are practical leadership behaviors built into the Leadership Resilience System, which helps leaders sustain performance without burning out themselves or their teams.

What Leaders Must Sacrifice:

Micromanaging
Hire good people, trust them, and check progress at the right cadence. Sacrificing micromanagement builds ownership, increases engagement, and strengthens team resilience under pressure.
Self-Interest and Ego
Get in the trenches and connect with your people at all levels. When leaders sacrifice ego and show genuine care, trust rises, communication improves, and performance often follows.
Saving Face at the Expense of Your People
Back your people up during conflict and high-stakes moments. Sacrificing image-protection builds psychological safety, reduces fear-based behavior, and keeps teams effective under pressure.
Looking Good to Stockholders
Invest in developing people even when it requires patience and conviction. Sacrificing short-term optics for long-term capability reduces turnover, increases innovation, and creates sustainable results.

Leadership sacrifice is not self-denial. It is a strategic choice that strengthens resilience, trust, and performance over time.

When leaders let go of control, ego, and short-term optics, they create environments where people can think clearly, act responsibly, and stay engaged under pressure.

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How Leaders Fail

“Leadership is lifting a person’s vision to higher sights, the raising of a person’s performance to a higher standard, the building of a personality beyond its normal limitations.” Peter F. Drucker

The Biggest Mistakes Leaders Make

• Breaking agreements and not keeping promises
Other people assume a promise from a leader will be kept. And when you fail to follow-through on any level, it breaks trust. It creates dis-ease and mistrust on all levels and calls into question your credibility. Don’t make commitments you can’t keep. Renegotiate them, delegate them, but do not break promises.

• Emotional outbursts. I had a boss who screamed at everyone, for no reason. I’ve seen other leaders do this, and all it does is alienate others around you. The secret to successful leadership is sustaining performance under pressure, no matter what. DO NOT VENT on your staff. They deserve better. Go to therapy, work out, get the anger out before you come to work.

• Lack of empathy: Not understanding how your people feel after a work crisis, not giving them comp time when they have worked overtime for many days, not being compassionate when your people have a family emergency. You must demonstrate compassion. Your staff are first and foremost people; treat them with respect and caring.

• Not Giving Appreciation or Praise
70% of American workers are actively disengaged. 88% of American workers NEVER receive thanks for the work they have done! There’s a correlation. Praise people specifically in writing for a job well done. Say thank you publicly to others for their work. Express your thanks often.

• Not Being Transparent
More than ever, leaders need to tell the truth and address fear and rumors. Even if you can’t tell the whole story, acknowledge that yes, change is happening, and you are doing everything in your power to resolve issues quickly. Update your people often. Acknowledge their worries and be honest in responses. Maintain an optimistic approach and keep them updated every step of the way.

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