Category Archives: Motivation

Interested in the Work

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“There must be more,” Alicia repeated. “If it is NOT Joe’s role to motivate his team members, then how is he supposed to make sure the work gets done? I understand Joe will be held accountable for the results of his team. It has to be more than who he picks to be on his team?”

“Yes, there’s more, but would you agree that it matters who Joe selects?”

Alicia nodded, “Yes.”

“And as Joe selects his team, with your help, as Joe’s manager, what are the criteria that he must select for?”

“First, he has to look at their skill set.”

“And can we train those skills that are necessary?” I asked.

“It depends, some things we want general experience, but we would certainly train on our specific methods,” she replied.

“And what else? Remember, if it is NOT Joe’s job to motivate, what must he interview for?”

“Well, then, they have to be interested. I mean, interested in the kind of work that has to be done.”

“Okay,” my turn to nod. “And tell me, Alicia. If Joe is successful in finding a candidate with a high level of interest in the work we do here, how much time will Joe have to spend motivating his team?”

Not About the Pizza

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“Your observation was that your production team seemed disconnected,” I said. “In spite of your pep talks, they shuffle.”

Suzette nodded. “I thought it was me, that I wasn’t doing a good job of motivating the team.”

“Motivation, engagement, is not about pep talks,” I smiled. “Motivation is not about pizza, or bonuses. Motivation is knowing that what I do is part of something bigger. It’s knowing where I fit in a larger picture. Don’t talk about it. Show the team, so they can see it.”

All Together Now

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“I am not sure how I can show the impact of our product on the customer?” Suzette continued to protest. “The production team is on the factory floor.”

“Two choices,” I replied. “Bring the factory floor to the customer or bring the customer to the factory floor.”

Suzette was quiet. Thinking.

“Our best customers have never seen our factory. All they know is what the sales team tells them. Are you suggesting that I invite a customer to visit the factory?”

I nodded. “Oh, not just one customer and not just once. What would be the impact on the team to bring them together? And what would be the impact on the customer?”

The Pep Talk

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“Don’t they see it?” Suzette complained.  “We make a really great product for our customers.  Our customers are thankful, give us positive testimonials. As the manager, I get a strong sense of the impact of what we do. But the production team seems bored, just going through the motions. Two quit only last week. I try to give them pep talks in our team huddle every morning, but they break the huddle and shuffle back to their work station.”

“You have your answer,” I replied.

“What do you mean?” she drew back.

“Your question. You asked a question. ‘Don’t they see it?’ Obviously, they don’t.” I chuckled.

“Well, of course they don’t see it,” Suzette was emphatic. “I was talking about my pep talk. How can I change my pep talk?”

“You could drop it,” I suggested. “Drop the pep talk. What you say has no impact. It’s what they see. How can you show them?”

They Need the Money

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“Why do people work?” Pablo asked.

It was an innocent question, but Pablo always has an agenda. “Okay. I’ll bite,” I replied. “I was going to say they work for the money, but I know you too well.”

Pablo laughed. “You are correct. People work because they need the money. But, if that is all they work for, then you will be hard pressed to keep them when a competitor comes knocking on their door, and offers a dollar more.”

I stared at Pablo with a half smile.

“Would it surprise you,” he continued, “to find out that people need to work, more than they need the money? Don’t get me wrong, they need the money. But, they also need the work. To lead a happy, fulfilled life, people need to work, to make a contribution to a group which they hold in high regard. And, it takes somewhere between 35-40 hours per week to create that internal feeling of significance. If you can create a safe place, where they can do their best work, and that work is valued by their most important group, now you get the beginnings of engagement.”

Too Much Appreciation

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Pablo smiled. “Have you ever asked anyone if, at work, they receive too much appreciation?”

“That’s funny,” I said. “No, I have never asked, but I am sure the answer is a light-hearted NO.”

“This is not about gratitude, though gratitude is a worthwhile expression,” Pablo started. “It is more than just saying thank you. Gratitude is acknowledgement. Gratitude says, I see you, here, in front of me. And, you are valuable to my experience. Your presence is a contribution to me. Never underestimate the value of appreciation.”

In Flow

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“What you are suggesting,” Sam said, “is that motivation does not require incentives to get the work done?”

“Indeed, the word motivation conjures up all kinds of incentive schemes,” I replied. “Contrast the word motivation with the word manipulation. Most incentive schemes are manipulative, attempting to induce behavior for the benefit of the manager. What I am saying is that motivation, related to work, can be spontaneous, energetic if the team member finds it of interest. It is not the purpose of a manager to find incentives to manipulate behavior, but to set conditions where people find themselves engaged in work of inherent value, where they can bring their full capacity to the problem solving and decision making embedded in the work.”

“But, I need people to work diligently, and I can’t always be there to make sure the work is done right and on-time,” Sam sounded a bit like complaining.

“People work hard, not because they have to, but because they want to. People want to learn and grow. People want to contribute and be thanked for that contribution. It is up to us, as managers, to create the conditions that release a person’s enthusiasm, creativity and initiative.”

In the Zone

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“When you look at those four absolutes for success in a role,” I started, “and you hit them all –

  • Capability
  • Skill (technical knowledge, practiced behavior)
  • Interest, passion (value for the work)
  • Required behaviors

what happens?”

Sam had to think. “If I can get a match on every one of these, it is going to have a positive impact on performance.”

“Think harder,” I pressed. “What is the impact on you as a manager?”

“I shouldn’t have to spend too much time checking up, to see if the person is still engaged with the work.”

“Think harder. What is the impact on the team member?”

“I would imagine,” Sam said, “the team member will be motivated to do the work, without my coercion.”

“Sam, have you ever heard of being in the zone, being in flow? When you get a match on all four, you set the platform for performance in the zone. This is where motivation lives. You don’t have to hire a motivational speaker. It happens automatically, overnight.”

What’s Stopping Innovation?

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Susan looked down, her face long in frustration.

“You look at creative ideas,” I said. “I look at context. I have to acknowledge your frustration at the lack of progress in your journey of innovation. Let me re-frame my observations with a forward looking question. In what way can we create the conditions where creative ideas can be constructed, tested and adopted?”

“I am not sure where you are going with this,” Susan responded.

“Let’s assume your creative ideas have merit. What conditions exist in your company that resist the construction, testing and adoption of new ideas?”

“Now, that’s an easy question to answer,” Susan chuckled through her frustration. “There is a long list –

  • We already tried that before and it didn’t work?
  • It’s too expensive.
  • It will take too long.
  • The last person with an idea like that got fired.
  • We are headed in exactly the opposite direction and we have too much sunk costs to change direction now, even though what we are doing isn’t working.

“Nice list,” I smiled. “It’s always easy to answer the negative, now let’s answer the positive. In what way can we create the conditions where creative ideas can be constructed, tested and adopted?”

A Matter of Matching

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“Deep life satisfaction?” I repeated.

Pablo nodded. “Think about yourself, in your own role, working with managers. Do you feel a sense of deep life satisfaction for the work you do?”

“Of course,” I replied. “It’s not something I constantly think about or talk about, but it’s there. You are right, it is a sensation, a feeling. But, you are certainly not saying that everybody in the company gets that same sense for the work they do?”

“And, why not?” Pablo replied with a question. “When people are continually challenged to their maximum level of capability, not above it, not below it, but right at that match-point, what happens to job satisfaction, up or down?”

“Well, up, of course.”

“Do you have to hire a motivational speaker?”

“No.”

“Then motivation is simply a matter of matching capability required with capability possessed,” Pablo could still sense hesitation on my part. “Do you remember your first job?” he asked.

“Of course,” I smiled. “I washed dishes in a restaurant, but that was not even close to my potential, it was just my first job.”

“You see,” Pablo grinned, “even when you tell the story from many years ago, your face lit up. I bet you remember that first paycheck, the uniform you wore, your first sense (sensation) that you were contributing, getting on with the work at hand and contributing to your own self-independence.

It was a beginning, a beginning of life at work, where you continue to show up, each and every day, committed to the full application of your highest level of capability, in pursuit of your potential.”