- Create an atmosphere filled with politics and competition between members.
- Develop unclear expectations regarding the performance of members.
- Create a number of unnecessary rules for members to follow.
- Plan unproductive meetings for members to attend.
- Withhold information critical for members to perform their work.
- Provide criticism instead of constructive feedback.
- Tolerate poor performance so your high performance members feel taken advantage of.
- Treat members unfairly.
- Underutilize the capability of the members of your organization.
- If the members of your organization do routine work add some fun and variety to their routine.
- Provide members input and choice into how they complete their responsibilities.
- Encourage responsibility and leadership opportunities within your organization.
- Promote social interaction and teamwork between members.
- Tolerate learning errors by avoiding harsh criticism.
- Promote solution ownership.
- Develop goals and challenges for members.
- Provide LOTS of encouragement.
- Make appreciation part of your repertoire.
I. BRAINSTORMING: What motivates you? When do you feel the most motivated? What happens when you no longer feel that way? How do you feel? What do you do?
II. The difference between Internal and External Motivators
III. Natural Human Desires
- Desire for activity. - Students want to be involved and feel like they are doing something. - If they feel like nothing is happening/things are disorganized, they may lose interest. - Sure fire ways to fail at this is to:
1. have meetings with no agenda 2. say that you are all meeting to do something and cancel at the last minute without properly informing members 3. waffle when decision is necessary - Desire for ownership. - Want to feel like they are a part of the decision making process?that their ideas have been heard and considered. - If they feel that all the decisions are made at some "other" level they may lose interest in participating. - Exec. boards should certainly have a direction they want to go in and communicate that to the group but wherever possible, choices and options should be presented to the group. If indecision arises ask group if it is OK for exec to make the final decision on the group's behalf? - Desire for power. - Want to feel that they have some position of leadership/importance. - If they never have a chance to share in the leadership structure of the organization, they may lose drive to persevere - TAKE A RISK! - Fail to encourage your members to perform to their highest capability?50% of your classmates do only the minimum that they must to get by - DO NOT TOLERATE POOR PERFORMANCE! - Desire for affiliation. - Want to feel that they belong to something "special" or unique where others with similar interests are also involved. - WELCOME ALL MEMBERS! - Plan some activity to begin each meeting?icebreakers?make sure the organization has a social interaction component as well as a teamwork component.
- Desire for competence. - Want to know that the leadership thinks they are competent and capable of performing tasks and responsibilities. When someone does something well - TELL THEM/SHOW THEM THAT YOU THINK SO! - Set CLEAR EXPECTATIONS so they know what they are going toward? - Desire for achievement. - Want to feel that they are moving forward and helping the group reach the goals set before them - FORMULATE SOME CLEARLY STATED GOALS! - BE CLEAR! Provide direction?make sure people know what is expected of them? if you do not get what you were expecting then analyze what happened so others may learn how to avoid pitfalls in the future? - Desire for meaning. - Students are looking for ways to see that their efforts make a difference? The feeling that comes from that keeps them internally motivated and that is the #1 MAGIC MOTIVATOR! - When they achieve meaning in their work they will reach the 1 THING that will definitely keep them motivated?INTERNAL MOTIVATORS! Skinner Box example with rats?We never know when that feeling is coming again but we keep doing the things over and over that achieved that feeling once before in the hopes that something will happen and it will come again? - Desire for recognition. - Praise people publicly and OFTEN. FEED THE NEED! What do people do in their organizations to recognize people for their efforts? - Make this part of your everyday practice?when someone recognizes me for something I am far more likely to help that person later and remember that person?We are so quick to offer criticism (I PAY $30,000 a year!) and so unlikely to offer praise and recognition. Praising feels wonderful to do and wonderful to receive. This is what really keeps people going. - HAVE A FEEL GOOD FILE!
Attend to people's natural desires = Naturally MOTIVATED people! ?
Adrienne Otto Frame Residence Coordinator Mahoney Residential College Leadership Summit 1999 [email removed]
From the 2013 version of the site. Details, prices and links may be out of date, so check them against your own campus policies.