Tweet

Two Underused Secrets in Motivating Others

Written by: Jamie Broughton

Article Overview: In this article you can read about the simplest, cheapest and often most gratifying and effective way of motivating others.

Two Underused Secrets in Motivating Others

“I consider my ability to arouse enthusiasm among others
the greatest asset I possess. The way to develop the best
that is in others is by appreciation and encouragement.”
~ Charles Schwab (1862–1939)
US president of Carnegie Steel (1897)


Two Underused Secrets in Motivating Others.

By the time Friday afternoon rolled around this week, I wanted to crawl into a cave and not come out, ever. A very exciting business opportunity had been delayed again. I’d also received some sobering news on another project – one I’ve been putting a LOT of work into.

So there I was, crying in my beer, so to speak, for a few hours and not feeling particularly on-top-of-the-world-ish.

Around 3pm Friday afternoon Catherine, my virtual knight in shining armor, arrived on my desktop in the form of an innocent email. In it she complemented me on my writing and how much she enjoys it. “Humph” I thought to myself. She also requested I connect with her. Still feeling a little glum, I stared at the email on my screen, wondering whether to leave it till Monday when it would be – with luck - in a better frame of mind.

I trusted my gut, gave her a call and got exactly what I didn’t really know I was missing: a good dose of sincere appreciation. I hung up the phone a different person. I couldn’t believe the difference her remarks made.

I’ll admit a small part of me thinks I should be able to “get along without all that appreciation stuff.” After all, I’m and adult and adults don’t need that kind of feedback, at least not the strong, independent, leader types. And of course that’s who I am, right? Yet there I was, feeling great after a good dose of it. So, either I’m terribly insecure and in desperate need of therapy, or just human.

Humour me and let’s assume the latter.

Now, consider a client conversation I had this week. Eric had significant employee turnover. As we talked about it, he had an insight. It turns out that they were throwing more parties to honor people who were leaving for greener pastures than the ones who were staying. You could almost hear the “ping” go off in his mind – Eric and his senior managers were completely neglecting their key performers and it was showing in their retention.

Perhaps Charles Schwab knew a thing or two about management after all.

Coaching Questions

Whether we acknowledge it or not, we are social creatures in need of appreciation and encouragement. We naturally crave a sense of belonging. We want to know we make a difference. Sound cheesy? It isn’t. In their groundbreaking book, “First Break all the Rules,” authors Marcus Buckingham and Curt Coffman surveyed 105,000 employees to explore what the worlds greatest managers do differently.

According to their results, the answers to the following questions will predict your ability as a manager to create a strong and vibrant workplace long term. How would you do if you asked your team these six questions?

1. Do you know what is expected of you at work?
2. Do you have the materials and equipment you need to do your work right?
3. At work, do you have the opportunity to do what you do best every day?
4. In the last seven days, have you received recognition or praise for doing good work?
5. Does your supervisor, or someone at work, seem to care about you as a person?
6. Is there someone at work who encourages your development?

Your fieldwork: practice appreciation. First, notice when people contribute to you. It may be obvious people such as your spouse, your kids, your team members, or less obvious like the java-jockey at Starbucks who whipped up your favorite latte like a pro. Then, take the moment and thank them. Really thank them. It just takes a moment. “Pay-it-forward” for a week and see what happens – you’ll be amazed.

Let me get you started. If you’ve read this far then you’ve invested some time. A key sign of leaders that last is their willingness to continually learn and grow. So first, congrats on your mindset, it’ll take you places. And second, thank you for giving me a moment to contribute another perspective. I hope it was valuable.

Related Articles
  Success Isn't Magic
  Are You Making These 5 Mistakes with Your Headlines?
  Sales Incentive Plans Drive Sales Behaviours
  Book Review: The Yes Factor - Secrets of Persuasive Communication
  No More Secrets

Article Tags: adult, adults, business opportunity, carnegie steel, charles schwab, desperate need, email, employee turnover, encouragement, frame of mind, friday afternoon, humour, independent leader, insight, ish, knight in shining armor, motivating others, top of the world



Related Forum Posts
7 words or less for Structogram - Some "7 words or less" (more or less) for Structogram for your comments: Training to get your message across(6) Secrets to get your message across (6) Training so people will listen to you (7) Helping you get your message across (6) Training to learn to get your message across (8) Communications training for yourself and your team (7)
Re: What would you do with your last $1000? - I would put into my business certainly. If money sleeps then you will lose it. Nearly the eaxct situation happened with me. I had my last 750$ in my pocket to make money online. If I spent it in a wrong way, I would have to lose my chance to own business on the Internet. But I used it wisely and bought D. Gerl's Insider Secrets to Internet Marketing. Then put the rest of the money into Google Adwords and could save my business. But now..... I would continue my monthly membership on SubmitYourArticles Article Submission Service (37$), buy Revolution Wordpress Theme, maintain monthly membership on J. Humpereys ASC membership program and the rest of money put into Google Adwords and Yahoo Ads. Orxan
Re: My Favourite 7 Boldest Entrepreneur Moves of All Time - Hi Evan, I have a new suggestion for "Boldest Entrepreneur Moves of All Time" and a suggestion for your Learning from the Masters series: 1. Boldest Entrepreneur Moves of All Time = Christopher Columbus: "... he saw the possibility of treasure and commerce where others saw only danger. He committed so wholeheartedly to that vision that not even dozens of rejections and ongoing penury could dissuade him from pursuing a journey to Asia via the West. He built on his technical strengths as a seaman to plan a viable journey and eventually marshal an expedition." - Christopher Hoenig, 6 Essential Secrets for Thinking on a New Level I bought Hoenig's book about 10 years ago but couldn't make head or tail of it then... reading it now and finding it inspirational... 2. Nomination for Learning from the Masters video: Dee Hock, founder of VISA. (Source = Hoenig.)
Book: Why Good Girls Don't Get Ahead But Gutsy Girls Do - Book: Why Good Girls Don't Get Ahead But Gutsy Girls Do: Nine Secrets every career woman must know Kate White 1995 Foy years Kate White lived as a good girl - a rule follower, a people pleaser, a busy beaver - until she was passed over for the job of editor-in-chief of a magazine she had been running for months. She finally realized that being gutsy, not good, was the only way to succeed. A gutsy girl : 1. Breaks the rules 2. Has one clear goal for the future 3. Does only what's essential 4. Doesn't worry whether people like her 5. Walks and talks like a winner 6. Asks for what she wants 7. Faces trouble head on 8. Trusts her instincts 9. Takes smart risks This book has NO table of contents, but above are the chapter headings. A good book, although I really wish they'd stop talking about "girls" and start talking about women.
Book: Secrets of Six Figure Women - Secrets of Six Figure Women: Surprising Strategies to up your earning and change your life Barbara Stanny, 2002 Jacket: Maybe you've noticed - a subtle trend is gathering steam. Quietly and steadily, the number of women making six figures or more is increasing, and it continues to rise at a rate faster than for men. From entrepreneurs to corporate executives, from white collar executives to free lancers and part timers, women are forging careers with considerable financial success. Through extensive research and hundreds of interviews, including dialogs with more than 150 high earners whose annual incomes range from $100,000 to 7 million, Stanny discovered that ...they all had certain traits in common: 1) a profit motive 2) Audacity 3) REslience 4) Encouragement 5) Self-awareness 6) Non-attachment 7) Financial knowhow She amplifies on these in the book itself. Table of Contents Intro: Welcome to the era of the six-figure woman 1. The Queen in the Countinghouse 2. The Lowdown on low earners 3. Raising the bar 4. Strategy 1: The Declaration of Intention 5. Strategy 2: Letting go of the ledge 6. Strategy 3: Get in the Game 7. Strategy 4: Speak Up 8. Strategy 5: The Stretch 9. Strategy 6: Seek Support 10. Strategy 7: Obey the rules of money 11. Claiming our power Appendces: Resources and websites Tips for getting out of dent Investing Basics: Wealthbuilding 101


Share this article with your friends. Fund someone's dream.

Leave a comment below or share on the left and you'll help support entrepreneurs in Africa through our partnership with Kiva. Over $50,000 raised and counting - Please keep sharing! Learn more.

Tweet

Newsletter

Get advice & tips from famous business
owners, new articles by entrepreneur
experts, my latest website updates, &
special sneak peaks at what's to come!

Name:
Email:

Popular Articles

How do I finance a franchise?

The Digital Diet by Daniel Sieberg

Suggestions

Email us your ideas on how to make our
website more valuable! Thank you Sharon
from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for
your suggestions to make the newsletter
look like the website and profile younger
entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez.