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More than pay to motivate employees

2/26/2014

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If I could only figure out what really motivates employees, I would write the book and retire. While it is true, that I could sell enough books on this subject to afford retirement, I would not retire. The reason I would not retire provides a hint to figuring out what employees really want. I suspect, they want the same things I want.  I would still be more interested in sharing the story than sitting on a beach; I would travel, speak, hold seminars and help people implement the ideas of my book.  I for one need more in my life than sitting around relaxing.  I need to feel connected to people. I need to be of service to someone, and I want to be valued and appreciated for doing so.

A manager from a large employer contacted me this week to discuss employee morale. He said that employees are frustrated with management in general; they feel unappreciated, constantly asked to do more with less staff and no overtime. He added his own observation that staff receives very little in the way of acknowledgement from most managers; there must be something we can do to improve the work climate.

The easy answer is more money. For people not making a livable wage, this important issue will not go away. Yes, people need to make a livable wage before we can talk about the art or the science of employee motivation. Having been a small business owner a number of times, I understand that for many small shops, if you pay a livable wage to staff, there may be little financial incentive left for the owner to keep the business. The majority of the small main-street shops in towns I visit across America, provide a decent living for the owner, but not for staff. It is a conundrum for sure. At all levels of pay however, certain benefits are critical and you already have free access.

For employees who earn a decent wage, more money is seldom what they are really asking for.  In the case mentioned above, the manger shared the employee complaint about feeling unappreciated and being asked to do more. There was no complaint about pay.  In fact, even if there was a complaint about pay, as there often is, the pay complaint is really about something deeper. If you hate working with people who yell at you, being paid more will not help the situation. In fact, it may make you feel trapped as unable to leave the toxic environment if you become attached to the pay, which is worse than leaving the environment for your wellbeing.

What would it cost for a manager to share a sincere, thorough acknowledgement on a regular basis? Right, nothing! We are not talking about a quick “good job” statement as you rush past the employee. I’ve done that, it doesn’t work. We are talking about a “Hey Nancy, thank you for handling that customer so well.  You really did a nice job. Your extra effort probably saved us that account. Thank you.”  Acknowledgements were not part of any budget cut! Think about it. The fact is, most of us carry around at least a little bit of buried resentment from all the times we have not received the acknowledgment that we should have received.  How does it make you feel about giving more? You volunteered to help with your kid’s sports teams and the other parents didn’t appreciate anything you did. You helped at the church fundraiser, did all the leg work behind the scenes at dozens of events, spent twenty years raising unappreciative children, or care for aging parents who, out of their own embarrassment, can’t bring themselves to be kind to you. None of these situations is that different from doing a little extra at work and not being appreciated.  At work, the bar is set by the lowest producer who does not get fired. Everything any employee does at work that is above the low bar should be treated like volunteer work – they are technically doing more than they need to do to avoid being fired. Now if you think about it, I bet this is the vast majority of all the work most people do. If you had volunteers doing that much work, how much would you be thanking them?  First, raise the bar. Second, treat the remaining “above bar” work as volunteer work.

My suggestion is that the issues surrounding pay and benefits are complex.  So before you tackle the hard issues, implement one policy today that is free, easy and works the same for employees at minimum wage as it does for the highest paid executive. Acknowledge someone today. Put it on your calendar as a reminder every morning until it is a habit. Use their name, tell them what you appreciate about them, how they help, and that they are valuable.

My dear reader, I appreciate you following my column. When I get feedback via website traffic following an article, or comments on my Facebook page, it tells me I have been of service to you and that my writing time is doing some good. That keeps me going, so thank you!


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Are you more afraid of dying or living?

2/15/2014

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Most of us have some natural fear of death or dying.  Certainly we have a natural instinct for survival, so it would seem to follow that death would be a failure on our part to successfully survive. I know some of my friends are comfortable with the topic of their own death, but for the sake of this conversation, let’s assume that most people who are working, building careers, businesses and families have no interest in dying. In fact, let's say most of us would be pretty freaked out if we just learned that we have a year to live, or that we were just invaded by aliens who are devouring all the humans in our area. I certainly hate the idea of being served up on a buffet! 

It has occurred to me that most people are more afraid of living than of dying. To die is easy. In fact it’s the only thing we all really "have" to do.  We can avoid everything else if we are willing to accept the consequences, but dying is the only thing that is not optional as far as we know. Living is hard.  To really be alive and be who you are meant to be, who you were when you were born, before your parents, teachers, churches, friends, media and bosses domesticated you into  a properly behaved human, completely house-broken and well-mannered and obedient enough to function in normal society.  The domestication of humans is built on a system of fear. Our training, since we were just little human pups, has been about fitting in; getting acceptance, approval, love, affirmation. As well-trained big humans, we now live in fear and make decisions based on fear, even when we think we are confident, secure and independent.

To say it, to know it and even to believe it is not the same as to live it. It is hard to live as if we were not in fear. The ego makes us want to deny this, yet we do not go after our real dreams because we fear failure, or we fear success, or we do not think (fear) we are good enough, smart enough, tall enough, educated enough, we do not deserve that much, we do not know enough, people won't believe us, we will seem foolish, we will seem arrogant, we will seem selfish, etc.  We do not ask for what we need from those we care about the most at home or at work, because we fear we will be perceived incorrectly, or we fear they may refuse us, or we fear we don't really deserve what we request. We do not give our opinions or share our wisdom because we fear we may be wrong, or we may be the only one thinking a certain way. We don't ask questions because we fear sounding ignorant. We can say we are strong, confident and comfortable, but all our training has taught us to fear everyone and everything and when all else fails, fear god, death and hell. Have I sufficiently gotten you depressed?  I have good news.

If we can admit that we have more fear of living than of dying, we can go to work on those fears and start really living! I am so grateful to be able to spend this week in California as one of a hundred students studying success training with Jack Canfield, one of the leading success coaches and trainer in the world. My fellow students include highly successful speakers and trainers from around the world, and some that are closer to the beginning of their journey. There is so much science and so much wisdom available to all of us, to move beyond the fears and self-limiting beliefs to truly transform our lives from merely existing to flourishing.

What are your core character strengths? What are the things you really love to do at work and for fun? What is your highest vision of yourself and your world? If you can answer those questions and string them together, you will have the start of a beautiful personal mission statement. That is something we can work with. That is something to live for. That is something that makes us willing to face fear.

You are smart enough, good enough, talented enough and most of all worthy enough. You can create prosperity, abundance, love and joy in your life. You can do it with your job, your business, family, friends, community and yourself. Now that I think about it, it is my life mission to help you! See? Already you're finding sources for making it happen!


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    Michael Kline

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