Business literature is packed with advice about worker motivation—but sometimes managers are the problem, not the inspiration. Here are seven practices to fire up the troops. From Harvard Management Update
Tag Archive for: motivation
Setting and achieving goals seems to be a consistent theme at the beginning of a new year. One key to reaching those goals is continued motivation. The book and movie, 212, The Extra Degree, is an excellent resource to inspire and encourage yourself and others to commit to and attain those goals. Take a few minutes to discover the difference when you give and go “The Extra Degree.”
In almost any kind of business, sometimes there is a need to motivate others. (NB: This is as distinct from "motivational programs" which are structured incentive schemes, usually aimed at sales staff to get them to sell more. This is a different area altogether and one which we can look at another time...
FOR ONCE IT'S NOT ABOUT SELLING
The cynics amongst us would probably say that all you need to do to motivate people, is to use sales techniques on them. There might be a bit of truth in that from the point of view that in order to motivate people, you've got to show them "what's in it for them." However that's probably where the resemblance ends.
I believe there is a difference between selling people an idea and motivating them to "buy into it." With motivation you need to focus more on generating and activating desire. That's not something you necessarily have to do with selling, because in that case you should be selling into a ready-prepared market opportunity. (But that's straying into marketing issues which we're not discussing now.)
What is it that excites you, makes you smile and fuels your dreams? This is the question author Kevin Carroll urges children to contemplate in his new inspirational workbook, What's Your Red Rubber Ball?!: Discover Your Inspiration and Chase It for a Lifetime, co-published by Disney Press and ESPN Books. The book, which contains fold-outs, journal pages and self-discovery activities and features red rubber texturing on its cover, lands this month with a 100,000-copy first printing.
The genesis of the title is an actual ball that Carroll played with as a boy, which helped him discover his athletic ability and a passion for sports. That ball fueled Carroll's personal and professional dreams and, he insists, "it saved my life." Born in a Philadelphia suburb in 1958, he, along with his two brothers, moved in with their grandparents after their parents abandoned them. The local playground became what he calls "my sanctuary—a magical environment where my worries, shame and low self-esteem disappeared."
During 10 years of active duty in the Air Force, Carroll spent a good deal of time playing soccer. He went on to study sports medicine and worked as an athletic trainer for high school and college athletic teams, eventually becoming the head trainer for the Philadelphia 76ers. He then went to work for Nike, where he was responsible for inspiring employees. "It was my job to push their creativity and potential to the limit," he says.
