Money Is Not The Best MotivatorThe

Money Is Not The Best Motivator
The old Horatio Alger stories capture the American dream pretty well. Those who work hard, apply themselves and play fair, they tell us, will be amply rewarded. Those who avoid responsibility, exploit others and cheat will get their comeuppance. This notion is at the heart of American entrepreneurialism and professionalism, and of American artistic and sports endeavor as well.

So why do people like Jeffrey Skilling and Bernard Madoff get away with so much for so long? There is no simple answer, but those two were both in it for the money, it appears, and there is ample evidence to suggest that money may not be the best way to motivate desirable behavior. In fact, it may be one of the worst ways.

Most successful entrepreneurs say that their primary motivation has been to build something lasting, not to make a lot of money. Certainly great professional leaders like Marvin Bower, who built McKinsey & Co., John Whitehead, the former Goldman Sachs senior partner, and Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens would tell us that their motivation came from the work itself, and that the lasting respect of others was far greater than money as a measure of accomplishment. And very few great artists are in it for the money. Money is a byproduct, and usually a secondary one at that, for such achievers.

Emotional sources of motivation are more powerful, and they are best conveyed informally in an organization through the respect of peers, the admiration of subordinates, the approval of one’s personal network and community and the like. Money becomes the default motivator because it is measurable, tangible and fungible — and trouble strikes when the prospect of a lot of money becomes the primary goal. That usually feeds a very self-serving emotion, greed.

What works better than money?

It depends on what kind of motivation you’re after. Money is better at attracting and retaining people than at influencing their behavior. Those of us who subscribe to the writings of the authority on motivation Frederick Herzberg, who died in 2000, believe that the most effective way to motivate work behavior is by focusing on how people feel about their work itself.

Recent studies by David Rock, an executive coach, and Jeffry Schwartz, a neuroscientist, have identified several motivators that influence behavior more effectively than money. For one, people want to elevate their status. Organizations often assume that the only way to raise an employee’s status is by a promotion, but status can be enhanced in many less costly ways. The perception of status increases significantly whenever people are given credible informal praise for daily tasks rather than waiting for annual results.

People are also motivated by having autonomy, but more money doesn’t often equal greater perceived autonomy. In fact, you usually have to give up autonomy to rise up the compensation ladder. The real heart of autonomy as a motivator, however, rests with the perception that you are executing your own decisions without a lot of oversight or rules, which is hardly common in the corporate world today.

Similarly, feelings of relatedness and fairness are motivators. They are determined more by informal interactions, social networks and daily perceptions than by money or formal promotions.

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Money Is Not The Best Motivator
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