Is money a good motivator?

The old school of thought "Money is a good motivator' has been overthrown by contemporary research that proves that money is no longer an effective motivator, and beyond a given circumstance, it ceases to be one. This reasoning is very subjective given the various levels of need an individual currently is in. For example, an individual at the first level of needs (Maslow's hierarchy) would crave for money, and it would act as a very strong and effective motivator. The point here being emphasized that "A satisfied need is an ineffective motivator. Not only that a satisfied need doesn't motivate anymore, but also that it is subjective to an individual's mental and psychological framework that determines his perceived value towards different motivators.

The traditional school of thought established where rewards are associated with monetary forms and nothing else. This, over the time has caused in the abatement of perceived value of money, causing individuals to desire less of it. Another reason why money is not a good motivator is because in pursuit of such rewards, the behavior of individuals gets out of norms and wrong behavior gets rewarded which later proves cost to the company. Also, each one recognizes that 'all the highest paid ones are not the best performers'. Moreover, monetary rewards are also a great expense to the organization and increasing costs is anyways, a reversal to existing trends and hence cannot be tolerated.

In the light of Maslow's theory which defines the hierarchy of needs; it needs to be understood that levels of needs are clearly identified. Also, the essence of the theory is that a satisfied need cannot be a good motivator. If an individual looks forward to upper mobility in the social status and has climbed up one step, the desire to be there at that point diminishes and his expectations rise to another elevated level. Similarly, once an individual's need to earn enough or satisfactorily is achieved, money no longer motivates. However, human beings have more to care for besides earnings like being a part of a relation, institution; to be recognized, to achieve something.

In the light of Hertzberg's two factor theory which demarcates between hygiene factors motivators, it needs to be understood again that there are some factors which are imperative for functioning. And others, which are not but desired, can be good motivators. For example, if an individual is employed anywhere, the basic requirement would be a basic pay, without which a person wouldn't want to work at all. Here, the basic pay becomes a hygiene factor, which is an imperative. If the employer decided to provide something more than basic pay like dating allowance, earned leaves which are not something that is minimum, but might act as a motivator to the employee in performing better, these factors become the motivators. The assumption is that the perceived value of these elements in the mind of employee is high and his desire
to achieve them also high.

Hence, it can be concluded that Money, as a motivator, both when regarded as a level of need or a hygiene factor ceases to motivate someone beyond a given point, and the sense of achievement in the individual diversifies towards attainment of other factors than money.

(This was from my days of IIPM while pursuing MBA, 2001)

3Cs of an Employee..

We'd had a townhall with Mr. Swaminathan today, our VP-Ops.. here's few take-aways from it..

3 Cs that an employee values most—

• Compensation
• Career
• Comfort

Sharing his learning over the years.. he opined that employees will leave if either of them are not at peak. I'd say that's subject to the personality types. Hmm.. there's many types, isn't it? Guess this forms the core to where the actual EVP (employee value proposition) lies to hold the constant attraction of an individual towards the company among the many other offers..

Another important thing he'd shared was to get the quality of smart working in one's DNA illustrating with few examples from his experience. Guess that's gonna take a little longer time.. But certainly would come with perspiration if you aspire...

What are problems?

Sharing this from my school-time collection...

It's within you!

A business executive was deep in debt and could see no way out. Creditors were closing in on him. Suppliers were demanding payment.

He sat on the park bench, head in hands, wondering if anything could save his company from bankruptcy. Suddenly an old man appeared before him. "I can see that something is troubling you," he said. After listening to the executive's woes, the old man said, "I believe I can help you." He asked the man his name, wrote out a cheque, and pushed it into his hand saying, "Take this money. Meet me here exactly one year from today, and you can pay me back at that time." Then he turned and disappeared as quickly as he had come. The business executive saw in his hand a check for $500,000, signed by John D. Rockefeller, then one of the richest men in the world!

"I can erase my money worries in an instant!" he realized. But instead, the executive decided to put the un-cashed check in his safe. Just knowing it was there might give him the strength to work out a way to save his business, he thought. With renewed optimism, he negotiated better deals and extended terms of payment. He closed several big sales. Within a few months, he was out of debt and making money once again.

Exactly one year later, he returned to the park with the un-cashed check. At the agreed-upon time, the old man appeared. But just as the executive was about to hand back the check and share his success story, a nurse came running up and grabbed the old man. "I'm so glad I caught him!" she cried. "I hope he hasn't been bothering you. He's always escaping from the rest home and telling people he's John D. Rockefeller." And she led the old man away by the arm.

The astonished executive just stood there, stunned. All year long he'd been wheeling and dealing, buying and selling, convinced he had half a million dollars behind him.Suddenly, he realized that it wasn't the money, real or imagined, that had turned his life around. It was his new-found self-confidence that gave him the power to achieve anything he went after.

Have faith in your self as only that counts.

Shared with me by my friend Vikram Singh Parmar. If this is copyrighted or should this be removed from this place, contact the blog owner at manohr@gmail.com