David Burkus, an award-winning author known for his insights on innovation and leadership, shares powerful strategies for team motivation. He emphasizes the importance of picking a meaningful 'fight' rather than competing with rivals. Burkus outlines three useful fights for leaders: the Revolutionary Fight, the Underdog Fight, and the Ally Fight, each serving to unite and inspire teams around a shared purpose. He also discusses how superordinate goals can enhance collaboration and creativity within organizations.
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Pick the Right Fight
Pick fights wisely, focusing on a cause, not a competitor.
Find a cause worth fighting for; don't fight rivals.
insights INSIGHT
Internal Rivalry Is Demotivating
Focusing on rivalries can demotivate employees who may later work for competitors.
Trash-talking competitors mainly motivates the competitors, not your own team.
question_answer ANECDOTE
Steve Jobs vs. Microsoft
Steve Jobs' rivalry with Microsoft ultimately proved unproductive.
Jobs later had to reconcile with Microsoft after they bailed out Apple.
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How Great Teams Find a Purpose Worth Rallying Around
David Burkus
In 'Pick a Fight', David Burkus explores how great teams find purpose by rallying around a cause. He discusses three types of fights that can motivate teams: the Revolutionary Fight, the Underdog Fight, and the Ally Fight. Burkus emphasizes the importance of choosing a fight wisely to engage and energize team members.
David Burkus: Pick a Fight
David’s work is changing how companies approach innovation, collaboration, and leadership. He is the award-winning author of four books and offers a fresh perspective on how to improve our organizations and build better teams by blending the most current research in psychology, sociology, economics, and network science.
His books have been translated in more than a dozen languages and his work has appeared in the Wall Street Journal, Harvard Business Review, USAToday, Fast Company, and more. He has consistently been named one of the world’s top business thought leaders by Thinkers50 and his TED Talk has been viewed over 2 million times. He is the author of the audiobook, Pick a Fight: How Great Teams Find a Purpose Worth Rallying Around*.
In this conversation, David and I discuss why picking a fight is a powerful motivation, but important to do with wisdom. Most organizations won’t benefit from starting fights with rivals. Instead, discover one of three fights that will support a cause worth fighting for.
Key Points
Avoid fights with rivals.
Picking a fight is a powerful motivator; but leaders need to pick their fight wisely. Instead of someone to fight, they need to find a cause worth fighting for.
Three kinds of fights that are useful for leaders to engage in:
The Revolutionary Fight
The Underdog Fight
The Ally Fight
Resources Mentioned
3 Days To A More Motivated And Aligned Team
Book Notes
Download my highlights from Pick a Fight in PDF format (free membership required).
Related Episodes
The Power of Weak Connections, with David Burkus (episode 347)
How to Clarify What’s Important, with Ron Williams (episode 410)
Embrace a Just Cause, with Simon Sinek (episode 473)
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