Friday, April 29, 2011
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Monday, April 11, 2011
What's Your Mind set?
Before we get back into X vs. I type of motivation, lets add a little twist and find out what kind of mind set you have. Don't worry it is a simple test, for each question simply answer Truth or False
1. You are a certain kind of person; no matter what you do you can’t change that.
2. You can always change substantially
3. You can do things differently but the core of who you are remains the same.
4. You can always change the basic things.
Ok, so now the results if you said true to 1 & 3 then you have a fixed mind set. People with fixed mind set believe that DNA rules your abilities. You are either smart or you are not, the world is concrete, black and white. If you believe 2 & 4 then you have a growth mind set. Those with growth mindsets believe that with enough effort you can grow to become whatever you wish. The belief that your intellegence is the same a a muscle the more you use it the stronger it becomes. It is important to know your type of mind because then you know what kinds of goals to set. People with a fixed mind set like performance goals while growth mindset people perform better with Learning Goals. So what's the difference? A performance goal would be to get an "A" in spanish class while a learning goal would be to be able to have a conversation in Spanish. A learning goal focuses on the process and the outcome of mastering the subject not the concrete world of grades. Learning goals will drive type X people crazy because there is never a definitive answer, it is the pursuit of mastering something. The problem is that we can never truly master anything, because the better we get at it, the more we realize that we haven't fully mastered it yet. Take for example learning to play an instrument, after years of practice some people get very good and might even be considered world class and yet if you ask them they are still trying to refine certain techniques or learn new arrangements. Learning is a journey not a destination and that is the challenge for a type I person, it is exactly that pursuit of mastery that feeds them. They thrive on knowing they have accomplished another step on the journey and that they have mastered another small piece of the puzzle.
Whether you are an X or an I, the problem is that believing anything is possible is different than making things happen. It all starts for both kinds of people with the initial awareness of a possibility and deciding that it is worth pursuing. Once you have decided to take pursue a possibility then you have to match the right kind of goal, for your personality, with the task to be accomplished. What is the task to be accomplished? Is is a routine task and you are just trying to take the next step? For example, is the goal a 10% increase in productivity or a large create a new program? What kind of reward matches your personality better? Are you the kind of person who thrives on if you get a 10% increase in productivity then you will receive a bonus of $1,000? Or do you thrive when the goal is to create a new program in a new sphere and to accomplish it you will need to learn and master a new area of knowledge? You see "X" personalities love "if/then" rewards because they know exactly what they need to accomplish to earn the reward but "if/then" rewards actually make "I" personalities less productive, it feels "all about the money". If you are going to bonus a "I" then it needs to be a "now/that" reward. "Now, that" you created this amazing new program here is a reward? The caution here is that if you consistently give "Now/That" bonuses then they will be come "if/then" bonuses as the person figures out. If I do this, I will get a bonus (this is the problem with Christmas bonuses). So, the moral of the story is to know yourself and the type of goals that line up with your mindset and personality. Regardless of the mind set or personality accomplishing great things still takes a ton of grit and determination, but that's another topic for another day.
1. You are a certain kind of person; no matter what you do you can’t change that.
2. You can always change substantially
3. You can do things differently but the core of who you are remains the same.
4. You can always change the basic things.
Ok, so now the results if you said true to 1 & 3 then you have a fixed mind set. People with fixed mind set believe that DNA rules your abilities. You are either smart or you are not, the world is concrete, black and white. If you believe 2 & 4 then you have a growth mind set. Those with growth mindsets believe that with enough effort you can grow to become whatever you wish. The belief that your intellegence is the same a a muscle the more you use it the stronger it becomes. It is important to know your type of mind because then you know what kinds of goals to set. People with a fixed mind set like performance goals while growth mindset people perform better with Learning Goals. So what's the difference? A performance goal would be to get an "A" in spanish class while a learning goal would be to be able to have a conversation in Spanish. A learning goal focuses on the process and the outcome of mastering the subject not the concrete world of grades. Learning goals will drive type X people crazy because there is never a definitive answer, it is the pursuit of mastering something. The problem is that we can never truly master anything, because the better we get at it, the more we realize that we haven't fully mastered it yet. Take for example learning to play an instrument, after years of practice some people get very good and might even be considered world class and yet if you ask them they are still trying to refine certain techniques or learn new arrangements. Learning is a journey not a destination and that is the challenge for a type I person, it is exactly that pursuit of mastery that feeds them. They thrive on knowing they have accomplished another step on the journey and that they have mastered another small piece of the puzzle.
Whether you are an X or an I, the problem is that believing anything is possible is different than making things happen. It all starts for both kinds of people with the initial awareness of a possibility and deciding that it is worth pursuing. Once you have decided to take pursue a possibility then you have to match the right kind of goal, for your personality, with the task to be accomplished. What is the task to be accomplished? Is is a routine task and you are just trying to take the next step? For example, is the goal a 10% increase in productivity or a large create a new program? What kind of reward matches your personality better? Are you the kind of person who thrives on if you get a 10% increase in productivity then you will receive a bonus of $1,000? Or do you thrive when the goal is to create a new program in a new sphere and to accomplish it you will need to learn and master a new area of knowledge? You see "X" personalities love "if/then" rewards because they know exactly what they need to accomplish to earn the reward but "if/then" rewards actually make "I" personalities less productive, it feels "all about the money". If you are going to bonus a "I" then it needs to be a "now/that" reward. "Now, that" you created this amazing new program here is a reward? The caution here is that if you consistently give "Now/That" bonuses then they will be come "if/then" bonuses as the person figures out. If I do this, I will get a bonus (this is the problem with Christmas bonuses). So, the moral of the story is to know yourself and the type of goals that line up with your mindset and personality. Regardless of the mind set or personality accomplishing great things still takes a ton of grit and determination, but that's another topic for another day.
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
Motivation to match your personality...we are not all the same!
Back to that difficult, tricky topic of motivation. Let's do a little historical review of motivation. We all come with a basic motivation or drive based on our survival. We have that primal drive for food, water, rest and yes expanding the species (we are going to avoid the conversation of whether some people are increaseing or diluting the gene pool with certain combinations). We are all hard wired with the drive or motivation to find food (apparently some more than others) and to sleep to allow our bodies time to recover. Things start getting tricky after we get past this first level of motivation. For years it was thought that besides this primal drive there was really only one other source of motivation, 'the good old carrot and stick' motivation. If you want to promote increased motivation you simply dangle a carrot or reward out in front of the person and we blindly go after the carrot, but if we don't move there is always the stick to poke us or smack us (negative feedback). And so it has gone for hundreds of years, we either put a reward (carrot) out in front or we stand ready with the stick to punish bad behavior, but that motivation came from external sources. A couple of 'out of the box' thinking pshycologists started floating out ideas that maybe humans had another type of drive or motivation that was not related to environment, primal drives and wasn't tied to external drives (carrots & sticks). As with anyone who questions "what we know" these ideas were laughed off for several decades. But a couple of brave new psychologists picked up the research and dusted it off. They did some very interesting research that showed not only do "carrots and sticks" (external rewards) not alway work but that sometimes they actually DECREASE performance. Imagine that the very thing that is supposed to motivate us actually decreases outcomes, but how can this be? Does it always apply? Is it time to throw away carrots and sticks?
It turns out that as with all things the type of motivation necessary depends on the type of person and the task to be completed. They found that external rewards work for certain people and certain tasks. There are certain people out there who are motivated by external rewards. They are the Donald Trumps of the world, if he does a certain deal he can make a certain amount of money, the higher that amount the more motivated he is to accomplish it. Now, obviously, there are certain very successful people out there in this category. External rewards have also been shown to be beneficial when a task is redundant. But, there is another group of people who actually perform worse when there is a bonus on the line. If the task is to be creative then external rewards can actually decrease performance. For example, if you commission a painting and want the most creative piece of work imaginable and you offer a bonus for finishing early, the research has shown a decrease in the quality of the painting because the painter is now focused on the bonus, not creating the best piece of art possible. It seems that this group is actually more motivated by internal rewards than external rewards. These people do things because they want to demonstrate mastery. The prefer autonomy over schedules and tasks to the highest financial gain. The best reward for them is recognition as a Master and honored for their accomplishments. They crave that internal sense of knowing that they have conquered the task with a creative solution, especially if it is one that no one else had or saw. Now, these people are fine with increased income but as a secondary accomplishment to creating something unique. These people prefer unexpected 'Now, that' rewards. "Now that you accomplished this great thing here is a Reward." but you have to be careful with these if they become expected then they become the external "if, then" rewards.
So, are you an "X" motivated by external rewards or an "I" motivated by internal rewards? (We won't worry about the "P"s that are motivated by Primal Drives as they won't be reading this any how). Is the task that you need to do creative or routine? The best way to get motivated for a task is to match you personality to your task at hand and set up the right type of reward.
If you want to read an amazing book about the research in this field check out "Drive: the surprising truth about what Motivates us." by Daniel H. Pink.
It turns out that as with all things the type of motivation necessary depends on the type of person and the task to be completed. They found that external rewards work for certain people and certain tasks. There are certain people out there who are motivated by external rewards. They are the Donald Trumps of the world, if he does a certain deal he can make a certain amount of money, the higher that amount the more motivated he is to accomplish it. Now, obviously, there are certain very successful people out there in this category. External rewards have also been shown to be beneficial when a task is redundant. But, there is another group of people who actually perform worse when there is a bonus on the line. If the task is to be creative then external rewards can actually decrease performance. For example, if you commission a painting and want the most creative piece of work imaginable and you offer a bonus for finishing early, the research has shown a decrease in the quality of the painting because the painter is now focused on the bonus, not creating the best piece of art possible. It seems that this group is actually more motivated by internal rewards than external rewards. These people do things because they want to demonstrate mastery. The prefer autonomy over schedules and tasks to the highest financial gain. The best reward for them is recognition as a Master and honored for their accomplishments. They crave that internal sense of knowing that they have conquered the task with a creative solution, especially if it is one that no one else had or saw. Now, these people are fine with increased income but as a secondary accomplishment to creating something unique. These people prefer unexpected 'Now, that' rewards. "Now that you accomplished this great thing here is a Reward." but you have to be careful with these if they become expected then they become the external "if, then" rewards.
So, are you an "X" motivated by external rewards or an "I" motivated by internal rewards? (We won't worry about the "P"s that are motivated by Primal Drives as they won't be reading this any how). Is the task that you need to do creative or routine? The best way to get motivated for a task is to match you personality to your task at hand and set up the right type of reward.
If you want to read an amazing book about the research in this field check out "Drive: the surprising truth about what Motivates us." by Daniel H. Pink.
Thursday, March 24, 2011
I don't have enough time!!
The number one excuse/reason given by people for not getting done what they need to get done. We hear it all the time about exercise. "I just don't have enough time!" or "As soon as I find the time, I will do it." Sound familiar?? Let me introduce (or remind you if you already heard this) to a simple principle and another law that will change this perception.
Praeto's Principle! You have heard of that right?!? The name might not be familiar but the concept is...Praeto was the guy who first described the 80-20 rule or the Law of the Vital Few (still not familiar?? Wow are you in for a surprise.) So, basically how this works is that 80% of the results we get come from 20% of our efforts. This started as an economics principle but can be applied to everything we do. The problem comes in when we don't concentrate our efforts to achieve these results or viewed in another light...we spend 80% of our time to accomplish only 20% of the results!! Think about that for a second and let it sink in...80% of our time is spent to accomplish only 20% of the results!! All that time and effort chasing minimal results. So lets apply it to our work life, take a typical 40 hour work week, in 8 hours we accomplish 80% of the results and we spend the other 32 hours working on the other 20%!! How is that for productivity? Some have even argued that it is really 90-10 or that 90% of our results come from 10% of our effort!! How crazy is that! Ok, I'll give you a minute because if you haven't heard this before you are sitting there thinking that is insane there is no way this is true! Check it out, look at what you do during a given day or week and look where the results come in. The other argument is that well that might be true but I have to get 100% or my job done or my boss isn't going to be happy. True, but let's introduce you to another law.
Parkinson's Law (no not the disease-this term was created by Prof. Cyril Northcote Parkinson states that "work expands to fill the time available for it's completion." Hmmm, sound familiar, isn't it amazing that when something absolutely has to get done even with little or no time to do it that somehow we find a way to get it done? Or at least we know people that have an amazing ability to get things done with very little time? We have all done it, procrastinated until the last possible minute and then somehow pull out the project in a riduculous amount of time? But on the other end of the scale when we know we have a certain amount of time to get things done the work swells to consume the time. This is a subconscious law, when we have time we can fuss over everylittle detail, need more research, need more conversation, debate, look at every possible angle until its crunch time then we have to move into action. As the old saying goes "if you want something done give it to a busy person."
So putting these two "Laws" together we can see that if we expanded or increased the 10-20% that creates maximal return and made sure we didn't fill our time available with the other stuff we would not only be more efficient and effective but we would have more time for the things we want to do. The hard part, as with anything, is putting this into practice. But, look around you for the people that seem to have a handle on these two laws, they are out there.
Praeto's Principle! You have heard of that right?!? The name might not be familiar but the concept is...Praeto was the guy who first described the 80-20 rule or the Law of the Vital Few (still not familiar?? Wow are you in for a surprise.) So, basically how this works is that 80% of the results we get come from 20% of our efforts. This started as an economics principle but can be applied to everything we do. The problem comes in when we don't concentrate our efforts to achieve these results or viewed in another light...we spend 80% of our time to accomplish only 20% of the results!! Think about that for a second and let it sink in...80% of our time is spent to accomplish only 20% of the results!! All that time and effort chasing minimal results. So lets apply it to our work life, take a typical 40 hour work week, in 8 hours we accomplish 80% of the results and we spend the other 32 hours working on the other 20%!! How is that for productivity? Some have even argued that it is really 90-10 or that 90% of our results come from 10% of our effort!! How crazy is that! Ok, I'll give you a minute because if you haven't heard this before you are sitting there thinking that is insane there is no way this is true! Check it out, look at what you do during a given day or week and look where the results come in. The other argument is that well that might be true but I have to get 100% or my job done or my boss isn't going to be happy. True, but let's introduce you to another law.
Parkinson's Law (no not the disease-this term was created by Prof. Cyril Northcote Parkinson states that "work expands to fill the time available for it's completion." Hmmm, sound familiar, isn't it amazing that when something absolutely has to get done even with little or no time to do it that somehow we find a way to get it done? Or at least we know people that have an amazing ability to get things done with very little time? We have all done it, procrastinated until the last possible minute and then somehow pull out the project in a riduculous amount of time? But on the other end of the scale when we know we have a certain amount of time to get things done the work swells to consume the time. This is a subconscious law, when we have time we can fuss over everylittle detail, need more research, need more conversation, debate, look at every possible angle until its crunch time then we have to move into action. As the old saying goes "if you want something done give it to a busy person."
So putting these two "Laws" together we can see that if we expanded or increased the 10-20% that creates maximal return and made sure we didn't fill our time available with the other stuff we would not only be more efficient and effective but we would have more time for the things we want to do. The hard part, as with anything, is putting this into practice. But, look around you for the people that seem to have a handle on these two laws, they are out there.
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Healthy Afternoon Snacks for Kids
I got to get up bright and early the other morning (that would be 4:00 am) to set up for a live broadcast from our house. The "Got Milk?" campaign was in town to promote National Nutrition Month. Our own Registered Dietician, Kim Tirapelle, was there with Cambi to show teach people about proper nutrition and healthy snacks for afterschool. My youngest son, Luke, was willing to get out of bed early to help spread the word about proper nutrition. It was a lot of fun and I think Luke learned a lot about good nutrition. I know he picked up the recipes as he has made the smoothies several times since the show.
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