The Real Business You Are In

I have six kids, who are currently 26, 19, 16, and 10-year-old triplets. Each is unique in their interests, preferences, and personalities. If you have kids or siblings, you have experienced these differences in your personal life and likely have found tactics to get interest and behavior that don’t work for everyone. Yet, when asking leaders what they have found works to get their employees motivated to give more or increase their employees’ discretionary effort, it is typical that few substantive responses are provided. One leader responded, "That's why we have HR!" You can't delegate people leadership.

What motivates one person can demotivate another. What interests one person turns another off. One person likes meat, and another is a vegan. One person likes to be on stage before their peers; another will never desire that privilege. We are all in the human capital business, and each human is unique, as are cultures.

While we want our employees to be passionate about their work so that excellence will follow, we must remember they also trade energy, attention, behaviors, and time away from those they love for compensation. What are you doing to make that trade worthwhile?

You cannot motivate another human. Leaders intentionally or unintentionally create work environments where people feel motivated or demotivated. What are you doing to create a workplace and employee experience where intrinsic motivation thrives?

If you don’t do these things, another leader will. People typically quit bosses, not their companies.

To intentionally belabor, consider discussing with other leaders you work with and ask these important questions:

1. What have you found works to get your employees motivated to give more or increase their employees’ discretionary effort?

2. What are you doing to make the trade of compensation for your employees’ energy, attention, behaviors, and time away from those they love worthwhile?

3. What are you doing to create a workplace and employee experience where intrinsic motivation thrives?

Whatever business you think you are in, you are not. You are in the people business. That is your real business.

"Each of us is a unique strand in the intricate web of life and here to make a contribution." - Deepak Chopra

"Imagine how many suicide victims would still be with us, if only the right person said the right thing at the right time." - Wayne Gerard Trotman

"When it comes to understanding others, we rarely tax our imaginations." - Lawrence Hill

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Next Session: 20 December 2024 (10:00 AM CT)

Join Shawn Galloway in these quarterly discussions on safety excellence. This virtual discussion with other business and safety leaders also offers networking opportunities. This forum discusses the latest thinking, discoveries, newly created methodologies and models and overall strategies, better practices, and lessons learned for clients on the journey to safety excellence. If you cannot participate in the live discussions, the session will be recorded, and you will be provided access to the recorded meetings during the duration of your subscription.

Click here for dates and registration information.

Shawn M. Galloway is the CEO of the global consultancy ProAct Safety. With over twenty years of experience in safety systems, strategy, culture, leadership, and employee engagement, he is a trusted advisor, keynote speaker, and expert witness. He is the author of several bestselling books and has multiple regular columns in leading magazines, with over 400 articles and 100 videos to his credit. He also created the first safety podcast, Safety Culture Excellence, with over 800 episodes.

As a leading and globally recognized expert on safety excellence, he has helped hundreds of organizations within every primary industry achieve and sustain excellence in performance and culture.

He has been interviewed and a guest on Fox News, Sirius Business Radio, Wharton Business Daily, EHS Network Radio, Safety and Health Magazine, EHS Today Magazine, ISHN Magazine, Safety Decisions Magazine, EHS Daily Advisor, Faces of EHS, and almost every safety-related podcast.

Shawn's passion, dedication, and significant contributions to the safety field have been widely recognized. He has received numerous awards and accolades, including Global Safety Excellence Expert, Power 101 Leaders of the EHS World, Top 50 People Who Most Influenced EHS, Top 40 Rising Stars, and Top 11 Health and Safety Influencers. His influence is felt globally, and his status as an esteemed Avetta Distinguished Fellow and Advisor to Harvard Business Review further underscores his expertise and makes his perspectives highly sought after.