Why You’re Struggling to Motivate People. And How to Improve.
You’re Likely Focusing on the Wrong Things.
“Motivation,” Dwight D. Eisenhower once said, “is the art of getting people to do what you want them to do because they want to do it.” And while there are tons, literally tons, of information and advice on how to do this, the unfortunate truth is that most people are still not motivated in their jobs.
Companies have improved their perks, increased salaries, cut out inefficiencies, helped people see the bigger picture, and offered free coffee, lunches, and snacks over the past two decades. Yet in this timeframe, workplace engagement has barely increased, going from 26% in 2000 to 33% in Gallup’s latest State of the American Workplace report.
We’ve spent a lot of time and energy addressing everything that demotivates people. And have yet to see a return on that investment.
Which is the exact problem. We’ve focused on the wrong things.
Our energy goes toward correcting problems — addressing those areas that demotivate people. But the opposite of demotivation isn’t motivation, it’s just a lack of demotivation.
Consider the things that annoy you at work. Few things demotivate people like an overly bureaucratic process. But once we streamline the process, people aren’t…
