To lead, you need individuals willing to follow.

Ever see the stereotype leader who goes marching off without any one following him or her? It may be comical, but not real productive or effective. Step two in Leadership Kinetics is building commitment. You need your “followers” to not only understand where you are going, but to commit to going there too. This is where the leader needs to understand his/her team and what is important to them. What they want, their measure of success, even their desires are what will make them an unstoppable force if aligned with where you want to go. Passion is a strong driver and the best way to get them to use their passion, drive, determination and perseverance is to show yours for the cause or goal. People do not follow a title or role on an organizational chart. They follow people. It was Steve Jobs who inspired people, not the Apple CEO. Look at great companies which have faltered with leadership changes because the new individual cannot or does not gain the commitment of his or her team. And this works in all situations, such as a teacher in a classroom. Your title doesn’t cut it. It is what you say, how you say it and what you do.

There is another fundamental of gaining commitment. People support more what they help to create. A great leader gets individuals involved with setting the direction and path forward so they “own” it too. I have come to know the key aspect of a great company by how the employees talk about it. If it is “they do this or they wouldn’t do that for you Mr. Customer” it will never reach its potential. What you want to hear is “we do this or I will follow up and see what we can do for you Mr. Customer. If employees don’t own the company’s action and success, it will be tough to get them to commit to your goals.

The second step in Leadership Kinetics is to build commitment for the direction and goals.

The next step gets more specific.