A few nights ago, I was having a conversation with my wife about motivating team members. She was talking about her team, a sales force of about 25-30 people, and what motivates them. Her conclusion was that, yes, while money (a bonus for reaching a goal) is a factor, often, just recognition for doing good work is motivating in-and-of itself…without the money attached to it.
I asked if the same was true for people in her position, at her level, and she said that,
“Yes, it was true, but the recognition didn’t happen that often… probably because most of the people at her level in the company are pretty self-actualized, and didn’t need to be stroked to perform well.”
My response, jokingly, was that “self-actualized people need love, too!”
I was joking, then after thinking about it for a minute, wrote that phrase (self-actualized people need love, too!) on the chalkboard in our home… the place where I put my ideas for blog posts.
We all have these people (assistant coaches and players) in our programs… the people that fly under the radar… that can handle things well…. that are self-starters and self-motivated… that don’t demand a lot of attention… and that consistently perform above expectations.
It is easy to fall into the habit of expending large chunks of your energy dealing with the “needy” folks in your program… knowing that the above mentioned group will be “just fine” because they are self-actualized, self-starters, or self-motivated. And, they will be “just fine”… but probably could be better… maybe even “really good” or “really great” with a few simple, kind words of appreciation and recognition for doing good work.
It really is an easy thing to do that does not take a lot of time or effort or money…. Who are those people in your program, and how can you recognize them?
I can do much better in this area…
I Can Do More!
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You Can Do More… your brain is lying to you…. Don’t Believe It!
Jeff Floyd – youcandomore1@yahoo.com
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