Terry Barber is the Architect of Branded Communities and author of The Inspiration Factor, How to Tap into People's Dreams and Create a Culture of Passion and Loyalty.   Terry is a media resource when it comes to what it takes to get people to follow and belong to a brand and has appeared on Fox News, ABC News, and CNN Radio.

Some of the groups he has worked with to help establish loyal followers include Johns Hopkins Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center, Emory Healthcare, Duke Medicine, University of Arizona Healthcare, National Parkinson Foundation, and the ALS Association.

Terry created and launched the first ever consumer-centric study on who the Most Inspiring Companies™ are in America and to learn how these companies became so successful at getting customers to follow and promote their mission.  The findings from the research was first published in Forbes, May 2010 and then reprinted in hundreds of business journals around the world. It was valued and used by many multi-national companies including Microsoft, McDonalds, and Southwest Airlines.

Terry's accomplishments also included architecting a movement that engaged over 300,000 families into the Great American Hero brand that resulted in over 10,000 evangelistic followers promoting the mission and the product. 

Through the years, Terry has taken this message of how to gain faithful followers, internally and externally,  to over one million people and continues to consult with companies and nonprofits on the same.  

With a suffering economy there is the temptation to operate in fear. As scary as the situation may be, leaders have a great opportunity and responsibility to be inspiring. Here are seven principles for inspiring your employees that you can take action on today.

Implement one of these principles and make a difference.  Implement all seven and change the culture you live and work in.

1. Be Authentic – get out of the image management business for yourself and your company.   Share with the people in your organization where you are weak. Verbally express just how much you need them. Let them know that you know your limitations. Invite them to partner with you to get through these difficult times.

2. Connect with Others' Dreams – use these difficult times to uncover the latent dreams and ambitions of your key talent. Tell them you are more committed than ever to helping them get to where they want to go.  Be creative in aligning their tasks for today with their dreams for tomorrow.

3. See in Others the Abilities They Don't See in Themselves – take time to be observant.  Quit the craziness long enough to notice the talent in those around you. This even works if you are trying to manage up. This principle works best by breaking it down into three steps: notice, name, and nurture. After you have noticed a talent or strength in a person, let that individual know you noticed it, and be specific about what you noticed. Don't just say, "I noticed you are a hard worker." Rather, say, "I notice you care very deeply about making sure the details are in order," or, "I notice you are very articulate on that subject." Look for ways to bring that talent out by providing opportunities and training to support that particular talent.

4. Speak with Credibility – I also refer to this principle as leading with moral authority. It does not mean much for you to say, "Let's keep looking for the opportunity ahead" while living in fear and operating with a scarcity mentality, so you have to live with credibility too. 

5. Tell Great Stories—Yours and Others' – this is the principle of overhearing. This is not to be confused with the art of storytelling. The emphasis here is looking for and telling stories that have a lesson. What can you learn from the story of a mountain climber? What can you glean from the story of one who has gone from rags to riches, or better yet, from riches to rags? Pull your team together today, and use story to inspire.

6. Help People Reach Their Destinations – remind them that what happens at work is only a portion of their life. As important as that portion is, it is not all that there is to life. Help people write down a vision statement, first for their lives, and then for their jobs. If work can be a conduit toward someone's vision for life, great!

7. Create a New Culture – following the example of John Wooden, UCLA's iconic coach, become teachers committed to excellence and character development. Chasing numbers and making decisions by looking only at the "bottom line" causes us to be reactive and impulsive. That won't inspire anybody. 

Focusing on raising the inspiration factor through developing people yields incredible value for stakeholders, customers, and employees alike. Raising the inspiration factor one principle at a time will change the culture of your organization. A company with a high inspiration factor attracts and keeps good talent, and its employees forge long-term, profitable relationships with customers.

What others are saying about Terry Barber...

"Terry, you are a natural speaker who has a unique way of engaging the audience.  Fundraising and marketing professionals of any background would greatly benefit from this presentation." Eli Jordfald C.F.R.E, UNC Chapel Hill,  North Carolina

"Terry Barber may just well be the best speaker we have ever had.  His topic on causing donors to fall in love with your mission was entertaining and educational."  Cinder Eller, Vice President of Development, Roswell Park Cancer Institute

"Terry’s presentation is filled with the principles and hands-on actions every leader needs to create that passionate, mission-driven, inspirational culture that will make your associates never want to leave."

Gary S. Jones, Chief Human Resources Officer
Grizzard Communications Group

 "Terry, thank you for speaking to our group last week.  They loved you! They will be talking about your session for months.  i'm already getting calls for a follow up"  Tom Bodeep, Sr. Vice President, TRC Staffing