The Art Of Motivation.

Implementing the three “R’s”

Responsibility, Recognition, Rewards

Are you a good leader? If you have never asked yourself that question, now is a good time.

Let’s be honest. No matter how talented you are, your organization would definitely benefit if you made some improvements. When you move up in the ranks of your organization, you must continue to educate yourself and improve your skills. If you don’t, your peers who are improving will pass you up. Think of all the athletes who have made it to the top or have won championships. The good ones will always say “we have room for improvement”. This is because they are not satisfied with only winning once. They want to remain on top of their game so they constantly strive to do better.

Ask yourself these basic questions:

* What are my weak points as a leader?

* What part of my job as a leader do I neglect because I am poor at it or just don’t like doing?

* Do I spend enough time with my assistants and employees coaching them, communicating with them and giving feedback?

* How can I be a better leader?

If you are sincere in answering these questions and want to improve, then this self evaluation should suggest some areas that could use some improvement.

One of the most powerful ways to motivate employees is to give them responsibility. Most people want a challenge, but leaders frequently hesitate to delegate responsibility because they fear employees may mishandle it. Unfortunately, this fear becomes self-fulfilling, employees are not given opportunities to excel and, thus, don’t. Think of yourself when you were an employee just waiting for that promotion. You would do almost anything to prove yourself to your boss. Just think, if your boss did not give you responsibilities, where would you be today? You owe it to your employees as a leader to help them develop.

To avoid this trap of not delegating responsibility, take risks. Demonstrate confidence in your staff by giving them appropriate amounts of responsibility coupled with clear expectations regarding their performance and accountability. You want to give tasks you know they should be able to handle. If they are given tasks outside of their capabilities then you are setting them up for failure and that is de-motivating. If they are not able to handle the task they are given then you know what areas you have to work on with that employee. People who are expected to achieve will do so more frequently than those who are not. More over, they enjoy their jobs more at the same time.

Much has been written about the importance of letting people know that they are important to the company, regardless of the limitations of their current jobs. While this is good common sense, many leaders don’t do this well or don’t do it at all. In many cases, their attitude is, “my people get paid to do their jobs and do not need a lot of attention or recognition from me”

Sounds logical, but it isn’t so. Most human beings need to be recognized. Without it, people tend to “drop out” of an organization. That is, they lose their commitment to its goals.  Recognition takes many forms, but don’t confuse it with monetary rewards. Believe it or not money is not the best motivator. It’s a temporary fix to a bigger problem. Recognition can be as simple as a “thank you”. It can be focused on individuals or an entire group of employees. One company I was in had an incentive plan to have the highest increase in sales for the month. I was rewarded with a weekend getaway and I rewarded my staff with a party. When it comes to recognition, quantity is the important thing, not the packaging.

People perform in anticipation of rewards. By using rewards properly, you can significantly increase your employees’ motivation.

 Remember that:

Rewards should be contingent upon performance. They will lose their value if they are given when not deserved.

Rewards should be given as soon as possible after the desired performance occurs so that the employee will associate it with his or her performance. Long-term rewards are also needed to ensure that employees adopt a long term perspective on their jobs. Our company’s highest increase in sales incentive was not only for the month but for the entire year. As the year went on, the more months you had the highest increase, the bigger the prize. The yearly prize was a trip to Las Vegas.

Money is not enough to keep people motivated for the long term. Employees also need the satisfaction that result from engaging in interesting and challenging work.

The Three R’s are simple but effective approaches to becoming a better leader. They should be an essential part of every leader’s repertoire.