Moving Motivators

Introduction

We, as human beings, have different tastes, different feelings, different thoughts, and different motivators. But why?

From the moment we are born, we began to be in touch with information that is saved inside our brains. All the information about our family, culture, environment, and genes is what drives us to be what we are. But, even if two people are born in the same house (like brothers and sisters), have the same parents, went to the same school, have almost the same friends can be completely different.?

Management 3.0

I got in touch with the Management 3.0 tools by reading the book ”Managing for Happiness”. I was looking to learn tools that helped me to connect with people, and get team members to connect with each other. (By The Way: I recommend this book if you want to learn more about these tools. It is a great book, with tools, examples, and a bit of theory so you can learn why these tools are important and the results that using these tools may bring).

And between all the tools and practices that this book offers on those pages, I found Moving Motivators.

Moving Motivators

Moving motivators are a bunch of cards that describe (with a title, text, and an image) different concepts that drive us in life. Yes, some cards could be more significant than others, and that could change even on time.

When you wake up every morning, what do you think? What moves us to try to be better, achieve goals, go to work, and even breathe.

Moving motivators is a great tool (practical and simple to use), that shows us that are some aspects in our life that are more important to us than others, like Power, Relationships, Freedom, Goal, Status, etcetera.

According to Management 3.0 there are two types of motivators, intrinsic, which came from our own internal motivators, to do something for the pleasure to do it (e.g. to me, sharing knowledge); and extrinsic motivators, which came from the need to achieve an outcome, like payments, rewards, etcetera.

The cards come with a brief description of each one of them, with the title and an image.

So, what does each card mean to each one of us? How to play? What does it means if we have different Moving Motivators? Why knowing the individual Moving Motivators could help us how to interact with people? It is very simple, first of all, to listen that the people I interact with and work with every day have different motivators that make me realize that all people are different. And if I lead people, to know the moving motivators of my team make me do a better job as a leader, I will have the information I need to encourage my team among their motivators to move on, to do their best, to give more. E.g. if I have in my team someone who has in the first place of moving motivators "order", I will be more accurate about the tasks that person will be excited to do, that person will be happier (and motivated), and the team will be more proficient.

The motivators are what make us "move" from one place to another. They are our principles concerns. They are "concepts" that we have learned in life that make us want more and be more. And the moving motivators can change in time. They are related to the moment that we are living in our lives. Maybe at one time "recognition" could be super important to me. That could be a piece of information to my leader to encourage me to do more and if my boss recognizes me I will feel great in that job. But maybe later I am in another moment of my life, and then "Freedom" could be my principal personal motivator. Then I will be more focused on what brings me the freedom of thinking, and time, maybe my leader could give me objectives and free time to do my work.?

From the leader's view, it could give relevant information on how to lead a person and motivate him/her to feel great in their job.

People order the Moving motivators from the most to the less important motivator in their life. That is it.

Step by step:

If you are on site I have to tell you that it is simpler and causes more impact than remote, but I also have used them remotely and it perfectly works.

Before the session:

1. You need to study the cards (the name, the text, and be clear about what do each one of the cards means), and I suggest thinking about an example for each one of them, so would be more simple for the participants to connect to the card, or not.
2. If you are on-site, you can print the cards (you can download them on: https://management30.com/practice/moving-motivators/#download ), or if you are in a virtual environment, you can copy and paste the images that you download. (Extra tip: If you have a Miró license, you can find a Moving Motivators Template on the platform).

During the session:

1. Explain the purpose of the session (it can be to know each other, or if I am the leader: to know the information I need to be a better leader, or maybe to integrate teams with different interests).
2. Describe the practice: Maybe you can begin with the information that I have already given (we are all different, there are no “good” or “bad” motivators, only different people in different moments in their lives.
3. Describe each card with examples.
4. Give one pack of cards to everyone, and the time they will have to put the cards in order: from the most to the less important. (I always gave them from 5 to 7 minutes and always it has been enough).

After the session:

If you are a leader, do not leave the information inside the session. Begin to lead the people according to their Moving Motivators.

Remember, none of each card it's right or wrong, it just shows the different aspects of our lives that move us. And it's a great tool to get to know each other.?

Extra tip: As a facilitator, you have to be neutral. That means that you cannot share any kind of emotion or excitement if you “like” one motivator or another. None of the motivators are better than others.

Why this practice?

I have been using these cards for over 2 years. And I have applied them to different teams, or individuals.?

I decided to use this tool on a job interview because my client (the person who hired me to do this interview) already knows this practice (I have already used it with her, and she loved it!), so knowing the motivators of the person she was going to hire would give her relevant information about her, guide her on how to interact with her and lead her.

Why not use other practices?

Because this practice is so kind and friendly, and in interviews, there is almost always a piece of nervousness and tens. So with friendly cards, it is always a good way to let the tension away.

How did I use this practice?

The interview was a teleconference, so I used a collaborative app to place the cards, I explained the steps, read the cards (titles and descriptions), and gave her time to order them from most to less important motivators. Then, I asked her to explain to me, why she established that order. And the interview finished.

Like I said before, there are no right or wrong cards, so there is no need for recommendations or reactions. It's just the way it is.

Lessons Learned

As a facilitator, I would maybe next time write on the reverse of the card some clear examples about each motivator because I have realized that the card description is not enough or not so clear.

I highly recommend the use of this practice. It is so easy to use.

Maybe next time in large teams I could try that first of all each one of them identifies their moving motivators and then make groups of "mastery", "order", etcetera, so they can identify with others with similar moving motivators.

As a facilitator, I have learned a lot about people using these tools. First to establish a connection with people. If we see people as people, we are going to be able to communicate better, and in the middle and long term, we are going to have more happy and productive people in the organizations and the world.