Episode 147, The 3 Motivators to Why people come to work!

Simplify Your Sales and Business meetings. Lisa Thal is an Author, Speaker, and Business Coach. She has over 35 years of marketing, sales, and leadership experience. She wrote the book "Three Word Meetings."  Lisa coaches leaders on simplifying sales and business meetings with fun and interesting 3-word  topics to get your sales team motivated and inspired.

 

Episode 147,  The 3 Motivators to Why people come to work!

WHAT MOTIVATES PEOPLE TO WORK?

Have you ever thought about what motivates you to work hard? For most of us, the answer goes beyond money or material gains. Asking what motivates people to work – what inspires them to show up each day and give their all – ultimately gets at a more profound question:

 

What motivates people in life? Values, beliefs, feelings and experiences, and basic human needs like growth, connection, and contribution.

 

People like Daniel Pink, a best-selling business and human behavior author, share the science behind what motivates us.

 

Daniel discusses the results of scientific studies on what drives people to work hard at their jobs. Surprise: It's not money – it's tapping into a person's passions and needs for significance, growth, and contribution

 

Daniel Pinks discussion on what motivates people: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rrkrvAUbU9Y

 

WHAT MOTIVATES PEOPLE TO WORK

One thing was clear from the research, reward-versus-punishment, the old carrot and stick systems (de)incentivize behaviors; humans respond better to incentives that engage their interests and what matters to them.

 

Three (non-monetary) drivers keep workers engaged and inspired: Autonomy, Mastery, and Purpose.

AUTONOMY

To feel like a contributing member of the workforce, employees need to feel they are both skillful and trusted on the job. Empowering your team with a reasonable level of autonomy in the workplace is one of the most effective motivating factors.

MASTERY

Whether you are the owner of the company or the employee of a growing firm, a feeling of mastery on the job is an essential part of what motivates people to work. To effectively learn how to inspire people, make sure everyone onboard has the tools and information they need to excel on the job.

PURPOSE

What motivates you to work hard? It is not money that ultimately keeps us working hard. What drives people is a sense of purpose and contribution. Invest your time discovering what inspires those you lead. What matters most to them and motivates them in life.

 

How could these factors help you to inspire your team? 

 

 Here are a few specific things that motivate people, according to science:

• Host a "hackathon." In the video, Daniel talks about one company that gives its developers one day per quarter during which they can work on anything they want. That one day of autonomy has led to fixes, new products, and strategic innovation.

 

• Provide professional development. Numerous studies have found that employees want professional development opportunities. Give your employees time to get certifications, go to conferences, take classes and improve their mastery.

 

• Create a challenge. People driven by mastery are often goal-oriented, enjoy completing tasks, and appreciate a good challenge to improve their skills.

 

• Give back. No matter what motivates you to work hard, giving to others universally makes people feel good because it fulfills many of our deepest human needs. Provide opportunities for your employees to donate their time and services to those in need. Organize volunteer days. You'll connect your employees with a purpose – and keep them around.

 

• ROWE.   Results-Only-Work-Environment. What does that mean to your workplace? People don't have schedules. They don't have to be in the office at certain times. They get their work done. We don't spend time concerned about how they do it, when they do it, where they do it. It is up to them. The results of the companies that adopted ROWE were tremendous. Productivity, worker engagement, and overall satisfaction, you guessed it, goes up.

 

WHAT MOTIVATES PEOPLE TO CHANGE?

People tend to stick to old, familiar habits unless they have a powerful reason to change. Changing a personality trait or routine can be so daunting that many people resist self-improvement to avoid the challenge. It's one matter to be driven in your career and quite another to leverage what motivates you to work hard to work on your personal growth.

 

What does the research have to say about what motivates people to change? 

 

Psychology Today reports that behavioral change occurs along two dimensions: internal/external and positive/negative. 

 

These dimensions combine in four distinct ways, each producing a different effect on the drive. 

1. When someone is inspired to change by internal factors (their passions) and positive results (like fulfilled dreams or goals), they are likely to succeed at changing themselves.
2. When someone is driven by external factors (circumstances) and positive results, they are likely to succeed at changing themselves at least partially.
3. When someone is inspired to change by internal factors and negative results (like the threat of failure or loss), they might succeed at changing somewhat but risk a relapse into undesired behavior.
4. When someone is inspired to change by external factors and negative results, they are unlikely to succeed at any level of personal change. 

 

What motivates you to work hard may differ from the specific things that inspire others, but ultimately, what drives people centers around the three main factors: autonomy, mastery, and purpose. I encourage you to use your creativity, listen to uncover what matters most to your team, and keep asking questions to discover what matters to them. Focus on what's important to them from the inside vs. the outside.

 

Learn more about Simplifying Your sales meetings using 3-word topics at http://www.threewordmeetings.com .