My niece isn't quite 18 months old. As such, she doesn't have many words at her disposal. But, what she does know, she uses full throttle. Case in point: when she turns on a flashlight, she squeals, "Light! Light!"
She's excited that she was able to make the light come out.
As leaders, our chief task is to get the light to come out of those in our care. Whether we're leading a project team, a fraternity, a family, or a startup, leaders are those who are able to find the passion, talent, and results that make a teammate shine.
Sadly, there's no formula for this that works on everyone. People aren't as simple to bring light out of as a flashlight.
But, we'd do well to celebrate when we see the light. We don't have to shriek each time it arrives, but acknowledging the light once it appears is a surefire way to coax it out again and again.