What Makes a Leader?: Being an Inspiration

One CEO tells how inspiring team members is critical to being a good leader.

What does it take to be a leader, but more importantly a respected leader, in industry? I ask myself that question everyday as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of an innovative tech startup, clippingbook.com.

Being an entrepreneur is risky; it is challenging across several levels and borders on building a business that thrives on groundbreaking technology and chance. I woke up one day after furthering my career in the corporate world and realized I needed to change my path. I was stagnant in what was meant to be challenging in my daily endeavors.

I was leading, but it lacked vision. I felt like I had everything at the tip of my fingers, but it lacked substance and purpose. So I decided to make a shift: It was time to nurture the entrepreneur spirit that had lived inside of me my whole life.

In order to be an effective leader, you must stay motivated, be challenged and keep aware of your weaknesses. Quality leadership comes from wisdom, and wisdom comes from experience. The only way to achieve wisdom through experience is to make mistakes and grow from those moments. Mistakes aren’t necessarily negative, but can be opportunities for growth. They are learning curves in one’s career.

Motivating the Team

The mark of a good leader is one who motivates and surrounds himself or herself with an outstanding team. The stronger the people around you, the better you accomplish the goals you set forth for the company.

In my career, I have achieved many milestones and accolades, but I didn’t do it alone. As a serial entrepreneur, I have pride in building businesses that thrived because of the foundation I built around me—the team I had supporting the success of the business.

Leadership should be defined by the ability one has to motivate and inspire. When your team feels like they are respected, they will always be motivated to perform at their top level. A strong leader, in my humble opinion, not only makes successful decisions but also provides techniques for the team to make their best strategic moves for the company.

Here are four motivational techniques that have proven to be incredibly successful in my personal experience. I hope they work for you as well:

Follow your authentic path in life. Waking up every day striving to be the best and loving what you do will innately inspire others to be the best.
Don’t take no for an answer in business. There is always a viable solution to a problem.
Work hard, stay focused, surround yourself with remarkable people and listen to those who have lead well before you. These tactics will guide you in the right direction.
Be prepared for change. Change is a constant in business.

Jorge Mata founded MyAlert in 1999, a company focused on designing and implementing wireless alert services to mass market. In 2001 MyAlert merged with Buongiorno, an Italian public company. He acted a Vice Chairman in Buongiorno till the company went public in 2003.

Jorge is also founder and Chairman of Berggi Inc, and Zipclip Inc, focused in developing the mobile 2.0 for the mass market which has recently sold to an American group. Jorge last start up is shiver technologies, a location based online games company. Jorge has been Board member in public and private companies in Silicon Valley, Finland and Spain and is an active investor in more than 15 start ups. He is President of FDI, company dedicated to the development of Mobile Internet content. And currently, CEO of ClippingBook Inc.