Secrets of personal effectiveness
Motivation and incentive - is there a difference? Motivation is called the engine of progress. Without it, people would continue to live as they lived in the cave age, and would be content with what they have. But they improved their tools in order to get more, they learned about themselves and the world, and often at the cost of their own lives.
Motivation is a great force. Anyone who has it can move mountains. If a person knows why and for what he must do something, and understands the meaning of his work, he will achieve what he wants.
The term “motivation” was first used by the German philosopher A. Schopenhauer in his work “The Four Principles of Sufficient Reason.” And the word “motive” comes from the Latin moveo - “I move”, movere - “incitement to action”. Lack of motivation, on the contrary, leads to inaction. Figuratively speaking, we won’t move if we don’t know why we need it.
A barren dreamer is the name given to the hero of N. Gogol’s poem “Dead Souls” by Manilov. He dreams of changes to his estate that will improve the lives of his serfs. His castles in the air are beautiful, but these projects are not feasible, because, in fact, he does not need them: he is well-fed, clothed and provided for. Another type of person who cannot get himself off the couch, but at the same time thinks about how to live, was described by I. Goncharov in the novel “Oblomov”. “I know everything, I understand everything, but there is no strength and will,” said Oblomov. And, of course, there is no motivation either.
Although almost two centuries have passed since these works were written, modern Manilovs and Oblomovs do not allow us to forget the images of these heroes. Or maybe, to some extent, we sometimes remind ourselves of them when we make unrealistic plans.
It’s not the first year that someone has been making a promise to themselves to master English perfectly, “but things are still there.” And someone takes it and does it because: they dream of working in a foreign company, plan to go for permanent residence in another country, marry a foreigner, want to read the classics in the original, etc.
Motivation, at first glance, is similar to incentive. Although in fact they have more differences than similarities.
It is curious that the word “stimulus” comes from the Latin stimulus - a stick with a sharp metal tip, which was used to drive bulls. With the help of such external influence, the stubborn bulls were forced to move on.
Thus, a stimulus implies the influence of an external factor that encourages action. Well-known incentives used in enterprises are bonuses, allowances, salary increases, valuable gifts, corporate events, etc. This also includes warnings, reprimands, etc. In general, carrot and stick methods.
Motivation should arouse in a person an internal desire to act, for example, to engage in sports, personal development, etc. And it is motives, not incentives, that guide people’s actions. The role of the stimulus is to awaken motives and desires, but this may not happen if the stimulus does not meet the needs.
Among those who studied issues of motivation and human behavior are the Anglo-American psychologist William McDougall, the Austrian psychologist Sigmund Freud, the Russian scientist Ivan Pavlov, the American psychologist Abraham Maslow and others. Therefore, if we suddenly feel that our motivation is beginning to fade and it becomes difficult for us to force ourselves to get down to business, perhaps we will be consoled by the thought that our problem - the problem of motivation - has been and is being tried to be solved by the outstanding minds of the world.
Issues of motivation concern not only individuals in terms of self-development, but also managers and company directors, because it is in their interests to organize work so that employees do not serve the allotted time, but burn out at work. Only this state of affairs guarantees success for their enterprise.
American writer Ray Bradbury wrote that a person can get everything he needs, but only if he really needs it.
How can you motivate yourself to get “everything you need” and become successful?
Setting a goal
So our goal is to achieve success. But this goal is too abstract, so it needs to be specified. We ask ourselves the question: in what area of our life do we want to be successful? In work, sports, personal life, hobbies, or in all at once, which, of course, will require a lot of effort on our part, but if desired, it is possible.
Goal is closely related to motivation: without motivation, it will continue to loom somewhere ahead. Motivation is what motivates us to move towards a goal. The stronger the motivation, the greater the chances of achieving it. The reason that almost half of the goals that people set for themselves remain unfulfilled is a lack of motivation.
For example, we want to head a department in a large company, and this is our goal. But we may want this until retirement if we don’t start working on ourselves. We may have to get additional education, learn several languages, work on our image, etc. On the one hand, this will not be easy, on the other hand, motivation will help us overcome difficulties, which will spur us on and support the desire to move towards the goal.
Of course, we need to set realistic goals for ourselves - ones that we can achieve. Goals like “become the mayor of New York” or “lead Deutsche Bank” are wonderful, but they are unlikely to be achievable even if you have a strong desire. Or maybe we want to lose an extra 20 kg within a month? It is unlikely that we will be able to do this without harming our health. Failures will lower our self-esteem, discourage any desire to act, and therefore move us away from the goal, while successes bring us closer to it.
Why motivate your team?
Imagine a character who does everything at a slow pace, prefers to smoke or sit on the phone at a time when he has a lot to do - I’m sure you’ve met such people more than once. Not only can this be a waste of time and resources for the company, but it can also have a negative impact on other employees.
Now let's introduce another person to your company. He is enthusiastic, gets things done quickly, takes action, and wants to do things well, both for himself and for the company. An ideal employee, nothing less.
In this situation, there is a classic scenario - we fire or fine the first one, and tell the second one that he’s done well and perhaps give him a bonus. There is another option, but it requires a little more skills and personal awareness - to understand and figure out whether everything is normal with the motivation system and whether it exists at all. It may turn out that a great specialist is not a merit of the enterprise, but a slow and tired employee is precisely the reason for negligence, lack of involvement or the complete absence of a motivation system.
Whether a business is at the top of its game or just on the road to success, employee incentives remain critical at all levels. The success of the organization directly depends on the motivation of the team, which means monitoring this is extremely important.
We break the goal into subgoals: we build a “tree of goals”
So that our goal does not frighten us with its volume, we break it down into several simple subgoals.
We briefly define each one and describe in detail which way we intend to go towards it, as well as what result and in what time frame we expect to receive it. If the subgoal is too capacious, we also break it down into several points and describe specific steps to achieve it. Celebrating what has been accomplished is a good incentive to continue what you started. It is possible and even necessary to make adjustments to the plans, because in the course of completing tasks we will probably have some clarifications.
There is such a thing as a “goal tree”. This tree is compiled according to the principle “from general to specific.” The general is its peak; here the global goal is indicated, which gives an answer to the question: why are we trying, what will we get as a result of these efforts? Branches are subgoals or smaller tasks, the solution of which brings us closer to achieving the main goal. They answer the questions: under what conditions can we realize our goal, what specific steps should we take? And so on. We break down the goals until we get the simplest small tasks, the consistent solution of which will ultimately allow us to achieve success in achieving a complex goal.
Surround ourselves with like-minded people
Achieving success is facilitated by a clear goal, sufficient motivation and like-minded people - people who strive for the same goal as us, support us when our motivation fades or we lose faith in our abilities and want to quit the race. In turn, we also provide them with support if they need it.
It is better to avoid people who do not believe in our capabilities. With phrases like “You won’t succeed anyway, you’ll just waste your energy, time and money,” they are trying to reason with us, because, in their words, they want “what’s best.” In fact, they themselves are not averse to getting what we strive for, but they are simply lazy. We, with our positive attitude and energy, instill anxiety in their souls, arouse envy, but instead of being infected by our passion, they prefer to program us for failure, so that we “keep our heads down” and be like everyone else.
Particularly impressionable people, indeed, succumb to decadent moods, lose motivation and abandon their goals.
Types of staff motivation
Material incentives
The simplest type of motivation: no need to immerse yourself in psychological exercises, delve into the needs of each employee - just give more money. As a rule, this works: no one has ever refused money. But there are also nuances: there is a special type of people for whom human relations or work for the benefit of the Big Idea are more important. Let's talk about finances first, and then return to romantics and subtle natures.
Statistics: ways to motivate staff
1. Increase in wages. At least by 5-10 percent. If you have few employees, these extra expenses are unlikely to greatly affect the profits of the online store, and employees are highly motivated. The first months after the increase, your entire team will simply fly with happiness!
This type of motivation also includes awarding bonuses - for example, a manager can be rewarded for a record number of closed orders, a courier for processing many addresses, an accountant for successfully completing reports, a marketer for a successful advertising campaign. If a person achieves the goal 100%, pay him a 100% bonus; if he achieves 80%, let the amount be less.
2. Discounts on services. Surely your employees have their eye on something from the assortment of your online store, or maybe they are already actively placing orders. Establish corporate discounts once and for all: team members can buy products with a 30% or other nominal discount. This will not only increase your profits, but will also encourage employees to work as word of mouth: let them tell everyone about your kindness and generosity, and at the same time advertise your products.
3. Payment for training. Now you can send employees to courses and trainings: individual and team. This helps unite your team and gives employees new knowledge. Don’t spare money on training: in the end, these costs will come back to you a hundredfold when employees begin to apply the experience gained in practice.
Factors of employee engagement and motivation
4. Renovating the office, buying furniture, arranging a dining room or rest room in the office. It seems that the employee does not receive anything in cash - but you are investing in his comfort. It is known that the convenience of the workplace directly affects labor productivity: try hanging on the phone all day while entering data into the CRM system with the other hand! Buy comfortable, ergonomic furniture for your employees, paint your office in bright, positive colors, and allow employees to have lunch and rest in a specially designated area.
5. Presentation of gifts. And these are not only traditional envelopes and bouquets for birthdays and March 8th. Employees should be rewarded not because of holidays, but because of a job well done. Remember how Soviet factories used to reward the best employees: they gave watches, vouchers to sanatoriums, hung photographs on the honor board and in corporate media. Take these ideas into service - even if not on an industrial scale. Among modern managers, resort packages, gym memberships, tickets to a show or performance are popular - just, of course, find out your employee’s preferences in advance.
Reward the best employees, write about it on the website and in the communities of the online store, on social networks - let customers know their heroes! If your company participates in professional competitions, try nominating your candidate in some category.
6. Pleasant little things. Material rewards can be replaced with other very tangible incentives: extra days off, free lunches, corporate mobile communications, medical insurance, the opportunity to leave work if necessary. And all this without unnecessary red tape, countless signed papers - simply at the will of the boss.
Future prospects
If you have far-reaching plans for an employee, tell him about it. Many leaders strive to make a career and move up the ladder - if they are absolutely sure that they will receive a promotion, they can easily do without an increase in salary or bonus. Your task is to keep your word: deception and destroyed hopes will not be forgiven. The market for your niche is not that big, and bad rumors can spread quickly.
Good word
So we got to those for whom human relationships are more important than salary. These are mainly women who go to work largely because of the good psychological climate, pleasant colleagues, and friendly atmosphere.
1. Praise. Many bosses consider it beneath their dignity to praise an employee once again. Meanwhile, praise, even said casually or on an insignificant occasion, will do more than dry instructions and strict adherence to instructions. A simple “thank you” or “well done” - and now your employee smiles and does his task in a good mood, and the rest of the employees become loyal to you.
2. Possibility of communication between boss and subordinate. Employees often have questions that they have no one to discuss with: the manager rarely appears at work, and if he does come, he locks himself in his office and holds meetings. The rest of the colleagues are performing their tasks and cannot suggest a solution. Make a rule: communicate with employees at least an hour a day. They should know that in the event of force majeure, or even just like that, they can come to you and get practical advice or instructions.
3. Everyone has the right to vote. It often happens that the most lively members of the team come up with suggestions and ideas - the rest are shy or keep silent. Over time, such employees are no longer asked at all; they turn into gray shadows of more successful colleagues. If you have such silent people, give them a chance to prove themselves. Conduct a brainstorming session, a team game, a joint event. In unusual conditions, people reveal an unexpected side: perhaps it is the gray mouse who will come up with the most profitable idea.
4. Honor board. An old method that really works. Hang a stand in your office with the title “best employee of the month” and periodically update photos on it. Be sure to duplicate information on the company website in the news section or on social networks. Don't forget to reward the winner with treats or nice little things.
Honor board in the organization's office
5. Flexible schedule. How many unfortunate “night owl” salespeople come to work at 9 am and then toil until lunch, unable to wake up. And the poor “larks” - couriers idle during their most productive hours - in the morning, and in the evening, pumped up with energy drinks, they deliver orders home. Meanwhile, people’s lives can be made significantly easier by allowing them to work flexible hours or remotely. If you have remote employees, you already know that the quality of work does not suffer from the territorial factor. People know their tasks and deadlines, and whether they do them late at night or in the morning is none of your business.
Unusual ways
1. Taking into account the temperament of employees. Melancholic people work differently than choleric people, and phlegmatic people differ from sanguine people. We've already written about how to work with clients of all different personality types—the same principles can be applied to your own employees. Determining the type is simple: if you don’t want to understand in detail the personality of a subordinate, just conduct psychological testing.
2. Playing on ambition. This method was invented by Walt Disney, and now many managers have picked it up. In the empire of the famous animator there were many departments and positions, some prestigious, others not so much. The most unpopular were hotel laundries: people didn’t want to work there - it wasn’t prestigious. Disney renamed the laundry departments textile services: it sounded different and put workers on the same level as other departments. That is, nothing has changed except the name, but how pleasant it was for the employees! Nowadays, this method is also popular: the cleaning lady is proudly called the housekeeping manager, the laundress is the laundry operator, and so on.
3. Internal reward system - not from superiors, but from your own colleagues. The idea is simple: a corporate program is created in which everyone publicly leaves reviews, thanks or complaints about the work of their colleagues. Now it’s even easier to do this: in any messenger, special corporate chat, business application.
Employee motivation
We tell our friends, relatives or colleagues about our goal
By introducing others to our plans, we will receive additional motivation to achieve our goals. After all, no one wants to be branded as an idle talker, an empty talker, or an idle talker whose words mean nothing. The fear that we will no longer be taken seriously will drive us when motivation alone is no longer enough.
True, there is an opinion, and quite justified, that you should not tell everyone about your plans, because in this case they risk remaining plans. After all, the more we talk about them, the less we want to start implementing them: our subconscious perceives the voiced goal or desire as already fulfilled.
Ask employees about their performance
The more information, the higher the motivation.
It is for this reason that a good leader strives to increase communication within the organization. Try to talk less about yourself and ask others more about their work. Ask your subordinate questions aimed at getting him to think about the work he has done and report on specific results. Questions “What results did your team achieve yesterday?” or “How many calls have you been able to handle in the last hour?” stimulate an increase in the employee’s level of self-information. Possession of information promotes internal motivation.
We think not about the difficulties that lie ahead of us, but about the benefits that we will ultimately receive
We describe in detail in our minds or on paper all the benefits that we will receive when we achieve our goal. They will inspire and motivate us. We answer ourselves the questions: how will our lives change - financial situation, lifestyle, what interesting people will we be able to meet, what new things will we be able to learn, where to go, how will our horizons expand, what opportunities will appear?
From photographs and drawings that correspond to what we want to achieve, we can create our own “dream collage” and hang it so that our gaze falls on it as often as possible, not letting us forget about the reward for our labors awaiting us. Such visualization of desires can be a good motivation. At the same time, we create an “anti-collage”, where we also colorfully depict what we don’t want, are afraid of and want to avoid - black and white photographs depicting boring, dull people, poverty, misery, etc.
Ask questions that require detailed answers
In surveys and research, the most common questions that can be answered are yes or no.
Such questions are processed in order to obtain numerical results of the study. However, in a normal conversation, questions that require a set number of answers seem rude and indicate your desire to control the interlocutor. They signal that you are not interested in the other person's answer or opinion. At the same time, managers constantly use questions in conversations with subordinates that require an unambiguous positive or negative answer. Ask open-ended questions more often, and your subordinates will feel that you treat them with respect. As a result, their motivation will increase significantly. Try asking questions that start with “Why?”, “How?”, “Could you tell me about...”, “What did you mean when...” Don’t forget to listen to the answer.
Remembering ambitions
The word “ambition” evokes negative associations for many people. This is probably because it is often combined with the word “overpriced.” People with inflated ambitions pretend to do a lot without having sufficient grounds for it, and overestimate their personal qualities and capabilities. Conversely, a person with low ambitions does not need anything: he strives to satisfy only minimal needs.
But ambitions can also be healthy. And in this case, they are an excellent source of motivation. A person with healthy ambitions is constantly on the move, he strives to stand out with his knowledge and skills, sets goals and achieves them. And although psychologists claim that ambition begins in childhood, it can still be developed in oneself. Communication with ambitious people who always need more than others especially helps in this. The desire to keep up with them, to be no worse, is a good motivation in the desire to become successful.
Find out from your subordinates what they would like
Different employees have different goals and desires, which means they need to be provided with different opportunities for work and professional growth.
You cannot motivate specific people with general programs. To increase motivation, it is necessary to find an individual approach to each subordinate. One way to do this is to delegate authority, goals and objectives to each employee when developing an overall plan or project. Another way is to give subordinates the opportunity to independently develop their own strategic goals and plans.
We practice self-hypnosis
Self-hypnosis, when used skillfully, works wonders. With the help of goals that influence the subconscious, you can change yourself, as they say, beyond recognition. Quite often, people trigger the self-hypnosis mechanism involuntarily. For example, calling themselves losers, they begin to behave accordingly - like losers. Doctors assure that with the power of thought you can both defeat the disease and go to another world.
This means that by repeating phrases such as “I believe that I can do it”, “I can do it, it’s not difficult for me”, you can program yourself for success. To be more effective, they need to be repeated in the morning, as soon as we wake up, in order to create the appropriate mood for the whole day.
It is highly discouraged to use the negative particle “not”. For example, instead of “I won’t be a bungler,” you should say “I’m very attentive.” Motivational phrases should evoke positive emotions in us.
Reward individuals for the group's total contribution
In this era of teamwork, people often feel that their individual contributions go unrecognized.
Companies are more willing to recognize the successes of the group as a whole. However, the manager needs to encourage team members also on an individual level. Only in this way can he increase their personal motivation. This can be achieved, for example, by challenging managers or team leaders to report weekly on the key accomplishments of individual members. With the help of such reports you will be able to summarize the results at the end of the reporting period. Strive to ensure that immediate managers and colleagues recognize the contribution of individual employees to the common cause.
Watch motivating films and videos, read motivating books
Motivational films will help create the right mood. For example, “The Pursuit of Happiness” (about a single father who wants his child to be happy), “The Social Network” (about the story of the creation of Facebook by classmates who made them millionaires), “Always Say Yes” (about about how a short word “yes” can change your whole life), “Rain Man”, “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door”, “...And in my soul I’m dancing”, “Until I play the game”, etc.
Among the books one can highlight the books by Ray Bradbury “A Cure for Melancholy” and “Dandelion Wine”, Lance Armstrong’s “My Return to Life”, Greg Mortenson’s “Three Cups of Tea”, Jerry and Esther Hicks’ “Sarah”, etc.
However, everyone probably has their own book or film that they want to return to again and again, especially when their mental strength is running low. The main thing is not to forget that, in the words of the English poet Matthew Arnold, “the biggest bankrupt in this world is a man who has lost his enthusiasm for life.”
How to force yourself to work if you are lazy, but you have to
Laziness comes to everyone. There is nothing wrong with laziness itself. The main thing is not to be lazy when you need to work. For example, when other people expect results from you, or you yourself want development in a personal project, but you always put off work until later or come up with excuses. That's why you ask yourself the question: how to make yourself work.
It is impossible to defeat laziness once and for all. We can defeat her one time. In this case, she loses the fight and leaves to heal her wounds. After that, it returns to find your new weak point and attack again. You need to be prepared.
Phrases that signal that laziness will soon overwhelm you:
- “Nothing bad will happen if I put this task off until tomorrow or next week.”
- “I’ll have time later, but now I need to seize the moment in order to live.”
- “If I rest an hour more, it’s okay.”
- “We still need to lie down. I can't start work. Probably didn’t get enough sleep.”
If something like this has been spinning in your head lately, laziness has already arrived and is looking for a loophole in your life. And I almost found it. We urgently need to take action.
Also read: Harmful skills at work: 9 personality traits you need to burn out of yourself
Remember the Yerkes-Dodson Law
According to the law developed by British psychologists Robert Yerkes and John Dodson, the best results are achieved with an average level of motivation. It is the average level that is optimal. The second name of the Yerkes-Dodson law is the law of optimal motivation.
Psychologists have empirically found that when the level of motivation is too high, a person begins to get nervous, fearing not to live up to expectations and not being able to cope with responsibility. Fear does not allow him to think adequately, and he makes mistakes.
