The short answer
Leading from purpose is real and valuable. But watch one thing: if the motivation only shows up when you're present, you've built dependency, not ownership. The goal is to light a fire people tend themselves. That's the difference between influence and lasting impact.
You can spark real drive in people — that's not nothing. Research on persuasion and influence points to something important here: the most durable motivation is self-generated, tied to a person's own values and goals. When someone feels like they chose to act — not that they were moved to act — they stay in motion longer and own the result more fully. The question worth sitting with is: are the people you lead building their own engine, or borrowing yours?
Marcus Aurelius put it plainly: the wise person finds their happiness in their own action — not in someone else's praise, not in external feeling. That same idea flips usefully here. If the people you lead are only moving because of what you bring into the room, their motivation still lives in you, not in them. Your job isn't to be the source — it's to help them find theirs.
This week, try one small test. Pick someone you lead and, instead of sparking their motivation directly, ask them one question: 'What part of this work actually matters to you?' Then stay quiet. Let them find the answer themselves. See what happens when the purpose comes from their mouth, not yours.