My client, let’s call him Karl, was struggling to motivate his team. Karl came across as mildly stern even when smiling, and his presentational style in team meetings was clinical and measured. One-on-one, Karl was known to be a good listener and thoughtful boss, but in large forums, he tended to freeze, defaulting to offering quick solutions or doubling down on the company line when presented with complicated questions instead of taking time to share his own perspective. The result? His audience felt he was formal and lacked authenticity, and his employees gave him low marks for his ability to inspire.
To Inspire Your Team, Share More of Yourself
People respond to stories that convey vulnerability, humor, and humility.
September 29, 2021
HBR Staff; csaimages.com; David Trood/Getty Images
Summary.
It was once believed that scrubbing notions of the self from presentations and regulating emotions at all cost was key to being perceived as an effective leader. However, it’s becoming increasingly clear that in order to inspire people to follow you, sharing personal stories with vulnerability, humor, and humility allows audiences to see you as human and thus be inspired by you. The reason? Telling personal stories helps lead to more trust in relationships. We tend to trust people who we believe are acting as their real selves and demonstrating empathy. Increasing realness and humanity by sharing personal stories is one powerful way to build that trust. Luckily, connecting more personally in this way is a teachable skill. The author offers four steps that will help you add humanity to your presentations and increase your team’s inspiration.