From Minions to Multipliers

I confess…
I try not to enjoy it.

I tell myself I’m just passing through the lounge…
on my way to somewhere more serious…
more adult.

But ten minutes later,
I’m still there…
smiling at the screen.

Because “Despicable Me” is far more than a children’s film.
It’s a mirror.
A painfully accurate reflection of how many small businesses are led.

There’s always a ‘Genius’:
the one with the “crazy, scary” ideas,
bursting with brilliance and energy.

And then there are the ‘Little Helpers’:
the Minions.
Bright, capable, loyal.
But treated as functions… not as thinkers.
Hands… not hearts.
Doers… not dreamers.

The Genius tells himself he’s the only one with vision.
The others?
Well, they’re there to execute, aren’t they?
To obey.
To stay small.

And that’s where the laughter fades.

Because the moment a leader surrounds themselves with Minions…
the miracle of Multiplication ends.
The world around them shrinks.

Their business might grow in revenue…
but their people don’t.
And when people don’t grow…
neither does the Soul of the enterprise.

(Ultimately, that enterprise has no sustainable future.
Its Soul will disappear in a puff of smoke… floating on an exit cheque.)

Minions will give you their time, their energy, their technical competence.
But they will never, ever give you the creative fire of their genius.
Or the passion of their heart.

That only awakens in environments where leaders stop trying to be the Genius…
and start becoming the *Gardener*.

Soul-inspired leadership is never about *control*.
It’s about cultivation.
It’s about discovering, liberating, and multiplying the genius in others.

It’s saying:
“I see who you could become… and I will not keep you small just because it’s easier for me.”

That’s The Job
That’s the Soul Millionaire way.

Felonious Gru, of ‘Despicable Me’ fame, eventually learns this.
He stops chasing the moon.
He starts caring for the children.
And in doing so… he becomes more human.
More joyful.
More whole.

That’s leadership.
Not the pursuit of power.
But the creation of possibility.

The shift from “Minions who serve me”
to “People whose genius I serve.”

When that happens…
everybody wins.

Starting with you.
The Soul-Inspiring Leader.