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The Leader as Motivator
March 22, 2007
By Kerry Patterson and Eric Patten
How do you motivate others? Should you even try? We've all had leaders who have decided that their employees need to be motivated, so they step in with emotional speeches, cute plaques, or possibly stringent reminders that our jobs are at risk—and all we can think is, "Hey, I'm motivated; just leave me alone so I can do my job." Or consider your typical employee-of-the-month program that's supposed to motivate people to excellence. Maybe somebody's version of structured praise works, but a lot of people find monthly celebrations corny or even become upset when they think it's their turn to be honored and they're not.
So now that you're actually a leader, when you think about motivation, you're sensitive to the fact that not every motivational technique bosses employ actually works—or worse still—is even necessary. What's a person to do—drop every technique and err in the direction of doing nothing for fear of constantly doing the wrong thing? Over the years we both have discovered several powerful principles that help inform when and how to motivate.
Never assume that people lack motivation. We often assume that if people aren't doing what we want them to do they aren't motivated. The truth is that people are motivated. They're motivated to do what they're currently doing more than they're motivated to do what you want them to do. When it comes to motivation, it's never a matter of lighting a fire; it's always a matter of helping people restructure their priorities. People already have the fire; it's our job to capture and direct it toward corporate objectives. It's important to understand this view because if you carry around a model that suggests that it's your job to motivate others, you tend to start giving speeches or making threats or creating plaques when you should be trying to figure out why others don't share your priorities.
So, how does one tap into existing motives to align behavior with corporate goals?
Understand the dangers of extrinsic motives. Don't rely exclusively on extrinsic methods to propel individuals to do what should be intrinsically rewarding. For years behavioral scientists have known that if you try to pile praise or extra money onto tasks that are intrinsically satisfying, it can take some of the joy out of the already joyful. For example, if you pay your kids for reading a book, they just might learn to read for the video game they get to buy from their earnings rather than for the enjoyment of reading. In a similar vein, when you pile extra benefits on a person or team that has just created a marvelous product, you can easily take the focus off the act of creation which in many ways is its own reward. At a time like this, words of praise or simply standing back and admiring the creation are likely to mean a lot more than any formal form of recognition.
Know what people like. Does that mean you can never use extrinsic rewards? Of course not. Just don't pile them on at the very moment when people are enjoying the act of accomplishment. Plus, make sure you know what is rewarding for the other person. Some people love bonuses. Some love plaques. Some love balloons tied to their desk. Some might find your gift offensive. So, when turning to extrinsic rewards, take the time to learn what people value, and reward accordingly.
Explain consequences. People are motivated by the consequences they believe they will experience as a result of their actions. Your son likes ice cream. You tell him that if he picks up his toys, he'll get ice cream. He weighs the tedious work against the possibility of eating ice cream and decides that overall it's worth it. Or maybe he takes one look at his room and figures that ice cream isn't enough to compensate for the work, so he turns down the offer.
Every time an employee chooses not to do what you think should be done, he or she has weighed the possible consequences and chosen a different route. For example, your design specialist doesn't meet a deadline because her friend asked her to pitch in on a job, and she decided that the other job and the friendship combined were more important than your job. Her priorities are different. She sees consequences you don't see.
If you want to bring your designer in line with your priorities, it's your job to explain the consequences you're aware of to help her see the entire picture. "The customer is going to pull the business." "Oops, didn't know the job was that important." Or perhaps, "When you miss your deadline, it forces Jim to work late in order to catch up." "Who cares? Jim likes to earn comp time."
As you explain your known universe of consequences and the person you’re talking to explains his or her version, together you come up with the best choice based on all the information—and since everyone has been involved, the right people are now motivated to do the right thing based on their knowledge of consequences
Resist the temptation to use your power. Explaining consequences can be time consuming. Besides, if you're the boss, can't you just tell people what to do and have them do it? Actually you can, but not without a price. If you don't know what has kept others from achieving their goals and you just tell them to hunker down and gut it out, you're acting without knowing the possible costs of shifting the person’s direction—and you may be dampening his or her spirits.
You can always say, "Because I said so!"—implying that you're going to load on a few negative consequences if the other person doesn't comply, but be prepared to face the consequences of using your power base. You want people doing what needs to be done because they believe it's the right thing to do, not because they fear what you'll do otherwise. Remember, the test of leadership is what people do in your absence, not in your presence. If you make threats, you can count on people reluctantly complying when you're around, but it's hard to know what will happen when you're not there. So, take the time to explain consequences, and avoid the temptation to cut to the chase with a quick threat.
Motivation is a tricky business. It's important to remember that you can't motivate anyone; a person can only motivate him- or herself. Understand the dangers of using extrinsic rewards—taking care to know what people value. Help change people's priorities by explaining the consequences of their actions. Finally, be slow to use your power.
Eric Patten is a senior consultant for VitalSmarts. At VitalSmarts he is developing a series of products to enhance Crucial Conversations Training, a powerful tool for improving organizational effectiveness, building teams, and enriching relationships. Kerry Patterson coauthored the New York Times bestsellers Crucial Conversations and Crucial Confrontations, and is an acclaimed keynote speaker and consultant. He is also the cofounder of VitalSmarts and is a member of the board of directors.
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