Often, people decide to create businesses based on the financial potential for the business.  Short-term, this can be very rewarding.  Longer-term though, many people feel “stuck” or find that the “corporate wine is addictive,” as a friend who wanted to leave a large company to work in his small business used to say.  He and his family were dependent on the security of a decent paycheck from a large firm.  Imagine his surprise when I told him that I was leaving. 

My friend’s reaction was very similar to the reaction that many people expressed.  A strong work ethic can be a sign of loyalty and commitment to an organization.  It may also be an indication that the person enjoys what the person is doing.  It could have even indicated that the people perceived that they had no other options.  Rather than assuming that someone else is motivated as we are, it is a good idea to ask what motivates other people.  This knowledge helps firms attract and retain employees who have the necessary skills.

Observations can be ambiguous, as the example illustrates.  Rather than making assumptions, it is a good idea to build relationships, ask questions, and talk about hypothetical situations.  These questions an hypotheticals can take many forms, including:

In a perfect world, what would your day look like?

What can be done to make your current job more rewarding?

Suppose that you were offered a job at another firm, what factors would lead you to accept the job?  In what circumstances might you opt to stay where you are?

Based on how the people answer these questions, employees or members of management can restructure the jobs (if necessary) to make them more attractive to employees and potential employees.  This is a form of negotiation.  The best negotiation is simply communication.

Remember too that motivation can change during a person’s career.  A twenty-one year old may be motivated by different factors than someone who is forty and someone who is sixty may be motivated differently as well. 

Filed by Coleen Davis at 6:41 pm under Business Acumen, Current Events, Leadership, Negotiations