Freelancefolder

Fire Them Up!

Posted November 29, 2007 in Uncategorized 6 Comments »

You know, one thing I absolutely love about blogging and working online is you meet so many creative, talented and motivated people, it’s crazy!

Usually it happens in the comment section of a blog, but sometimes it’s ‘behind the scene‘ by e-mail. Not so long ago I got an e-mail from Carmine Gallo, a communications coach, author, speaker and columnist at BusinessWeek.com. Carmine asked me if I’d be interested in reading his new book, and he’d send me a copy.

To be honest, since I started blogging I must have received more than 25 e-mails from people who wanted me to read their book and write a little something about it on my blog(s), and none of them actually sent it to me. But Carmine did, and I’m happy he did because this book is just awesome! The kind of book you’ll want to read twice (I did).

You can read more about the book, it’s called ‘Fire Them Up‘

Basically this book is about how companies, managers, entrepreneurs and leaders motivate and inspire their team and employees. Carmine interviewed people like Richard Tait, co-founder and CEO of Cranium Michelle Peluso CEO of Travelocity and many others. They shared their insights and ’secrets’ on how they inspire and motivate people, they talked about their vision, and how it helped them take their business from ‘ok‘ to ‘successful‘.

Some of you know I’ve worked in sales and marketing for a big telecom company here in Montreal (if you didn’t know, read the story about the guy with the red chair), and in the 5 years I’ve worked there, I never felt inspired. I’m already a really motivated and enthusiastic guy anyway, but I never felt inspired. The reason is simple, people in charge didn’t know how to effectively communicate the vision of the company to us, the employees. Most of us had no idea what the ‘mission‘ was. Not their fault, they just didn’t know how.

There is something Bill Gates said that is probably the reason Microsoft had so much success, he said:

“I want to put a computer on every desk, in every home.”

I may be paraphrasing here, but basically that’s his mission, his vision, and that vision never changed. I guess we can say he’s a successful guy. :)

Now, as a freelancer you certainly work with other people from time to time, maybe you outsource some of your work, or you have a team, or your own company. It’s not difficult to ask someone to do something, delegate tasks or work with a team. But sometimes all it takes is a vision, and the ability to effectively communicate that vision with your team. Where do you see your company in a couple years from now? Have you ever wondered why someone in your team didn’t understand your request? Inspire them, make sure they know what our vision is, where you’re going, what’s your mission. This is way more important than numbers, sales and profits.

One of the main reason I prefer to work with a small team of highly motivated and like-minded people is because it’s easier to follow that vision, inspire each other and stay on track.

So, what do you do to inspire others?

Please take a minute to check out Carmine Gallo’s website, read more about Fire Them Up, and if you read the book you’re very welcome to leave a comment here, or leave a comment even if you didn’t read it. Your comment may inspire another one. :)

By the way, the book is (of course) available through Amazon, and my blogging friend Naomi of IttyBiz had a great idea, they will be giving all their proceeds to charity, so if you’re thinking of buying a book (Fire Them Up! for example), well just head over to IttyBiz and tell Naomi I sent you. :)

Cheers

Jon

P.S.: This was not a paid post or anything, I just really loved reading this book :)

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About the author: Jon Phillips is a full-time freelancer, designer and blogger, he loves WordPress and plays guitar in a heavy act. He's also the founder of Freelance Folder. Oh and he'd be pleased if you would follow him on Twitter. :)