Developing Passion Within Your Organization

The greatest advantage a leader can possess is passion.

Skeptics might argue that a solid strategic plan or better products and services are of greater benefit, but that thinking is a bit too narrow. Certainly, both are critical to an organization’s success, but while many organizations have the technology and even the ability to succeed, few have a workforce with the sheer emotional force and commitment to be the best.

Tapping into the passion of people is a universal business strategy that can help drive performance.

Passion is the underlying force that fuels our strongest emotions. When passion is in force, we are carried away in our experience, losing track of time and effort, and performing otherwise-difficult tasks almost effortlessly

BOTTOMLINE: Before you can inspire and lead others, you must be passionate about your own work. If you don’t have passion for your organization, you don’t belong in it. As a leader, you have the potential not only to enhance your personal performance through passion, but also to help others do the same. Passion is contagious. An energized and committed workforce can accomplish remarkable things. Just as your own “passion-driven” leadership behaviors can turn a good employee into a great one, your efforts to incorporate and align passion across the organization can help turn an ordinary department, division or company into an extraordinary one.

(Thanks to Richard Chang, author of “The Passion Plan.”)