Managers can help employees see how their work is contributing. Most important, they can avoid actions that negate its value.   

– Teresa Amabile & Steven Kramer   

Photo by JuliaEastsSweaters

In Part 1, I highlighted the significance of “making progress” in our everyday work if we want to enjoy or encouraged productivity.  At the end of the day, we are wired to be emotionally supported and motivated from progress – even a small win. Yes, higher performance is the reward.

Of the many ways to encourage productivity, engagement, and innovation is the “progress principle” according to of Teresa Amabile and Steven Kramer in their forthcoming book: The Progress Principle: Using Small Wins to Ignite Joy, Engagement, and Creativity at Work from Harvard Business Review Press.

 How would you like to see your performance improve? Or that of your team? Then, be sure to make progress in your work…even in a small way, and your reward is emotional and motivational support, improved performance.

Ah, the power of progress!

How to get in the way of things getting done

It comes as no surprise that since we can improve performance by just making progress at work, performance can be hindered.

According to Amabile and Kramer there are four primary ways* managers can drain work of its meaning and thus defeat the work objective.

While stated in terms of manager/employee you may want to consider the implications for self-management, too. To hinder performance be sure to: 

1. Dismiss the importance of other’s work or ideas
2. Destroy their sense of ownership of the work
3. Send the message: the work will never see the light of day
4. Neglect to communicate unexpected changes in customer priorities

Here’s another way to look at these four ideas…a reality check of sorts: 

1. Do people believe their contribution matters? How do you know?
2. Do you re-assign responsibilities without discussion or take back “delegated” work?   
3. Do you request input, but neglect to consider it when making the decision?
4. Do people understand why changes were made?

Where’s the power?

There is power tied to making progress in meaningful work; even a little progress energizes. Achievement supports improved performance.

 Whether you are a manager, business owner, or you apply this to leading your own life, remember …

• Daily progress is powerful and even a small win helps sustain performance
• Support daily progress by providing resources and removing obstacles
• Guard against unintentionally hindering work of it’s meaning

How are you supporting progress in your work?  

Please share your comments below.

*Sources: May 2011 Harvard Business Review, The Power of Small Wins, Teresa M. Amabile and Steven J. Kramer, page 77) 

http://hbr.org/2011/05/the-power-of-small-wins/sb1

Of all the things that can boost emotions, motivation, and perceptions during a workday, the single most important is making progress in meaningful work.   

– Teresa Amabile & Steven Kramer

Last week my routine was interrupted with re-scheduled coaching appointments and some other things. I had also been out of town and was a bit weary. While I hate to admit it, the “interruption” of my rhythm affected my focus and productivity.

After sluggishly working through the morning I left for an early afternoon appointment with a colleague, Teri Aulph. Following our meeting, I reviewed a client testimonial video. Before the day was done, I connected with a key contact and after several missed calls we have a breakfast meeting penciled in.

How to keep things moving forward

In business and in life one of our challenges is to keep things moving in the right direction. Right?

Consider these five ways to encourage productivity, engagement, and innovation; how would you rank them?

1. Incentives
2. Clear Goals
3. Support for making progress
4. Recognition for good work
5. Interpersonal support

If you selected support for making progress in one’s work you are in agreement with the findings of Teresa Amabile and Steven Kramer in their forthcoming book: The Progress Principle: Using Small Wins to Ignite Joy, Engagement, and Creativity at Work from Harvard Business Review Press. They call it the “progress principle”.

Through exhaustive analysis of diaries kept by knowledge workers, we discovered the progress principle: Of all the things that can boost emotions, motivation, and perceptions during a workday, the single most important is making progress in meaningful work. And the more frequently people experience that sense of progress, the more likely they are to be creatively productive in the long run. Whether they are trying to solve a major scientific mystery or simply produce a high-quality product or service, everyday progress—even a small win—can make all the difference in how they feel and perform. (Emphasis added.)

How would you like to see your performance or that of your team improve? See to it you make progress, even in a small way, and enjoy emotional and motivational support. The power of progress!

What type of day will it be?

As a manager here’s a great question to consider: How am I helping my people have a good day?

What’s a good day?  At the end of the day, people feel good and are motivated because they can see progress. Yes, even if only small steps have been achieved in their work it matters.

What’s a bad day? Employees feel stuck due to a lack of resources or support; at the end of the day they cannot see progress.

There is power in achievement and that’s improved performance. Whether you are a manager, business owner, or you apply this to leading your own life, remember …

Daily progress is powerful and even a small win helps sustain performance

Support daily progress by providing resources and removing obstacles

On that Monday, you would be right to observe I had not experienced a huge victory… but I did see progress.  And progress – even those small wins - had a positive effect.

Where are you seeing progress?

Please share your comments below.

In the October 18 issue of Fortune magazine they published their annual list of the “Most Powerful Women” in business.  Landing the #6 slot is Oprah Winfrey; the feature article is “Oprah’s Next Act”.  Patricia Sellers begins her report…

Oprah Winfrey was headed into her “la-di-da years” – her term for semiretirement –when David Zaslav came along and wrecked her grand plan.  The queen of TV talk had never met the CEO of Discovery Communications until he arrived at her Chicago office in April 2007 with a proposition.

You can read details and will, no doubt hear more of the story as OWN: The Oprah Winfrey Network launches January 1, 2011. 

My interest is not about OWN or even Oprah, it is the story and what we can learn or remember regarding how things get done.

Everybody NEEDS Somebody, Sometimes

My apology to Dean Martin and his famous oldie “Everybody loves somebody sometimes…”

However, this is true…everybody needs somebody to partner with in order to BE all we can be as human beings; and yes, to achieve what we are called to do.

What’s your dream?

David Zaslav had a “grand plan” to create a new cable network.

Oprah had a plan to move into “semiretirement”.  

However, starting over 3 years ago they began creating something new;  yes, they “need” each other to make the dream come true.

How’s your support system?

When we decide to live with purpose and passion and make a difference in the world with our lives, talent, gifts, and work we will need the support of others.

Everyone needs encouragement, active help, someone to “be there for us”, assistance or comfort when the winds of opposition and resistance seem greater than our ability to stay the course…in orde to pursue the dream.

How is your support system?

What about effective partnerships?

Of course there are legal partnerships; that’s not what I have in mind. Instead it is a relationship-base cooperative effort that allows something greater to be accomplished.  Left to myself, by myself I cannot reach my full potential as a person. I need you.

This one of the reasons I love my work as an executive coach. I am priviledged to come alongside people who want support along their personal growth journey.  

On another application of support, Steven Scott, author of Mentored by a Millionaire writes…

Every person in history who has achieved his or her impossible dream has done so by effectively using this strategy of effective partnering…I am referring to any individual or company that can be recruited by someone to perform tasks that are necessary for the optimal achievement of any important project, goal, or dream.  (Page 64, 65)

Every person in history…!

Partners are a part of what I call in coaching our “Support System”.  These people are involved in your life and journey at a deeper level.  They know you, your strengths and weaknesses, and they are present not only to encourage but supply appropriate accountability.

Whether you own a business, work at corporate, run a start-up company, manage a business or department, serve as an employee or manager, mate or parent…as long as you have a personal dream, the likelihood of success increases dramatically when you share  the journey…when you develop a solid support system.

What’s your destination?

Who do you want to be? How do you want to change?

What do you want to accomplish?

How will you make a difference in your world?

Whether you want to develop yourself as a leader, enjoy the fruit of personal growth, develop meaningful personal relationships, tweak a limiting behavior, attain financial freedom, lose weight, play more, or improve your eating habits the value of having others on the path with you is essential.

How are you supporting your Next Level Journey?

Dave Zaslav came up with the idea of partnering with Oprah after thumbing through his wife’s copy of O magazine. He did not ask for a financial investment, he asked for her involvement.

What idea or dream have you let go of? 

Who can help you make it happen?

Who are the three or four people in your support system? Really? 

Please comment below; I’d love to hear from you. 

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How well are you protecting your personal well being?  

Perhaps you saw “Jaws”, I didn’t but here’s the story line.  What subtle life messages do you hear in it?

Martin Brody is the police chief of Amity, an island resort town somewhere in New England. One summer morning, Brody is called to the beach, where the mangled body of a summer vacationer has washed ashore. The medical examiner tells the chief it could have been a shark that killed the swimmer.

The Mayor, who is desperate to keep the revenue from July 4th tourists wants Brody to say the young woman’s death was caused by a motorboat propeller instead of a shark…because the thought of a shark would drive tourists away from Amity. 

[Note to self…it looks like the mayor puts money ahead of people's lives.]

Shark expert Matt Hooper believes the female swimmer was killed by a shark. Hooper is proven right a few days later, when another person is killed.

Quint, the shark hunter offers to find the shark and kill it, but Police Chief Vaughn thinks his $10,000 professional service fee is too high.  Meanwhile, Mayor Vaughn leaves the beaches open; he still wants the summer revenue.

After another crazy experience the mayor agrees to hire Quint to find the shark.

Here is the dialog where Quint responds to the mayor’s challenge:  

Quint: Y’all know me. Know how I earn a livin’. I’ll catch this bird for you, but it ain’t gonna be easy. Bad fish. Not like going down the pond chasin’ bluegills and tommycods. This shark, swallow you whole. Little shakin’, little tenderizin’, an’ down you go.

And we gotta do it quick, that’ll bring back your tourists, put all your businesses on a payin’ basis. But it’s not gonna be pleasant. I value my neck a lot more than three thousand bucks, chief. I’ll find him for three, but I’ll catch him, and kill him, for ten.

But you’ve gotta make up your minds. If you want to stay alive, then ante up. If you want to play it cheap and be on welfare for the whole winter.

I don’t want no volunteers, I don’t want no mates, there’s just too many captains on this island. Ten thousand dollars for me by myself. For that you get the head, the tail, the whole damn thing.

When do you yell “Shark!”?

If you’ve heard me speak or read much of my stuff you know I’m about developing people. 

As The People Developer it is my heartfelt duty to proclaim this warning: “Business Eats People!” 

Business (your work) will take whatever you are willing to give it and still want more. It’s the nature of business to take, consume, produce…; take, consume, produce…; take, consume, produce.  This is how business functions – not good or bad, right or wrong…just how it is.

Knowing this to be true, I hope you work at a business that values people (you). 

You see, I believe the business of business is people. 

When a business takes care of its people, the people will take care of the business.

When this is not the case, work will “…swallow you whole. Little shakin’, little tenderizin’, an’ down you go.”  Did I hear “Shark!”?

But what about OSHA?

This of course is the Occupational Safety and Health Administration of the United States.  According to Wikipedia, OSHA

…was created by Congress under the Occupational Safety and Health Act signed by President Richard M. Nixon, on December 29, 1970.  Its mission is to prevent work-related injuries, illnesses, and occupational fatality by issuing and enforcing standards for workplace safety and health.

As well intentioned and valuable as the mission of this agency may be OSHA is not there to protect your work-life balance. It will not encourage you to live out your values or make sure you are engaged in meaningful work or that you are doing work that you enjoy or that allows you to use your strengths. 

No one will do this OR can do this…except you.

The setting of boundaries, the negotiation of expectations, and making choices that lead to living life with purpose and passion while serving others is our personal responsibility. “The company” or “the boss” will not do it…not even when a business leader says “our most important asset is our people.”  Remember the nature of business is to eat people.  It is not right or wrong, it just is.  Whatever you are willing to sacrifice it will take.

This is not an attack on “big business” or business “in general” or “capitalism”.  No profit, no business, no provision.  It is about being aware of the sign on the beach. 

It is about embracing personal responsibility for your personal development which includes living well.

Have you experienced the affect of downsizing? 

The pressure to do more with less is on like never before!  More pressure, greater demands, and work will “…swallow you whole. Little shakin’, little tenderizin’, an’ down you go.”

How might you move forward…?

1. Pay attention to your story - What’s the message around hours worked, stress, your health, strain on your relationships? How well are you living out your values?
2. Be intentional – Where can you make an adjustment? What’s one thing you can do to “take back your life”?
3. Solicit support – Everyone needs an objective person to ask real questions and encourage the hard choices

There’s a man-eating creature out there.

How are you protecting your personal well being?  

 “The Best Predictor of Continued Success is the ability and willingness to learn and change achieved through consistent reflection on the Story.”

-Steve Laswell

What you think? Do you like this post?

Please leave your comment about this post on the comment section below.  Would you forward to a friend or tweet it?

Thanks for reading The People Project blog.

What does reality have to do with success?

One of the attendees of our recent event, The Lemonade Journey wrote me about her story and her “take away” from the morning.

Bombs happen…it is part of life.  How you react determines the outcome. 

My bomb was my employer telling me I was difficult to work with.  Never saw that coming.  Always prided myself on being a valuable, hard working employee.  An asset. Certainly not the fastest or most tech savvy employee but loyal, determined, and passionate about customer service. 

Being the people pleaser, I am; I took this very hard; perhaps too hard.

Another way at looking at a “jolt” along life’s journey is to think of it as a “reality check”.  

Do you seek reality?

As a people developer, I naturally observe people.  I’ve found we have one of three responses to the “call to grow”.  The person may:

1. Know something is holding them back, but not know what to do
2. Know something is holding them back, but does not slow down to address it
3. Not know, while others around them know

Likewise, there are three responses to dealing with the truth about who you are, where you are, and how well you are leading your life.  When it comes to reality, people will:

1. Assume they know what’s going on, so they act or think as if they know what’s going on
2. Seek reality as the friend it is designed to be
3. Avoid reality steering clear of the truth using denial or minimization to avoid it 

What is the “best predictor” of future success?

What comes to mind when you think of success predictors?

Often we think in terms of education, talents, strengths, skills, right place at the right time, or knowing the right person, and hard work.

While all of these contribute to finding an opportunity, here it is:

“The Best Predictor of Future Success” is the ability &  willingness to learn & change achieved through consistent reflection on the truth found in one’s story…experience, feedback, success, & failure.”

Where do you look for reality?

The story, your story delivers the truth needed to experience freedom, growth, and success.

When we look in these three directions, we will discover reality:

1.  Your world – What is true around you, your work, your company, the market, the world?  What is really going on when you let go of the assumption you “already know”? To say it another way, challenge your assumptions. 

Ask the question: “What is it really like out there?”

2.  You – What do you think about feedback?  Is it more like the “noise in a loudspeaker” or useful information for guiding your journey?   When embraced, feedback helps you get from where you are today to “there”.  Do you wait for feedback or actively seek it?

Ask the question: “What is it like to encounter me?”

3.  Others – The business of business (life) is people.  The only thing that truly matters is our relationships. Interestingly enough, when it comes to reality, your past relationships tend to influence how you see others today.  Whether an unresolved past, your own needs, or your own self-image, how you see others affects reality.

Ask the question: “How do I see this person, and why?”

What does reality have to do with success?

Yareli Arizmendi says, “As artists, the pleasure is to really have your work resonate and mean something. Art takes its inspiration from reality.”

A sense of joy in our work comes when we live with purpose and passion, serving others. Today is a blank canvass; paint your new chapter gaining direction and inspiration from your story.

When you seek and embrace truth, freedom comes; enjoy the journey.

Whether our friend is “hard to work with” or not I don’t know.  However, her “reality check” does provide opportunity to engage in conversation in pursuit of truth.  Why waste the pain?

How are you responding to reality?

How does culture affect results?

At the end of 2009, Amazon.com bought Zappos for a deal valued at $1.2 billion.

Haven’t heard of them?  Zappos is an online shoe and accessory retailer that surpassed $1 billion in gross sales in 2008, two years ahead of projections.

As I read Brenna Fisher’s interviewwith CEO, Tony Hsieh, I discovered four concepts or keys to success for any company, department or small business.  Here’s my take on Zappos story and business…

1.    Freedom to Perform

Regarding the sale of his company, Hsieh indicates that it was more like a having a new board of directors. 

“They are leaving us alone and independent, [Amazon] recognizes that it’s our culture that’s gotten us this far, and they want to make sure to protect it.”

2.    Work as Lifestyle

Zappos is dedicated to their company culture, which includes creating fun and delivering wowthrough customer service every day.  Zappos culture will not work everywhere, but the goal will.  As Hsieh says, the desired outcome is

“…to unite employees and create a friends-and-family atmosphere.  For us, being a part of Zappos is just a lifestyle…not because people are being forced to work crazy hours. It’s just because people want to hang out with each other and people are passionate about their company.” 

3.    Humility

Zappos earned the No. 23 slot in Fortune’s2009 best 100 companies to work for list.  One of their core values, “be humble” shows up as Tony Hirsh, CEO gives credit to the entire Zappos family.

4.    Happiness, Culture, Bottom line

Bringing it together, Hsieh seems to see the human side of business better than most.

“Hsieh says putting too much emphasis on the bottom line is a mistake and motivating employees purely through bonuses is a lazy way to manage. Especially when research indicates that good boss-employee relationships, opportunity, and friends all rank higher than money on the list of what is important to employees in the workplace.”

“All the research is already out there,” Hsieh says.  “It’s just that no one bothers to pay attention to it because it’s much easier to not think about that type of stuff.”

“The thing we realized this year that sort of ties everything together is that customer service is about making customers happy, and the culture is about making employees happy.  So, really, we’re about trying to deliver happiness, whether it’s to customers or employees, and we apply that same philosophy to vendors as well.”

Personal Reflection 

Which of these four commitments makes sense for your culture?

1.    Freedom to Perform

How well does your culture and management style support freedom to perform?

What “policies” might get in the way of doing business?

2.    Work as Lifestyle

How much fun do you have at work?

How are healthy work friendships encouraged…do people want to “hang out with each other”?

3.    Humility

How well do you give credit to others for your success stories?

4.    Happiness, Culture, Bottom line

Where could you improve your recognition of the “human part” of human capital?

Please feel free to enter the discussion by posting your thoughts.

What best describes your worldview on leadership: is it a gift or a game?

Over the weekend I heard my friend, Jon Middendorf speak in Oklahoma City.  His message was a great question: “Is life a game or a gift?”  As I reflected on this question I began to connect it the life of a leader.

What happens when leadership becomes a game? 

I was struck by the following found on Games Information Depot regarding the rules for the board game LIFE. 

The main thing that you need to know is that the game of Life has changed a lot over the years. The fact of the matter is that as the world has changed, this board game has been kept up to date as well. This has gone a long way in making Life an enjoyable game for everybody who plays it…

As the years go by, the rules that govern Life are going to change. But instead of worrying about the future, play the version of the game that you have with the rules that are outlined for you. Each game comes with a rule booklet that will help you to get started if you are struggling.

Did you notice the implications for today’s leader in those paragraphs? 

Consider. . .

• Life has changed a lot over the years
• “Old school” is out core skills (“people skills”) are in (“…the world has changed”)
• Your growth as a leader is critical to your success (keeping up to date)
• When you are growing it makes work more enjoyable for everyone around you
• Life is changing so fast worrying about the future will take you out of enjoying today
• When you struggling tap into your support system (“…help you to get started…”)

According to Merriam-Webster the word game comes from the Old High German for amusement.  By definition then a game is any activity undertaken or regarded as a contest involving rivalry, strategy, or struggle.

“Any activity” could be your business.  It could be your leadership approach.    

How would thinking about leadership, as a “game”, impact your leadership?

If being a leader is viewed as a game your company, your business, your department will be impacted.  So, on a scale of 1 to 6 how would you rank your experience as a leader?

(1= Never; 6=Most of the time)

• Work is a contest; the mentality has become “us vs. them” within or with your team
• You wear your game face; who you really are is being lost in the intensity
• The game plan is pushing back against your values, ethics, truth, character, relationships
• The players (people) are pawns you use in your effort to win
• Mind games are employed to manipulate, intimidate or confuse others
• The focus of the game is on who loses; so self preservation takes over
• The name of the game has subtly shifted from purpose, passion, and mission
• The scoreboard has people “kissing up” to you or you kissing up
• Work is a shell game; what has little value is replacing what you once valued highly

What do you see or hear in your answers?  What concerns you the most…?

Now, what happens when you accept your leadership as a gift? 

According to Merriam-Webster the word gift comes from the Old English meaning to give.  A gift is something voluntarily transferred by one person to another without compensation.  

What does it take to embrace leadership as a gift to be received and nurtured?  

Consider these three responses.  Each one will help keep you be a leader people want to follow. 

1. Humility – unchecked pride suggests a successful leader is “self-made”.  Really?  Of course you have personal responsibility and commitments to develop yourself but humility allows you to acknowledge the investment of others in your life, as well.  
2. Appreciation – the very nature of “leadership as a game” can lead to devaluing others.  Showing appreciation for the support and contribution of others with your words and actions is powerful and important.  Remember your ability to lead is a cultivated gift. Appreciation is about assigning true value to your greatest asset…people in your world.
3.  Gratitude – beyond appreciation this is expressing thanks for what others do to contribute to the success of your company, organization, department, the project…your success. 

So what happens when you see leadership as a gift and not a game? 

• You see the people and lead accordingly
• Your followership increases
• Your influence is extended
• Performance improves

What best describes your worldview on leadership: is it a gift or a game?

For additional reflection:

1. Who has had or is having a significant impact on your leadership development?  Do they know it? 
2. How do you show appreciation to others for their contribution to your success?
3. The pace of life seeks to hinder the expression of gratitude.  How will you “say thanks” today to people making things happen day in day out?