7 Posts found for Author: Susan Fowler

Recently I was surprised to discover that two men whose philosophies I’ve compared and contrasted for years to help explain modern motivation science had a relationship where they did the same thing during their lifetime. We can all benefit from the relationship between Abraham Maslow and Viktor Frankl.

Content: Article | Author: Susan Fowler | Source: SmartBrief | Subjects: Human Resources, Motivation, Organizational Behavior, Personality / Behavior

When individuals’ rankings of workplace motivators are compared to rankings of what their managers think motivates them, the results reflect how most individuals feel: managers simply do not know what moti- vates their people. Why the big disconnect?

One reason is that leaders depend on their observations of external behaviors and conditions to evaluate their employees’ motivation. Unfortunately, many leaders are not perceptive observers, nor … [ Read more ]

Content: Quotation | Author: Susan Fowler | Source: ChangeThis | Subjects: Leadership, Management, Motivation, Organizational Behavior

It is true: business must make a profit to sustain itself. But it is an illogical leap to conclude that profit is therefore the purpose of business. You need air to live, plus water and food. But the purpose of your life is not to breathe, eat, and drink. Your purpose is richer and more profound than basic survival.

Content: Quotation | Author: Susan Fowler | Source: ChangeThis | Subject: Mission

Power undermines people’s psychological needs. It’s not just your use of the power; it’s people’s perception that you have it and could use it. Your power demands that people need to exert more energy self-regulating to experience autonomy, relatedness, and competence.

Content: Quotation | Author: Susan Fowler | Source: ChangeThis | Subjects: Leadership, Management, Organizational Behavior, Power / Authority

I was a longtime aficionado of SMART goal setting when the “M” stood for “Measurable.” However, over time, I found that a specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound goal simply was not SMART enough. I changed the “M” to “Motivating” and moved measurable into the “S” (Specific). Adding another dimension to make my goals more emotionally compelling worked for me. It seemed to work for … [ Read more ]

Content: Quotation | Author: Susan Fowler | Source: ChangeThis | Subjects: Achievement, Goals, Measurement

As a leader, you cannot motivate anyone. What you can do is cultivate a workplace where it is more likely for someone to experience optimal motivation.

Optimal motivation means having the positive energy, vitality, and sense of well-being required to sustain the pursuit and achievement of meaningful goals while flourishing. Optimal motivation is the result of satisfying three basic psychological needs that lie at the heart … [ Read more ]

Content: Article | Author: Susan Fowler | Source: ChangeThis | Subjects: Leadership, Management, Organizational Behavior

Maslow’s idea that people are motivated by satisfying lower-level needs such as food, water, shelter, and security, before they can move on to being motivated by higher-level needs such as self-actualization, is the most well-known motivation theory in the world. There is nothing wrong with helping people satisfy what Maslow characterized as lower-level needs. Improvements in workplace conditions and safety should be applauded as the … [ Read more ]

Content: Article | Author: Susan Fowler | Source: Harvard Business Review | Subjects: Management, Organizational Behavior