Are your leadership practices based on outdated assumptions about the true nature of human motivation? Think about how you might approach leadership differently if you took into account some of the latest findings: – Our basic human nature is to thrive. No one wants to be bored and disengaged. People want to contribute. People appreciate meaningful…
Recent research into motivation has shown us that, at least in the corporate world, we don’t have the complete story. In their latest column for Training Industry Magazine Ken Blanchard and Scott Blanchard share that typical variations of the carrot and the stick—money, incentives, fear, or goal pressure—either don’t work very well or don’t have…
Have you ever found yourself repeatedly procrastinating, not taking action on a task that needs to be done, or not having the boldness to act—even on a good idea? Or have you felt your energy drain away just thinking about an upcoming task, such as conducting performance reviews? Your motivational outlook is probably to blame,…
A new article in Costco Connection, Improve Your Motivation, highlights Susan Fowler’s new book, Why Motivating People Doesn’t Work … And What Does, and points out an important fact about motivation—it’s an inside-out proposition. The article summarizes some of the key takeaways from the book, and shares important concepts for individuals and leaders to consider…
In a recent online column for Fast Company, motivation expert Susan Fowler uses the metaphor of junk food to describe the shortsighted approach some managers use when motivating their direct reports—reaching for easy motivational rewards instead of digging deeper for sustainable ones. The result is suboptimal motivation, which characterizes three out of a possible six…
Most human resource and organizational development professionals are familiar with Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. In his 1954 book, Motivation and Personality, Maslow’s proposed that people are motivated by satisfying lower-level needs such as food, water, shelter, and security, before they can move on to being motivated by higher-level needs such as self-actualization. In a…
In her new book, Why Motivating People Doesn’t Work … And What Does, author Susan Fowler reminds leaders that employees are always motivated—it’s just the quality of their motivation that’s a problem sometimes. Fowler shares how the repeated use of motivational carrots & sticks might get results in the short term, but often have negative consequences long-term. That’s…
Habits are a time saver. They function a bit like reading a large paper map and knowing where to go with a single glance instead of having to rotate the map and trace the route to the destination with your finger. But sometimes there’s a downside to this kind of efficiency. Sometimes the fast way…
A workplace can facilitate, foster, and enable flourishing, or it can disrupt, thwart, and impede it, says motivation expert Susan Fowler in a cover story for Personal Excellence magazine. In Fowler’s experience, the motivation practices used in many organizations have undermined engagement more often than they have engaged employees. Fortunately the new science of motivation has…