Every leader knows that a tap on the shoulder is a crucial aspect to motivate the troops. But what makes a good and a bad tap? There’s a world of difference.

A good tap, is one that comes from the heart. You can’t fool people you know. Had this boss ones. Very bright guy, huge IQ, liked him a lot, but when it came to showing real emotions and true passion there was still a long way to go 🙂 Every time he came to me to tap me on the shoulder – which happened rarely – it felt like in his head he ticked a box on his to do list: “have to motivate Yves today – done”. So the only reason why he could stay my boss was that I accepted him to be who he was and to motivate myself. Did we outperform? Nope.

When it has to come from the heart, many people think they’ll become vulnerable. That they will be seen as wimps. That’s why they hesitate. In old-school-management-books, you’ll find that managers can’t show their emotions. Tell that to topcoaches in the sports world! Are those guys wimps????

It’s not only about giving people compliments. It’s about showing the real stuff to your team. Every day. Tell them what you think, how you feel, straight from the heart. Good or bad. Just be genuine, authentic, true to yourself.

It’s ok to cry, to laugh, to cheer, to shout, to yell, to show your real gut feelings. Don’t worry, you won’t be seen as a “weak” person. On the contrary.

Be careful though. You need a great leader to handle these sometimes extreme emotions. A great leader knows how to create an environment to make all this possible. How to use all that energy to achieve a common goal. How to stimulate everybody to work together despite of emotional differences.

You would be surprised how fast things change and how great your team will perform if you dare to be that leader. Not everybody can be that leader though. If you are not, maybe you should look for one. You would be surprised how fast people will start copying that behaviour. You would be surprised how many “impossible goals” you can achieve together.

Just look at the video and feel the power.

Have a Herculean Day