In Daniel Pink’s recent book about motivation, Drive, he explains how there is a profound mismatch between what business does and what science knows. Here is your chance to understand this gap and apply as much as you can to your own life and business:
There are three types of motivation according to Pink:
Motivation 1.0 is Biological: hunger, thirst, sex
Motivation 2.0 consists of Rewards and Punishments (the carrot and stick). This is how the business world still mostly operates even though science has long found it to be a poor model (except for work that is consistently dull and repetitive).
Flaws of Motivation 2.0: It CAN sometimes:
a) Kill intrinsic motivation (so don’t always give gifts for referrals – offering money can taint an altruistic act)
b) Decrease performance
c) Crush creativity
d) Crowd out good behavior
e) Encourage cheating, short cuts and unethical behavior (why did the markets crash in 2008?!)
f) Become addictive
g) Foster short-term thinking
Motivation 3.0 is Intrinsic – an innate desire to make a difference, enjoy autonomy, mastery and live one’s purpose.
a) Autonomy: Most people want self-directed, interesting work and they are less motivated by money than the business world thinks. Pink believes our ‘default’ setting is to be self-directed and that it is management and reimbursement practices that are outdated and push into a carrot and stick lifestyle.
The growing trend is the ROWE (Results Only Work Environment) which gives employees flexibility about what work they want to do, where they work (from home?), when they work (no schedule – just get the work done), how they work (more than one way to do something well) and with whom. A recent study at Cornell University found companies who offered this kind of freedom grew FOUR times faster and had one-third the turnover!
20% Time: Google offers this to its development teams. 20% of the time they can work on ANY project they choose. The only requirement is that they present their new ideas to their colleagues. Most of the company’s best ideas have come out of this open, creative exploration time.
How could you apply this to your business? Schedule an afternoon and ask yourself: what would be a fun project to start or explore?
b) Mastery: becoming one of the best in your field
This begins by being in a state of ‘flow’ – when the hours fly by because you are so engrossed in what you are doing. Signs you are not in flow are when you feel nervous, restless, tired or lacking focus. Pink goes so far as to state that this experience is the key to thriving in the 21st century.
Mastery is a mindset: you must believe you can improve your skills significantly – do you? Mastery involves PAIN, frustration and usually years of deliberate practice yet it generally also remains alluring (sounds weird, I know). Only intrinsic drive will sustain you. Pink quotes former basketball star Julius Irving:
Being a professional is doing the things you love to do on the days you don’t feel like doing them.
c) Purpose:
As people get older, they think more about and are increasingly motivated by living a life of significance and making a difference in the world. The 60 year-old baby boomer looks back at the past 25 years knowing how fast those years went and then looks ahead knowing the next 25 will go even faster.
Pink notes that while it sounds ‘touchy feely’, these conversations are happening on an unprecedented scale – and not just with the boomer generation. Are you talking more to your clients about this?
Until 2024, 100 boomers are now turning 60 every 30 minutes in the US. They are the wealthiest and best educated generation the world has ever known.
“Purpose is a motivator.”
What is yours?
And it’s not just boomers. Tom’s Shoes are a for-profit company with giving back at their core. Steve, a financial advisor client of mine in Texas, has his own brand of wine and for every litre sold, he provides a litre of drinking water to children in Africa. Kevin Smith, an insurance agent friend of mine in Chicago, set up a project last year to find enough work for a homeless person that he could live independently.
What are your goals for this year? Just chasing extrinsic ones around money and having things can easily lead to poor relationships and more stress. Who wants another year of that! Set some intrinsic goals such as mastery of a skill or a certain level of great health so you can be there for your family rather than losing 10 pounds for an upcoming holiday or wedding.
You were born to be active and engaged by the world. If you are not feeling charged now, figure out how to get a break in your schedule to recharge and come up with some great ideas. You owe it to everyone in your life.
Please forward this on.
Author: Matt Anderson, The Referral Authority, Author of Fearless Referrals
Tags: Matt Anderson, Referrals: Clients
