Inspirational Influence: Connecting with Hearts and Minds

Leadership N-Sight: How to Connect with Hearts and Minds for Inspirational Influence

Welcome to this episode of Leadership N-Sight! Dive into the essence of inspirational influence and learn how to connect with hearts and minds. In today's session, we explore why impactful leadership goes beyond decision-making and goal-setting, emphasizing the need for trust and inspiration. Key topics include building trust through authenticity and inspiring through vision and empowerment. Understand the importance of making people feel valued, consistent engagement, and recognizing potentials. Whether you're a career professional or an emerging leader, this episode is designed to help you elevate your leadership skills and create meaningful connections. Tune in to discover how to lead with heart and purpose, transforming teams and lives. Don't forget to like and subscribe for more incredible insights and join us next week for more on taking your career to new heights!

00:00 Introduction to Inspirational Influence

00:33 The Essence of Leadership

05:32 Building Trust Through Authenticity

09:56 Inspiring Through Vision and Empowerment

12:57 Conclusion and Challenge

Transcript

 Hello, everyone. Welcome to Leadership N-Sight, where today's topic is inspirational influence: connecting with hearts and minds. So come on in. I'm super excited to have you here for this session again. It's all about inspirational influence.

Leadership is more than making decisions, hitting goals, and driving results. It's about impacting lives, building trust, and inspiring others to believe in themselves and their potential. As career women and professionals, or People in general, looking to elevate their leadership, you need more than knowledge and expertise.

Listen, please have knowledge, 

Please have expertise, but you need more than that. You also need influence,

It's not just about any influence, but it's about the kind that connects people on a deeper level. One that moves their hearts and their minds. today, we're going to explore why this is crucial and what you need to focus on to become an inspirational leader. By the end of this session, I hope that you will walk away with a renewed commitment to leading with impact and a better understanding of how to create real connections that inspire action, trust

and loyalty. Now, before we go any further, last week was all about surviving toxic leadership, a narcissistic boss. We talked about how to recognize those signs and how to protect your boundaries. If you missed that, please make sure that you go back and check it out. Now, back to today's topic. It's about inspirational influence connecting with hearts and minds. Our two points today are to Build Trust Through Authenticity and Inspire Through Vision and Empowerment.

People need great leaders. Ma'am. We need you. Sir, we need you because people need great leaders. And some of you are shrieking from your responsibility because you know that a great leader means you're going to do great work. And you're just like, I don't want to do that work. I know I'm talking to somebody.

I know I am. But ma'am, sir, we need you to take your rightful position,  okay? Okay. All right. I'mma just, I'mma, I'mma move on.  

People need great leaders. They need leaders who don't just direct, but they inspire. They need understanding, encouragement, and hope, especially when we're going through challenging times. And yes, I know, I know, I know. I need you, leader. To get inspired, do what you need to do on the outside so that when you show up, you can put your feelings aside and you can ignite and  inspire those around you.

Think about a time when you were struggling, when you were unsure of your path, or you felt undervalued. What made the difference for you? I need you to go back in your Rolodex to pull out that time. Was it a set of instructions? Was it someone that stopped and told you? Bethany, I believe in you. Sharon, you got this.

Was it, was it that? Was it someone who encouraged you? Was it someone who said, Oh my Gosh, you're brilliant in this area. They saw your potential. Leadership isn't just about what you do. It's about how you are able to make people feel. If people feel valued, if they feel seen, if they feel supported, they will be motivated.

You don't have to find out how to motivate. And I know that there's all schools of thoughts of people can't be motivated and da, da, da, da. That's not what I'm talking about. When you make someone feel something, when they feel inspired, when they feel valued and seen and heard and you give them a voice, you don't have to try to motivate them because that's an intrinsic motivation that They will be able to unite and link with so they will be motivated to perform their best.

, but if they feel just like another number, if they feel just like another task, you Sir. Ma'am, you're going to lose them because they are going to disengage. To truly lead with influence you must go beyond authority and power. Yes. There's a place for authority. Yes. There is a place for power, but what we're talking about, you have to go beyond that.

You must tap into connection and inspiration. Today, we'll focus on how to inspire and influence by reaching both the heart and the mind. 📍 Please do not forget to like and subscribe from whatever platform you are watching us from. So, we'll jump on in to create inspirational influence.

We're going to focus on two key areas. Our first one is building trust through authenticity. You can literally Be the best version of yourself. You don't have to be the best version of Sparklejoy Coach, LaToya, or Michelle.

We need you to be the best version of you. The foundation of Inspirational leadership is trust. Trust is built through authenticity. People love following leaders who are real, who are honest and consistent. Not, today, I woke up feeling one way, tomorrow,  I woke up feeling, can you not be,  can you not be that leader?

Can we talk for real? Don't go to work one day sad, go to work the next day happy, go to, go to work, and then I'm saying, like, show this to your employees, Oh, today's a good day.  Oh, tomorrow. Oh my God. Oh, oh, I can't do that. I can't help you today, Susie. Mm mm, because I got my own issues, my own struggles, my own.

And then, and then, wait a minute, wait a minute, wait a minute. She's going to show up later in the week, and you're going to be pop-locking, dropping it like it's hot, and they're going to be like, What in the literal world is going on with this supervisor? Consistency. Yes, consistency, even in your attitude, consistency, and how you carry yourself—all of those things are important, people, important, important, important.

So what does this mean for you? Be transparent. Share your challenges and lessons learned. So you can be transparent, but also when we talk about consistency,  we, we, we mean it all. So today you're transparent.  Two months from now, you're transparent.  A year from now, you're transparent. Okay, no, kind of be consistent.

Be consistent in sharing challenges and lessons learned. We want them all. When people see that you, your And I understand sometimes this is hard for leaders because you believe that if you show an area of vulnerability, that you are weak or you're showing weakness, that's an old theory. That's an old method.

That's an old ideology that worked once, but in today's world, people need to know that they're following someone who is real. How they show up is how they are in their true, true lives, too. So share challenges and lessons learned. Also, stay true to your values. Make sure you have values.

We've done sessions on that as well. Go back. If you're like, you know what? I do struggle with my values. That is something that you need to line up. Don't compromise your integrity for short term gains. People respect leaders who stand by their principles, who they know their principles. Admit when you don't know something.

I am the first one. I know what I know, but I won't sit here and talk to you about something I don't know. I'm going to do one of two things. Listen, that's not my area of expertise. Let me tell you to go to this person, or have you thought about that person?  If I don't know something, I'm not going to act like I do.

Hold. If it's something in.  That may be, perhaps, you need to know or you should know. Listen, I need you to give me about an hour, and I'll get back to you. Whatever, whatever you need to do or say. Just Don't give knowledge and you don't know what you're talking about.

There are plenty of people who do that. It's a very frustrating, I mean, extremely frustrating when you're telling me something and you don't even know what you're talking about. So it's okay to say, you do not have all the answers, but I'll find out. I'll get back with you. Give me a little time and I'll get back with you.

This does show confidence and humility, which are near and dear to people. They like to know that they are going to someone who is confident and who will be able to show humility when you lead authentically. When people trust you, they are more willing to follow you.

They will listen to you and they're going to go the extra mile. Now, our second point.  Inspire through vision and empowerment. When we're talking about vision and empowerment, it's about making sure you are painting that vision that excites people and it empowers them to take action.  It should be exciting.

 It should be something that they can latch on and run with. , notice, it should be something that they  can latch on and run with. It should inspire them to move. , share a compelling vision. Help people see the bigger picture. , Don't just say, this is what we're going to do.

But paint the picture for them so that they can find themselves in it. So, paint the picture for them so that they can find themselves in it. Paint that bigger picture and their role, whether it's a leading a team working towards their own career goals, show why working towards that is going to matter.

People want to feel like they're part of something bigger. Help them see that. Encourage growth and confidence. It's important to show that you believe in them. You'd be surprised how that will trickle down into them believing in themselves, recognizing strengths, acknowledging progress, and helping them see that they are capable, that they can do this.

They're capable of achieving huge things, big and small. Make people feel valued. It's as simple as, I appreciate you. You are doing a great job. That will go a long way. And I know that it's mere words, but to some people, that thank you, that encouragement, is something that they need. You just make the assumption that people get encouragement

all the time. If you have the ability to take out a minute of your day to encourage someone else, it will do wonders for that person. And you'd be surprised the kickback that you've received. See, from getting outside of yourself to be able to help someone else. And that's regardless whether you're a leader or a coworker or whatever you are, just in general, take time.

out and tell people that they are appreciated. Tell them, thank you. It goes a long way. People don't just work for paychecks. They work for purpose and appreciation. The best leaders don't just give directions.  people reasons to believe in themselves and their potential. And no, you don't have to be a psychologist.

You don't have to be a therapist. You don't have to be a coach to be able to do these things. These things are things that you just have to start to practice. When you connect with people's hearts through trust and their minds. Through vision, you ignite motivation and long term commitment. Today we have talked about inspirational influence, how great leaders connect both hearts and minds to inspire real impact.

We've covered why it matters. People need great leaders, understanding, and hope to thrive. And what do you need to do? You need to build trust through authenticity. Be real, honest, and consistent. When people trust you, they'll follow you and then inspire you through vision and empowerment.

Show people their potential, recognize their value, and help them believe in themselves. Leadership isn't just about getting things done. It is about creating an environment where people feel inspired and fired to grow and contribute.

 So, my challenge to you today is to find one way to be a more authentic and inspiring leader this week. Maybe it's having a heartfelt conversation with a colleague, recognizing someone's efforts, or sharing your vision with confidence. When you lead with heart and purpose, you transform.

Transform careers, teams, and lives—that's the kind of leadership the world needs more of. Join me next week for more incredible insights. You deserve nothing but the best, and my goal is to ensure that you move to the next level. Let's take your career to new heights together. Thank you for joining me today.

Now go out there and lead with inspiration.