Dan Pink’s Motivation and DRiVE
This week I went to hear Dan Pink (of Johnny Bunko fame) share his ideas about motivation. It was actually the first time I ever heard a writer give a talk. It was pretty interesting. I guess Dan enjoys it because loves connecting with his readers. He even answers my emails!
Dan Pink at TED
In his talk, he shared with us his big idea about motivation, the subject of his new book Drive
- Biological
- Reward/Punishment
- Interest/Purpose/Fun
He suggests that any of the above can be used to motivate a person in general, and an employee in particular. However, some of these motivation strategies are more effective than others.
For example, if someone is not meeting their basic biological needs, such as for food, water and sex, then these basic biological drives can be used to effectively motivate people. A hungry person will work hard for food. A thirsty person will work hard if you offer them a glass of water.
There is just one small problem. Most people (or at least most employees) are pretty capable of meeting their biological needs in this society. So, it is a challenge to motivate people hoping that they are hungry or thirsty.
The next possible motivation strategy is Reward/Punishment, also known as the carrot and the stick. This is the common incentive system that is used by 99% of employers and perhaps 100% of parents. If the child misbehaves, beat him. If the employee does a good job, give them a raise.
This is a much more effective strategy. And it works. Giving people money to work motivates them to show up for work, and do stuff. The effectiveness of what they do is a big question, but they seem to be working. Just think about. How many employees would continue to show up if they stopped getting paid? How many employees go to work on the weekend because they enjoy it?
The problem with the carrot and the stick is that it is a short term strategy. As soon as the carrot is out of sight, motivation dies. As soon as the fear of an imminent beating is gone, the desire to do the right thing disappears. That’s why employees typically get paid every two weeks. It reminds them that without the paycheck they will not be able to pay their rent.
The last and most powerful motivator is Interest/Purpose/Fun. These are the activities that we actually enjoy doing, thing we do even when we are not getting paid. Often times they are hobbies. Or, they could be a passion such as music, dance, art, or history. The big question is, how can employees get a job where they actually enjoy the work? How do employers motivate their people in a way that allows them to connect with their passions and purpose?
It sounds impossible, but it happens every day. Outstanding companies like Google have 20% time, where they allow employees to work on whatever they want for 20% of their time! It may sound crazy, but Gmail, and most of the other good ideas at Google actually came from 20% time!
The great thing about the talk was that it really got me thinking about motivation and how we can get more out of ourselves. If Google can generate awesome ideas from 20% time, what outstanding things can we do for ourselves?
Related posts:
- Madoff’s Motivation: Greed
- “I went to the DMV and couldn’t find anyone to help me!”
- The Most Important Money Move You Can Make
- Tony Hsieh and Zappos
- Rich Futurist, Poor Futurist
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is one of my favorite financial books of all time. It's an allegory about a guy who has a terrible job, and how he overcomes challenges to achieve his dreams.
