Inspirators: Leading the way in leadership

By Pete Cohen

Leadership is the most valuable commodity in the world. There has never been a more important time to bring forth leaders who can stand up and make a difference. Inspirators is the route map to leadership in a new age - an age where leaders are no longer dictators, but visionaries and motivators. They are at the top of their game and inspire oth

• Language: English
• Publisher: Filament Publishing
• Release date: Jun 17, 2019
• ISBN: 9781913192204

Pete Cohen

Pete Cohen was recognised and respected internationally for defining the ‘formula for happiness’ in 2003. As a life coach, life strategist and human behaviourist he works with people to create positive change in their lives. He is the resident life coach and motivator on GMTV and has presented other motivational and coaching items on television. He is the author of ten books, including the bestseller Lighten Up. He has also worked as a peak performance coach for world-class athletes and sportspeople including Ellen MacArthur, Ronnie O’Sullivan and Sally Gunnell.

Book preview

A New Hope?

A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away…

THE INSPIRATORS

I was seven when the original Star Wars first came out. As a child I was transfixed by the film. Partly, of course, by the story, but also by the concept of The Force – of how there is a power which binds us all together and we have a choice of how to use it.

The Force is what gives a Jedi his power. It’s an energy field created by all living things. It surrounds us and penetrates us, it binds the galaxy together.

Obi-Wan Kenobi, Star Wars IV – A New Hope

This resonates now, as I think and work and coach in the field of leadership.

Why does anyone follow anyone? What is it that makes others trust them and support them to achieve their goals?

Why would anyone follow you?

The problem with a lot of leaders is that, as soon as they get the title, they think they’ve made it and the power goes to their head. This is the dark side of leadership.

This ‘them and us’ style of leadership, where leaders use power to get what they want, is all too familiar. These leaders think it is all about them – and so miss the point entirely. We can all think of someone who acts this way. Sometimes it is us!

Jon Sellins

I think we can over-complicate it.

I do understand why there are management books and courses and videos, of course. … But I personally believe so much of management and leadership is common sense and just thinking about basic stuff. Like ‘how do you want to be treated?’

It doesn’t take a genius to realise that a workforce that is communicated with, that is told what the vision and the objective is, that understands the restraints they work under, and is told when things don’t quite go right what’s gone wrong – you know, is kept in the picture – is going to be a bit more productive and useful to you than one that is kept in the dark and treated shabbily.

The result of this style of leadership is that those who follow do what is asked of them because they feel they have no choice. They feel oppressed and uninspired so they operate well below their full potential. They do the bare minimum to get by or resist at every turn.

There are – there always have been – great leaders out there, too. They lead the way for others by leading themselves. They have been able to share their vision and unite others behind a cause, inspiring people to move – often beyond anything they had believed possible – to create something together and change the world. These are the Jedi Masters in the leadership world.

And, just as the first step in becoming a Jedi Master is to master The Force in yourself, the first step in becoming an Inspirator is to master your own inner power.

That power can then be used for good – to inspire others to be their best, or become leaders in their own right – or it can lead to something else.

I will show you how to tap into your force so that you can bring out the best in others. To help them to have clarity in where they’re going, and then step back and let them get on with it. It may well be that the direction of travel is into uncharted waters and you will be asking a lot of people to embark on that journey, but if that is what you are asking of them – to boldly go where no one has gone before – then you have to boldly go there first.

This book – this journey you are about to embark upon – is the quest to become a great leader; to become the best leader you can be; to lead the way as a leader by taking the lead in your own life.

The Inspirators

I’m going to give you a different perspective on leadership – to show you what it takes. I’m going to make you an Inspirator.

Inspiration, looking at its Latin roots, means ‘breathing life into something’.

An Inspirator, then, is breathing life into their purpose and breathing life into others, to bring them along on their journey. The Inspirators tap into their inner powers, their potential and their unique gifts, and bring them to life.

Inspirators have a clear vision of what they are here to do, and breathe life into that vision. They make that a reality by working on themselves every day. By doing so, they breathe life into other people.

When they do, their vision becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Chris Roebuck

The criticality of this is not that it’s culturally sensitive, not that it’s complex, not that it’s difficult, it’s just that organisations are trapped in their own vicious circle.

What has to happen is to break that vicious circle: somebody has to say, Actually, you don’t need to think about leadership in a complicated way. You don’t need to do complicated stuff, because you don’t have time. You just have to do simple, practical stuff that you are already doing.

Are you up for the challenge?

To be worthy of following isn’t something you can learn on a two-week training course in leadership. You can’t read a book and be a leader (that includes this book, by the way. If you were expecting that reading this would make you a leader, I’m afraid you will be disappointed).

The work to become an Inspirator is an ongoing process which never ends. It’s something that is always changing and evolving.

What’s more, leadership isn’t confined to the workplace. To be an Inspirator requires you to look at leadership in a holistic way.

Your health

Your family

Your personal ambitions

Your relationships

Your work

To become a true leader – an Inspirator, who inspires everyone around them to give their best and to be a leader in their own right – is incredibly challenging.

Challenging maybe, but also crucial. I believe that there has never been a more important time to inspire everyone to be their best and to show them how to be leaders in their own right. I believe that we need an army of Inspirators to be the example and show the way: taking on the world of the ‘quick fix’, the ‘this is how you should feel’ and the ‘you aren’t good enough’.

Just imagine, for a moment, the impact that these concepts could have on the world, and how people are feeling.

The question is, do you have what it takes to stick with it, even when the going gets tough? Even when you make mistakes and suffer for it? Even when everyone around you is telling you to quit?

If you do, the reward will be to become a better you.

An Inspirator is on a hero’s journey

This is not a quick fix. What I am asking of you is to embark upon a journey to create a clear sense of your own identity. And the journey you are on is one that has been recognised and identified since people first started telling stories.

In 1949, American academic Joseph Campbell published a book, The Hero with a Thousand Faces, based on his studies of myth and religion across the ages. He had discovered that all heroic tales have the same 17 stages, and this Hero’s Journey has been recognised ever since as the basic structure of all myth, legend and literature.

Since Campbell first published his book, there have been countless adaptations of the hero’s journey as other academics and writers built upon his original idea.

Most notably, film executive Christopher Vogler published The Writer’s Journey: Mythic Structure for Writers in 1992, giving a 12-step adaptation of the Hero’s Journey for use in the film industry. Ever wondered why films always have that same pleasing structure to them that we all recognise? Now you know.

Be it Campbell’s original, Vogler’s movie-inspired version or any of the many others, the journey that is mapped out is the same one you are about to embark on.

You are on your own Hero’s Journey – the Inspirator’s Journey, with its own 12 stages:

The unwritten future – looking at where you are now in your life

The power to change – hearing the call to become an Inspirator

The coach – guiding you on your journey

Ignoring your power – do you have the courage to answer the call?

Stepping into the unknown – and facing your fear

Getting lost along the way – the challenges of change, and that pesky duck!

Like-minded people – who you surround yourself with

The darkest hour – as you hit your greatest challenges

Ipseity – understanding your inner self

The plateau – when you feel that things have stopped moving forward

Flourishing – understanding who you are, and what helps you to shine

Finding true purpose – which becomes the beacon for your life

Recognising that this is the journey you are on is crucial, even if you decide that being an Inspirator is not for you. We are all on a hero’s journey. We all face the ups and downs of life and, every time we think we have come through a challenge, another one invariably comes along to test us further.

Answer the call

I’m inviting you on a journey – a heroic journey to learn what it is you stand for – with me as your coach. I’m like Gandalf in The Lord of the Rings. I’m calling you to come on an adventure.

We all have a desire to grow and develop. For you to do that, you need to bring from within you everything that makes you the best possible leader you can be; you need to let go of the things which have been holding you back from living up to your true potential. But as you go to work on yourself, you realise that you can’t really see what is going on within you to unlock your full potential.

You need a coach to help you do that – to uncover the leader who is locked within you, piece by piece, like a sculptor who chips away at a block of marble to reveal the beauty inside – and develop your character as an Inspirator.

Everyone needs coaching. It doesn’t matter who you are. If look at successful people, anywhere in the world and in any generation, you see that people have a coach – they have a mentor. It is one of the master-strokes of success.

In this book, I am your coach. Not only is it what I love to do, but I have also helped people get life changing results.

I was brought up believing there is an answer to everything, and raised with the confidence and desire to find these answers. That is why, for the past three decades, I have been seeking solutions to the challenges people face in life and in business. By working with Olympic champions, business leaders and multi-national corporations across the globe, I have been able to amass a wealth of inside knowledge when it comes to developing leadership potential in others. Over the years I have honed, adapted and developed my technique and coaching skills to be the best that I can be. It’s not all celebrity clients and senior executives, however. I have also worked with hundreds of thousands of ordinary people across the world, helping them to become better versions of themselves and, in the process, learning and growing to become a better version of me. I specialise in helping people become the leader in their own life.

Using this book to coach you

Is it okay if we spend a moment or two explaining how to make the most of this book? If you’ve never worked with a coach before, it can be helpful to understand their approach and method. That way, you can prepare yourself and really get the benefit from the experience.

The book will distil my years of research into leadership theory and practice. It will also draw on my own experiences of seeing what it takes to really bring out the best in people.

In every chapter there will be one or two key concepts for you to explore. I’ll give you a few tools you can use to develop yourself. I’ll ask you coaching questions for you to consider, and to help you take the next step. I’ll provide ways for you to apply what you are learning to inspire others to become their best.

Here are the features to look out for:

Your personal adventure

We all love a good story. Right from early childhood, it is something we all latch on to and enjoy.

We love films because of the stories they tell, and because we can identify with the characters. We see a story unfold in two hours or so, and it can inspire us. We can get great ideas from films as well as using them to detach from our own lives for a short while.

I intend to make use of that to guide you through this book. Using both the Inspirator’s Journey I outlined earlier – a format we all recognise – and popular films to illustrate the stages in that journey, I will help you explore the concepts in this book.

I’ve chosen films which are popular enough that you probably know the story even if you’ve never seen them. You don’t need to watch every film – though it is great if you decide to do so.

So, look out for the movie time boxes, where I’ll highlight how the film I’m using for each chapter relates to the topic:

Movie Time

I’ll also share experiences from myself and others in boxes marked:

Story Time

Everyone is on a hero’s journey, and seeing how other people’s stories have influenced them can be really powerful.

Take time to stop and think

You’ll see a couple of icons pop up throughout the chapters:

The ‘Pause’ button is an opportunity for you to reflect on how the concepts I’m exploring relate to you.

I’ll ask some coaching questions or challenge your thinking. You may like to keep a notebook to hand, and jot down a few thoughts. Or just write notes in the margin of the book itself.

The awareness icon is here to remind you to become aware of how you operate in the world.

I will invite you to think about your own journey, experiences and history. It may be uncomfortable to reflect in this way, but it is worth it. The more aware you become, the more you will be able to make better choices.

Biology and Chemistry and Physics – Oh My!

The coaching and ideas I’m sharing with you comes from 30 years of experience and learning. It is backed up by science and research.

What I have found is that the answers to most people’s questions are really quite simple but, as humans, we like to over-complicate things. It is something I have tried time and time again to address, especially in my books where I’ve banished the jargon and psychobabble too often associated with my profession. I’ve replaced it with clear, straightforward, everyday advice, powerful tools and effective techniques which empower, invigorate and set you free.

This book, then, is not about the science. It is about the application of science: of biology, chemistry and physics.

Biology – Do you know how you are wired up? As animals we are driven to grow and make a difference at the most basic level. If we do this, we get a chemical reaction.

Chemistry – What needs to happen for you to be at your best? Within the human body there are a mass of chemicals which work to produce feelings and responses. The key is to maximise Oxytocin (the ‘love drug’) so you can enjoy the process.

Physics – What gets you moving and keeps you moving? When you love what you are doing, you build momentum. You learn to work on yourself, instead of being caught up in yourself.

Ultimately, coaching is helping you make the most of who you are. I’m not going to ignore the evidence and research though, so look out for:

The 30-second science spot

Boxes which will share some of the experiments and science which backs up the coaching.

Tapping into ancient wisdom

These days, we are all talking about Artificial Intelligence (AI) – the science of creating thinking machines. In this book, I’m going to introduce you to a different type of AI – Ancient Intelligence. So much of what we know now has its roots in ancient history. Look for the black ‘AI’ boxes which give the origins of the concepts I’m sharing – the Ancient Intelligence which forms the foundation of being an Inspirator.

The word leader seems to originate in Old English, when it referred to the ‘one who leads, is first or most prominent.’ The concept is far older – the qualities of leadership are described in Sanskrit literature and by Sun Tzu as intelligence, trustworthiness, humaneness, courage, and discipline.

To be the one that others want to follow is a very old idea indeed.

Learn from others

How did you learn when you were small?

By copying. It is how we all learn as children. Then, at school, we are told don’t copy, and we feel that it is wrong to do what someone else is doing.

I’m asking you to think differently about copying. I invite you to be curious about how other people have achieved success and to ask yourself:

What did they do to be great?

How can I learn from them?

How do I apply this to my own life?

I have also interviewed some of the top Inspirators in industry today. They have shared their individual philosophies on leadership and the journey they have been on to get to where they are today. From them you can learn and be inspired. You’ll see quotes from some of them throughout the chapters, and you’ll be able to watch the full interviews with them in our online area (more on that below).

You will also see this box throughout the book:

The 30-second history spot

This will share how figures in history have also applied the concepts we are exploring. Just as you can learn from inspiring leaders of today, you can learn from leaders of the past.

Inspiring others

This is a book about leadership. I’m assuming that you are reading it because you want to be an inspiring leader.

Throughout the chapters, the main focus is on you. To be an inspiring leader, the first person you have to inspire is yourself. You have to go first.

If you are leading others, however, you may want to understand how to apply the concepts to others. In every chapter, therefore, there is a section which is about inspiring other people. I’ll build on the ideas from the chapter so you can see how they apply.

Doing deep work

Knowledge is great but it only becomes useful if you apply it. At the end of every chapter is the opportunity for you to go to work on yourself with a mixture of practical tools and coaching questions, which you can use every day on your own journey.

More than just a book

As well as the pages of this book and your application of what is here, I have created a library of online content too. My interviews with the Inspirators who feature in this book are all here.

You’ll also find more interviews, meditations, exercises and links to other experts. You can find it here:

To create a free account, enter the promotional code: INSPIRATOR-FREE

All of this will give you the opportunity for you to create your own unique style of leadership. I will help you find out who you really are, what you stand for and how to be true to that every single day.

The first challenge

One of the fundamental truths of life is that you can’t change other people. However much you wish you could make other people be or say or do what you want, the only person you have control over is yourself.

If you want other people to change, you have to go first. This is critical, and is an aspect of leadership which is missing from the vast majority of books and courses on the topic.

If you were to look in the mirror right now, would you be able to say:

I’m inspired by this person. I like what this person stands for. I would follow this person – whatever the adversity. I’m being the example and going first.

Would you feel fired up and excited by the prospect of working with yourself? And prepared to take risks and make difficult decisions?

Probably not! What you would see would not be the finished article. There would be parts of you which you would want to change and improve, and parts of you which you’d really like to let go of. What you can see is what no one else sees, and that makes us doubt our abilities as a leader.

What I am seeking to create in you is a leader who is so fired up about the journey they are on, that those around them are inspired to follow. That requires you to accept who you are right now – imperfections and all. Treat your imperfections as a blessing. You see, while none of us is the finished article, we do all want to get better.

This isn’t just a business book, then. It is a journey of self-discovery.

Leaving a legacy

Throughout this book we will be using the movie hero as a metaphor for leadership. But great leaders exist in all walks of life – in politics and business and sport. The New Zealand rugby team is a great example of Inspirator behaviour.

Every member of the team is on a mission to leave the team in a better shape than when they arrived. The outcome of that is unrivalled success.

I want you to have unrivalled success. I want you to be able to look back at what you did and see the imprint you have left – to see your legacy. You know, deep down, that is what you want to do – it is what we all want to do.

I’m going to make you the best leader you can be. I’m going to do more than that because I’m going to inspire you – and teach you to inspire. I’m going to show you how to be the most inspired and inspirational leader in the world.

I’m going to make you an Inspirator.

So, let’s do this. Let’s go to work!

Your Future is Unwritten

If you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always got.

Wind’s in the east, mist coming in,

Like somethin’ is brewin’ and ‘bout to begin.

Can’t put me finger on what lies in store,

But I fear what’s to happen all happened before.

Bert – Mary Poppins

In this chapter, we will explore:

why it matters to start by knowing where you are

how the power of awareness is essential

what challenges we face when ‘being ourselves’

ways to inspire others by understanding where they are right now

the tool which will help you throughout your leader’s journey – keeping a journal.

Take a moment to consider – do you believe this is true?

Your future is unwritten, and you have the power to change.

This is a fundamental question that I ask every leader I work with, because once you believe that your future is unwritten and you have power to change, the next question is:

What are you going to do about it?

Movie Time

Just as Disney’s Mary Poppins starts with a sense of anticipation, this book also sees you on the verge of something. It has happened before, as I pointed out in the Introduction. Becoming an Inspirator isn’t about anything new. It is something which others have already achieved, and now it is time to unlock that same potential in you.

So why would I use a film like Mary Poppins, of all things, to start you on this journey to become an inspiring leader? It is a great film, I grant you, but it is a children’s film (and includes one of the greatest travesties of fake accents to boot!). Surely I should have chosen something rather more imposing and serious?

No. Every film I use in this book should be familiar and accessible to all. Even if you’ve never seen it, most of us know the story – via the book, if not from the screen. Every film has been chosen for a reason.

Movie Time

Mary Poppins is the epitome of a disruptive influence. Starting with the children and, eventually, the entire Banks family, she shows them how to think and act differently. She arrives in their lives and challenges the status quo.

What do you think my role is in this book? Why do you think I have arrived in your life? Have I arrived to disrupt your status quo?

I am here to challenge you to become the most inspirational leader you can become. This is a proven process. It isn’t something I made up last week. It has been 30 years in the making.

Are you ready to begin?

Where the hell am I?

Before we go heading off on our leader’s journey together, we are going to need to spend a chapter or two getting a few fundamentals in place. The first of these to consider is where are you now? More crucially, who are you now? And how do you feel?

These might seem like strange questions and they aren’t ones that people get asked all that often. What these questions are trying to get at is the culture in you – just as I always seek to understand the culture in any organisation. I want the culture you work in – the one within you – to be as good as it can possibly be, so it can spread. When I ask Who are you? I want to know: what is the culture like in you? What does it feel like to be you? How are things done around here? What sort of experience is that?

That might seem like it’s not important, but actually it is the most