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Inspire Greatness: How to Motivate Employees with a Simple, Repeatable, Scalable Process
Quickly and sustainably improve employee motivation, engagement, and performance for your team or organization with this simple, four-step process from a top leadership expert.
Common sense dictates that the primary job of a leader is to bring out the best in team members. But research shows that this is not common practice and that few leaders are able to consistently inspire greatness in their team members.
From sought-after speaker and consultant Matt Tenney, Inspire Greatness outlines a simple, scalable, four-step process that any leader can follow to routinely bring out the best in team members and improve performance for their team or organization by:
• Taking responsibility for employee engagement and acting from the wisdom that their primary job is to inspire greatness in their team members.
• Identifying what team members need to thrive and do great work.
• Collecting regular feedback on how well direct supervisors are meeting the 14 universal needs people have for being engaged at work.
• Pairing feedback for leaders with bite-size training that is easy to consume and act on immediately.
Tightly synchronizing employees’ feedback with targeted, micro training for their direct supervisors creates an incredibly powerful, synergistic effect by: 1) dramatically increasing the likelihood that managers will develop lasting habits that contribute to employee engagement and 2) allowing employees to see meaningful action almost immediately in response to their feedback.
Inspire Greatness is a practical guide to consistently bringing out the best in team members while also helping you and other leaders in your organization to realize deep meaning and fulfillment at work.
Common sense dictates that the primary job of a leader is to bring out the best in team members. But research shows that this is not common practice and that few leaders are able to consistently inspire greatness in their team members.
From sought-after speaker and consultant Matt Tenney, Inspire Greatness outlines a simple, scalable, four-step process that any leader can follow to routinely bring out the best in team members and improve performance for their team or organization by:
• Taking responsibility for employee engagement and acting from the wisdom that their primary job is to inspire greatness in their team members.
• Identifying what team members need to thrive and do great work.
• Collecting regular feedback on how well direct supervisors are meeting the 14 universal needs people have for being engaged at work.
• Pairing feedback for leaders with bite-size training that is easy to consume and act on immediately.
Tightly synchronizing employees’ feedback with targeted, micro training for their direct supervisors creates an incredibly powerful, synergistic effect by: 1) dramatically increasing the likelihood that managers will develop lasting habits that contribute to employee engagement and 2) allowing employees to see meaningful action almost immediately in response to their feedback.
Inspire Greatness is a practical guide to consistently bringing out the best in team members while also helping you and other leaders in your organization to realize deep meaning and fulfillment at work.
256 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 14, 2024
98 people are currently reading
244 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
October 24, 2024
This was very, very good. One of the few audiobooks that I have listened to, that I really want to buy in print, and re-read because I feel I might’ve missed some really interestingtidbits.
Frankly, it’s really a simple concept: take care of your people, understand who these people are, help them feel supported, and help them feel connected to the outcomes and inner workings of your company. You do this, you will absolutely see better results. Now I agree, and really appreciate the authors conversations about the timeliness ofthis effect. It will not happen overnight. It is not an accurately, measurable stat you can find.
I am currently embarking upon the transition from being a soul practitioner to trying to create an understand a value proposition to attract new talent to my financial planning practice. I really feel this book will help in numerable ways.
There are a couple places where the author rambles telling multiple different stories, but the stories do end up, making a pretty solid contribution to his points. So, I can imagine if I read this page by page. It might not have quite the same effect as listening to it. But like I had said above, I absolutely wanna own this book so I can reread it, and then drop down notes and really internalize it .
Definitely give this one a try and I’d love to hear your feedback as well.
Frankly, it’s really a simple concept: take care of your people, understand who these people are, help them feel supported, and help them feel connected to the outcomes and inner workings of your company. You do this, you will absolutely see better results. Now I agree, and really appreciate the authors conversations about the timeliness ofthis effect. It will not happen overnight. It is not an accurately, measurable stat you can find.
I am currently embarking upon the transition from being a soul practitioner to trying to create an understand a value proposition to attract new talent to my financial planning practice. I really feel this book will help in numerable ways.
There are a couple places where the author rambles telling multiple different stories, but the stories do end up, making a pretty solid contribution to his points. So, I can imagine if I read this page by page. It might not have quite the same effect as listening to it. But like I had said above, I absolutely wanna own this book so I can reread it, and then drop down notes and really internalize it .
Definitely give this one a try and I’d love to hear your feedback as well.
June 15, 2024
I once won the lottery. Not the financial lottery. A human being lottery. I worked in a school named Arcadia Middle located in Greece, NY, from 2002 to 2010. The odds pursuant the forthcoming were staggering. During my tenure at Arcadia Middle I worked in the same suite of offices as a Congressional Medal of Honor Recipient named Gary Beikirch. Sergeant Beikirch was awarded the Medal of Honor for saving numerous lives during the Vietnam war. I have yet to encounter another fellow person as selfless, passionate and dedicated to his students as Gary. Which is why I consider Inspire Greatness such an invaluable tool. Not all of us were born to be Congressional Medal of Honor Recipients, but we can all strive to make appreciation an art and Inspire Greatness along the way! Bravo! Job well done!
November 28, 2024
Matt Tenney’s Inspire Greatness is a thoughtful and engaging guide for leaders and team members alike, offering actionable insights into creating meaningful, people-centered workplace cultures. The book’s focus on mindfulness, intentionality, and the power of asking great questions makes it stand out as both inspiring and practical.
One of the standout aspects of this book is Tenney’s emphasis on fostering genuine closeness among coworkers. His suggested questions—designed to inspire understanding and camaraderie—are simple yet incredibly effective in building trust and strengthening relationships within a team. These tools go beyond surface-level communication, making the workplace feel more connected and collaborative.
Another highlight is the strengths test. By encouraging leaders to identify and build upon the unique abilities of their team members, Tenney demonstrates how focusing on strengths can unlock potential and increase both engagement and productivity. This approach resonates deeply, especially in environments where leveraging individual skills can lead to collective success.
Overall, Inspire Greatness balances inspiration with actionable advice, making it a must-read for anyone looking to create a more human-centric workplace. If you’re interested in practical tools to elevate your leadership or simply foster better relationships in your organization, this book is a fantastic resource.
One of the standout aspects of this book is Tenney’s emphasis on fostering genuine closeness among coworkers. His suggested questions—designed to inspire understanding and camaraderie—are simple yet incredibly effective in building trust and strengthening relationships within a team. These tools go beyond surface-level communication, making the workplace feel more connected and collaborative.
Another highlight is the strengths test. By encouraging leaders to identify and build upon the unique abilities of their team members, Tenney demonstrates how focusing on strengths can unlock potential and increase both engagement and productivity. This approach resonates deeply, especially in environments where leveraging individual skills can lead to collective success.
Overall, Inspire Greatness balances inspiration with actionable advice, making it a must-read for anyone looking to create a more human-centric workplace. If you’re interested in practical tools to elevate your leadership or simply foster better relationships in your organization, this book is a fantastic resource.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 12, 2025
Well, I lead a team across the United States and I selected this as our first book club focus on our management development curriculum. It’s a quick read, logical and implementable ideas that you can do right away. It’s not high brow ideas for the c suite. However, the C suite should be reading it.
October 14, 2024
Sound practical advice. The blatant upsells were a little off putting but I guess I can’t blame the guy for being upfront about why any consultant writes a book. I will say that the action steps will basically fill up my calendar, but not sure of a better way to build habits
June 14, 2024
This book had some great information. I loved the refocusing on the mission statement and motto!
November 12, 2024
Excellent leadership book with clear action items and easy to read format. Matt's ideas are "simple" things that leaders can do to make their team thrive. As a leader, I found his stories were great to drive home the points he makes in the book. I have two copies of this book and have been sharing it with my team. Highly recommend for anyone who wants to learn how to be a leader and not just a manager!
January 27, 2025
Simple but effective ideas to create environments where employees feel valued and thrive.
November 10, 2024
Impactful and actionable book on leadership!
"Inspire Greatness" is different than the typical leadership books.
I've read dozens of books on leadership since it's been a passion of mine for decades. My biggest critique of them is that they tend to be conceptual and obvious. "Be empathetic." "Be a great listener."
Everyone tends to believe that they are already these things. So these books tend to be light on actual impact.
Matt Tenney's book, "Inspire Greatness: How to Motivate Employees with a Simple, Repeatable, Scalable Process" is quite different.
The book sets the tone at the start with this startling premise: that employee engagement is not the responsibility of the human resources department but instead, is THE PRIMARY JOB of every leader.
Not setting strategy, accomplishing targets, driving efficiencies, etc.
Yes, those are all noble objectives and of course every leader is hired to achieve specific results. Yet, how are you going to accomplish those outcomes if you don't have highly engaged, passionate employees that have an owners, not a renters, mindset about the company?
Matt Tenney also understands that changing leadership behavior overnight is unachievable. What IS achievable is behavior change through new habit formations. Small, bite-sized, habit change.
If you want a refreshing, actionable guide on how you can inspire the greatness in your people, read this book!
"Inspire Greatness" is different than the typical leadership books.
I've read dozens of books on leadership since it's been a passion of mine for decades. My biggest critique of them is that they tend to be conceptual and obvious. "Be empathetic." "Be a great listener."
Everyone tends to believe that they are already these things. So these books tend to be light on actual impact.
Matt Tenney's book, "Inspire Greatness: How to Motivate Employees with a Simple, Repeatable, Scalable Process" is quite different.
The book sets the tone at the start with this startling premise: that employee engagement is not the responsibility of the human resources department but instead, is THE PRIMARY JOB of every leader.
Not setting strategy, accomplishing targets, driving efficiencies, etc.
Yes, those are all noble objectives and of course every leader is hired to achieve specific results. Yet, how are you going to accomplish those outcomes if you don't have highly engaged, passionate employees that have an owners, not a renters, mindset about the company?
Matt Tenney also understands that changing leadership behavior overnight is unachievable. What IS achievable is behavior change through new habit formations. Small, bite-sized, habit change.
If you want a refreshing, actionable guide on how you can inspire the greatness in your people, read this book!
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews