Sometimes as leaders, coaches, or people of influence in general, we over think how to motivate teams.

Several times last year, my son’s hockey team of 4 and 5 year olds had one hour power skating lessons. I was amazed by the instructor’s ability to keep them interested the entire time, even with sessions as early as 6 am on weekends!

This list should seem obvious to us all, but how many of these simple points do we miss with those that we lead?

• Smile, encourage and be enthusiastic
• Have fun and make them laugh
• Know the audience, relate to them on their level
• Be engaging – ask great questions that they will be eager to answer
• Fully explain what you want them to do. Leave nothing to the imagination