Motivation, Incentives, Rewards and Catching Monkeys

I spent the last few days in New York City.  It was cold, but as usual, a wonderful place.  

Coming from a smallish city in the south, the speed of the big city is intoxicating.  People walking quickly.  Cabs zooming in and out of traffic.  Appointments, meetings, schedules.  Everything is accelerated.  And you feel the need to get into the flow or get run over.  You feel as if you're slacking off if you don't jump in and go with it.

But we can get seduced by the illusion of accomplishment when we're moving continuously.  I was reminded of that at a dinner on Tuesday night with some amazing people.

One of my tasks in New York this week was to meet with the principals of a company on a new business initiative.  Working with an associate, we put together a great marketing plan with timelines, activities, budgets and all the elements needed to launch and sell this new idea into a market.  We presented the plan and the response was, and I'm paraphrasing - "let's take some time to get to know you better and see if this is the best way forward."

As a "normal" business person, my goal was to have them buy into the plan, launch it and get moving.  But we were being stalled - or so it seemed.

Softly, Softly, Catch a Monkey

My associate and I took the time to go to New York, have a meeting and dinner with the principals of the company.  And I am a better person, professionally and personally for having taken the time to do that.

At dinner I learned that one of principals grew up in South Africa and he said that sometimes business is best served by applying an old African saying - "Softly, Softly, Catch A Monkey."  As our hosts explained, sometimes the best approach is to slow down, take it easy and in incremental steps.  Achieving a goal isn't always about rash, brash and fast action.

And I am glad we did.  

We got to know our potential business partners better (hopefully, if/when, the plan is announced I can give you some more info on their amazing personal history), we crafted better ideas, we learned more about the pitfalls and the possibilities of our possible venture - and I got to make some great new friends.

Don't Try to Do Everything At Once

What this has to do with people performance, incentives and motivation you ask?  

Simply this - too often programs are designed around achieving one big goal.  We ignore the small steps and the little things that impact and influence the outcome.  In many, many cases, designing performance programs and incentives in a way that moves people along a continuum of smaller, more incremental behaviors, will have a more lasting and controlled result.  I believe that much of the backlash against incentives recently has more to do with them being too aggressive and too focused on the big prize - resulting in the negative outcomes we read about in the business headlines.

So today's lesson - sneak up on your program goal with incremental awards and program earning opportunities.  Don't try to leap out and catch the objective in one fell swoop.

Remember, softly, softly, catch a monkey.   

Comments

[Scott Crandall]

Paul --- I'm told they have a saying in west Texas: "The fastest way to herd cattle is slow." Makes sense to me.

[Paul Hebert]

It was a nice wake-up call to be reminded that there is time to take it slow - especially in the planning phase. That allows you to execute at light speed!

[Derek Irvine, Globoforce]

Excellent points, Paul, especially: "We ignore the small steps and the little things that impact and influence the outcome. In many, many cases, designing performance programs and incentives in a way that moves people along a continuum of smaller, more incremental behaviors, will have a more lasting and controlled result."

That's precisely why we so strongly advocate frequent, timely, PERSONAL recognition as soon after the event being recognized. And make the opportunity to give and receive formal recognition open to everyone. By "formal" I don't necessarily mean "costs money." I simply mean recognition that is thought out and recorded in such a way that bosses are made aware of the good work and perhaps others are able to voice their agreement with the work/work ethic/behaviors being recognized in that person. Powerful stuff, but not if left until the annual holiday banquet only.

[Paul Hebert]

Thanks Derek - but if we don't wait for the annual banquet what will the old-school HR folks do all year? Oh yeah - they may have train managers on how to do proper recognition and engagement.

[Fran Melmed]

when i worked in the uk, a colleague who became a very good friend chided me for being a bulldog. i think what he was really saying was slowly, slowly -- just not with characteristic british subtlety. seems we both need to travel for these lessons.

f