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When you’re involved in the decisions, you have more ownership of whatever results.
Every time I run across this principle, which is surprisingly often, I’m surprised about its nuances. Whether we’re talking about our kids, employees, volunteers, partners … The fact is that people are more inspired and motivated by things they actually have some influence over.
You can tell your employees what to do, and in fact you may even think that’s your job. The problem is that they may not be particularly motivated to do their best work in this case. It’s not that your directions were wrong – it’s that they didn’t have any input in the process. So you get compliance, not engagement.
Read the rest of this entry »Along with exercise and sensible eating, you know that the advice to keep healthy includes staying hydrated.
The idea is that your body performs better when it’s not worrying about running dry. Sensible enough.
But this concept applies to your team as well! How so?
Read the rest of this entry »I ran across a powerful idea some years ago which has really helped me to get control of certain parts of my life.
The concept is called a “habit trigger”, and is used when you want to develop a new habit but have trouble remembering to do it. It might be exercise, or unloading the dishwasher, or a skin care routine.
Quite simply, the trick is to attach your new habit to something else which is already habitual for you.
Read the rest of this entry »I started my career as an engineer, in an engineering company. So the idea of displaying emotions in the workplace wasn’t exactly normal. We liked driving things by logic and analysis.
So I struggled as a new manager to work with people who thought about this differently. What I’ve learned is that we’re all three dimensional people, with our own lives and complexities.
Kids and animals get sick. Marriages are formed and fall apart. Loved ones die. Career prospects move forward or back.
These are all heavily emotional times, right?
Read the rest of this entry »Our society is all about working hard, achieving, and getting results. As a result, the business environment can be quite cruel towards employees.
As the leader, you’re tempted to just let people work themselves into the ground – it’s their own decision, right?
But you’re the one who sets the culture for your organization. And you know it’s poor reasoning to let your people burn out. So what do you do?
Read the rest of this entry »I was talking with someone today who doesn’t have more money they can give employees – they’re stretched financially. So the question becomes: How can we motivate our employees?
This is a very common trap that people fall into. But if you think about it, you know that money isn’t everything. It’s part of a complex mix of factors which can be different for each individual.
But before we get to that, it’s critical to first answer: Does each employee feel that they’re being paid a fair living wage? For many (most?) hourly workers, the answer can be no. In which case, getting to fair compensation must be your first priority. Without that, you’ll be battling employee turnover until your business ultimately fails.
So now let’s get to those who ARE being paid decently. What motivates them?
Read the rest of this entry »This has been an extraordinarily distracting time for me recently. Family concerns, changes in my business, and other groups … a whole lot going on!
Life is what happens while you are busy making other plans.
– John Lennon (perhaps)
So my task right now is to enjoy life as it’s happening, and to not try to fight it. Right?
Read the rest of this entry »Last week I contrasted the jobs in a large company to the more collaborative engagement in a startup business. It’s not necessary to be a startup, of course, it’s just easier because that’s where new ideas can take off and flourish.
I had a chance recently to talk with a lady in another country who works for a company which connects global contract workers with part-time roles in larger companies. If you’ve used a remote Virtual Assistant, that’s what I’m talking about.
Sure, that lets you outsource tasks to get cheaper labor. We’ve been doing that for decades. But in this case, there’s a larger driving purpose behind it.
Read the rest of this entry »Last week I talked about poor Valerie. She’s a solid worker, but isn’t bringing much loyalty or passion to her job. It’s just a job.
Across the street, though, we have a small startup company of 8 people who are now getting traction. It’s a small enough group that they know each other fairly well, so their teamwork is pretty darned good.
And they’re not afraid to embrace new ideas. It’s part of their culture, after all.
Read the rest of this entry »Valerie has a pretty decent job. She’s pretty good at it, having been in the position for four years now.
It’s not inspiring, but hey, it’s a job.
So how much creativity and productivity do we think she’s devoting to her work?
The Values-Based Business 