The secret to self-motivating your work team is right before your very eyes!!
If you have caught the "golfing bug", you know the positive feelings and energy you enjoy as you approach each round. You are enthusiastic. You are upbeat. You have high expectations. And, you can’t wait to play. Yes, the game of golf does that to you!
Imagine your entire team with the same frame of mind as they approach each workday! They are engaged and focused. They are taking accountability and making change happen. They are delivering quality results. They are meeting deadlines. Imagine your team operating as a real team with passion and commitment!
"Hey, that's my team now. We're accountable. We're hitting targets. We've got exceptional customer service. We're all rowing in the same direction."
If that's true for you, just run this letter through your shredder and hit the golf course. Your train is on the tracks. If that’s not true for you...if you are saying, "We are not using all of our potential to deliver results"...read on.
Right before my very eyes?
Why is the secret for motivating your work team right before your very eyes? Because the game of golf is a great teacher for managers and leaders. It has the practical implications for building self-motivation at every level of an organization. It teaches us principles the make tasks, activities, and projects energizing, exciting, and rewarding.
How does the game of golf do this?
Let's take a look at two distinct aspects of the game of golf. The first is the "job" of golf. These are the many tasks and activities associated with the game. Let’s look at a few:
- Taking clubs out of your car
- Putting them on a golf cart
- Arriving at the first tee
- Taking a tee out of your pocket
- Placing a ball on the tee
- Taking a club out of your bag
- Taking the cover off the club
- Taking some practice swings
- Swinging at the ball
- Picking up the tee
- Placing the tee in your pocket
- Putting the club cover back on
- Walk or ride to your ball
- Hit the ball
- Walk or ride to your ball
- Hit the ball
- Etc, etc, etc. – for 18 holes!
It's not the job, it's the set of conditions surrounding the job!
These activities and tasks, by themselves, are not very stimulating! They are mundane, routine, and boring. It is not the job of golf which keeps bringing us back. It is the second aspect of golf which keeps bringing us back, over and over again, even after a bad round! It is the work climate that attracts us time and time again. There is a set of conditions surrounding the "job" of golf that creates self-motivated golfers. These conditions create positive energy for all the players. This is well-rooted in motivation research. Douglas McGregor, a guru in motivation thinking, puts it this way, "...It is a mistake to talk about motivating other people. All we can do is set up certain conditions that will maximize the probability of their developing an interest in what they are doing and remove the conditions that function as constraints". And the game of golf is a great model for creating the job conditions that lead to the self-motivation of your workforce.
What is the difference between "motivating others" and "self-motivation"?
When managers and leaders talk about motivating others they typically refer to two types of motivation – the "carrot" and the "stick". The carrot approach can be summarized in six words: Do this and you’ll get that. We dangle all types of goodies (from candy, to dinners, to shows, to trips, etc) to get them "to move". The stick approach is often used when the carrot approach does not produce results. The stick approach threatens employees with discipline, harsh words, termination, etc. You will learn why both these approaches have limited value when used as the sole source of motivation.
Self-motivation, on the other hand, relies on the inner drive of each person to achieve results. The "battery is inside" with self-motivation. The personal energy level of the employee becomes the major source of motivation that drives them to achieve breakthrough results. Self-motivation depends on the wellspring of personal energy that resides within each of us that can be tapped by the right conditions.
Why is self-motivation important to leaders and managers?
Every leader and manager must reach stretch targets and goals through the efforts and commitment of others. The self-motivation of the "others" is a strategic edge that determines whether those targets are reached or exceeded. If the "others" are not self-motivated they exhibit poor performance behaviors – blaming, excusing, rationalizing, bashing, ducking issues and complying. If the "others" are self-motivated they exhibit high performance behaviors – taking ownership, showing a sense of urgency, being proactive, showing initiative, demonstrating commitment, rising above circumstances etc.
The "power principles" of golf
If there exists 18 set of conditions in your workplace from the game of golf, you will have the basis of a high-performance work climate. I like to refer to these 18 conditions as "power principles" because they create the necessary motivational energy to tackle the tough challenges, opportunities, and targets facing most organizations today.
The 18 "Power Principles" of Golf
- The power of clear, challenging targets and expectations
- The power of focus and alignment to the target
- The power of clear parameters
- The power of clear, self-measurements
- The power of strong values
- The power of personal accountability
- The power to improve and build competencies
- The power of trust and integrity
- The power of teamwork
- The power of managing emotions
- The power of overcoming barriers and obstacles
- The power of empowerment and personal control
- The power of feedback
- The power of celebrations and recognitions
- The power of execution and follow-through
- The power of fun
- The power of commitment
- The power of the willingness to change
Tee-to-Tee Motivation teaches these power principles!
"Tee-to-Tee Motivation – How to Inject Golf Course Motivation into the Workplace" provides the concepts, skills and competencies to build these principles into your workplace. You will learn specifically what it takes to build a high-performance work climate that relies on self-motivation as the source of breakthrough results.
To learn how to multiply the self-motivation on your team, e-mail or call Frank Swiatek today at 716 - 863 - 1584