We love our staff. Seriously. Love them. That means that we empower them to take risks, catch them when they are falling, cover them when family needs to come first, push them to overcome their own inhibitions, and celebrate with them when they create greatness. Corey Michael Blake, in Forbes
What motivates leaders to open doors for others?
In an earlier post this week, I stated that we don’t do it out of chivalry — because creating opportunities for others is nice, or polite, or heroic. I said that we do it in service of the mission of our companies, for the growth and well-being of others, or in service of our clients.
But we also do it for love.
The purest motivation for opening a door of opportunity for someone else is love. Pure concern for another’s well being above our own. A focus on helping others achieve more. A genuine desire to make a difference.
If we operate from a place of loving others, we will want the best for them, which will motivate us to find and open doors of opportunity: for growth, learning, development, and success.
Without love, all our efforts will fall short.
If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing. 1 Corinthians 13:2-3.
Let it be love that compels us to open doors for others.
Let it be love that compels us to take a risk, give someone a second chance, to find a place in our organization for someone, or to connect more deeply with our teams.
For more inspiration related to leadership and open doors, check out Bill Treasurer’s new book, Leaders Open Doors, now available on Amazon (buy now!). Learn more at leadersopendoors.com or follow Bill on Twitter, @btreasurer or connect on Facebook. All proceeds benefit people with special needs.
I am the founder/CEO of the Weaving Influence team, the author of Reach: Creating the Biggest Possible Audience for Your Message, Book, or Cause, and the host of the Book Marketing Action Podcast. I’m a wife and mom of three kids, and I enjoy running, reading, writing, coffee, and dark chocolate.