Recently ran into a Silicon Valley Exec at a local party.

A very bright, well-educated guy, but particularly frustrated right now. His root problem is very familiar.

Given a hire everyone you need mandate, he’s been running into both unmotivated candidates and similarly challenging existing employees. This is leaving him disillusioned with the outlook.

In himself he is particularly driven, focused and accomplished but really doesn’t understand what he is seeing, culturally.

Admittedly he’s not in an obviously sexy product area, yet most companies on the planet (from initial looks) face exactly the same reality.

So, how do you fix these problems? What’s the issue?

Sorry to say but the problem here is on the complainer, our Exec. Many folks are at the bottom end of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs; working for a paycheck and not wanting to be hassled. It’s sad, but true.

Moving folks to self-motivation with resulting excellent performance is a Leadership problem. People often need to be INSPIRED to get them jumpstarted in this direction.

Great leaders Inspire, Empower and Engage those they meet, their reports and coworkers. This is traditionally accomplished by:

• Motivating
• Communicating
• Accomplishing major Results

They typically share a clear Vision and possess a truly Positive Outlook.

Such traits emerge as the leader grows in confidence and capability. They additionally evolve as a result of careful and specific learning.

In this specific case our Leader has great energy, is highly motivated and self-directed. He needs to project his (already existing) vision of why he himself is inspired, to help get these other folks going in the right direction.

Our particular Exec is actually extremely skilled at explaining his own great fascination in, interest for his work and company technology. Luckily for him he is also naturally articulate.

Leadership takes great energy and enthusiasm. Constantly supporting your people and promoting your Vision is the key to energizing a workforce.

Some employees will never strongly engage in the workplace. Deal with them, as necessary. Most people prefer to be engaged, are more highly motivated as a result and typically enjoy their much work more. So, Enable them, accordingly.

If you’re looking at demotivated workers and uninspired candidates, take a look in the mirror. That’s the first guy who must perform to turn this around.

Ian R. Mackintosh is the author of Empower Your Inner Manager Twitter @ianrmackintosh