Vol. 2, Issue 4: Somehow, I Manage
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I’m running a half Ironman Triathlon in April.
That’s a lot of miles* and not really a lot of time to get into the kind of shape that would allow me to do that, so I spend a lot of thinking about what it takes to get myself motivated to get out of bed and go put in the work. It’s not easy, but as I said a few weeks ago, nothing worth having is.
*70.3 to be precise
The good news is that I know what motivates me*. I know myself. And I know that if I put a goal out in front of me and I put a wall in between, I’m gonna run as hard as I can - over, under, around or through it - in order to get to the goal. To be clear, that’s not always a good thing. In my mind, I’m still in my 20s. My body is much older than that. This is the reason my wife has told me that I’m not allowed to play basketball anymore, because she’s afraid I’m going to seriously hurt myself and to be fair to her, she’s not wrong**.
*I’m kind of a type A maniac.
**Also, I’m not very good at basketball
That’s what works for me. But not everyone is motivated that way.
I’ve been quasi-obsessed* lately about motivation because I’m in the process of interviewing people for a management position on one of my teams. And management is, of course, not just about making sure that people are on a path to success; it’s also about figuring out how to motivate them to walk down that path. For some people the goal is enough. For others, the journey is as important as the destination.
*Re-obsessed is probably more accurate. I’m always thinking about what motivates people, because as a good salesperson, I assume on some level everyone is out to screw me
The definitions of success and motivation are different for everyone. I had a conversation with one of my closest friends last night who said to me about his boss “I wish he understood that all I need is a pat on the head once in a while that I’m doing a good job and I will run through walls for him.” Read that again. My friend is motivated simply by being told he’s doing a good job. That’s enough for him. He doesn’t do his job for free of course - he’s compensated for his work - but the motivation he’s looking for to keep going in between paychecks is just some simple positive reinforcement. Indeed, he added “I’m … easier to motivate than salespeople”
As I’ve interviewed people for this management position, you’d be surprised at the number of people who completely leave the word motivation out of their answer when I asked them about their management style. Some of them dance around it by talking about how they believe in professional development (important!) or career coaching (also important!), but those things aren’t useful unless people are motivated to engage. Professional development takes a big investment of time and resources - from the company, from the manager and from the employee. And the return on that investment from all parties won’t be close to maximized if people aren’t bought in and ready.
And I have to tell you: finding out what motivates people is the easiest part. I’m sure I don’t have to tell you that all you need to do is ask them. Sit down and have a conversation with them. Get to know them. Understand how they work, why they do what they do, what they like about what they do and what they don’t like so much. It’s a simple human interaction that bears a lot of fruit.
If you’re paying attention, you may have noticed that the title of this newsletter is also the title of Michael Scott’s management book. The thing that was always interesting about The Office - at least in the first few seasons and specific to Michael - is that he had this insane dichotomy about him. He’s the epitome of a person who has incredibly low self-awareness in how he interacted with others, but an off the charts EQ when it came to how others interacted with him. I think often about an early episode where he and Jan were trying to capture a key piece of business from Tim Meadows. Michael asked all about his life and got him super drunk (all while Jan tried to stay focused solely on business) and ultimately once the time was right, downshifted into a pure value sell and won the business. He knew what motivated Tim Meadows and knew that would be the way to win the business.
But one scene that really sticks with me is this one - Season 4, Episode 11 - where Michael excluded from a wilderness retreat hosted by Ryan and decides to spend a day in the woods off the grid himself to prove his survival instincts, leaving Jim in charge of the office for the day. It’s “birthday month,” but instead of allowing everyone their own cake and celebration, Jim decides to combine it into one party, which goes as predictably well as anything at Dunder Mifflin goes.
There’s so much in that minute long scene between Michael and Jim - the dread on Jim’s face when Michael says he said the same thing about not being there in 10 years, the interaction between them - but the thing that really hangs with me is that moment at the end, when Michael downshifts into an earnest learning moment - gives Jim some direct insight into how and why he operates the way that he does.
So what’s the point? As usual, I’m not sure. What I can say is that we have a tendency to think of our teams as monoliths who are all driven by the same thing - fame, fortune, cookies, whatever - and that those things are immutable. When I first started working, the leftover food from client meetings left in the breakroom* was enough. That’s not necessarily the case now: I still love the food and free drinks, but I value other things too - stability, affirmation of a job well done, getting paid more than I did when Michael Jordan won his last NBA championship. Things change and the more you connect with your employees and the more you interact with them on a human level, the more willing they’ll be to share with you the things that have changed.
*I was not paid well
Long story short, the success of your business and long term employee retention depend heavily on your ability to forge meaningful connections with your employees and understand the things that are important to them. Don’t wait until it’s too late to try.
I don’t like to hit people up for donations, but it’s important to support causes that make a difference. And frankly, no matter how much I raise, it makes me feel like a million bucks when I help. I’ve got a couple of things that I’m raising money for in the next year or so for are causes worth all of our attention:
Next month is November. Which means it’s Movember. Which means I look ridiculous for a month, so that we can find ways to cure men’s cancers and support mental health. I’m the team captain for the OpenX Mustache Exchange, as I was last year. But this year is particularly difficult. Three industry friends succumbed to cancer since last Movember - empathetic, generous, smart, outstanding men who are no longer with us, because of this insidious disease. If you’re inclined, you can find my fundraising page here.
I mentioned I’m running a triathlon. What I didn’t mention is that I’m raising money for the Ironman Foundation while I do it. The Ironman Foundation supports a variety of causes, but what’s most interesting to me is their community grant program. You can donate here if this cause scratches your itch.
That’s all for this week.
Until next time, friends.