This is not to say that an organization should have lax requirements. In fact, if the company expects to compete in the rough and tumble free market jungle, there must be high standards. The real issue is, “How can you cause your people to be excited about working in that kind of environment?”

Start with a Human Focus

Here is the bottom line. People will move heaven and earth to accomplish the thing that fulfills their personal sense of purpose. This personal sense of purpose is different for each individual, even for those who have the same job description. That is the reason managers have to focus at an individual level. The company’s bottom line can not be the focus. Rather, it is what the task means to the worker who is doing it.

Let’s look at an example. Bill, Jack and Ramona all work as financial consultants for a national company. All have been with the company for about two years, but their manager, Alex, has noticed that there is a lot of inconsistency in the work of the three. He knows that all three have great potential. He has seen it displayed at times.

To try and be a better manager, Alex has studied different management techniques and styles. He has tried to motivate his people by dangling incentives in front of them or sometimes by getting on their case - with varying results. The various programs that he has studied seem to work sometimes and sometimes not. What Alex doesn’t realize is that the issues that motivate his three people are all different.

Bill is recently married. He makes enough to live a comfortable life and is not nearly as interested in the company’s bottom line as Alex is. What Bill wants is to make enough to take care of his new wife and to have time to do things with her.

Jack is an immigrant and must support his wife and three children as well as both of his parents. He seems to be motivated to work hard no matter what the situation and would probably work one hundred hours a week if he could. He does, though, struggle a bit with the language.

Ramona is a hard worker, but she is a single mom with one child in elementary school and another in middle school. While she is committed to the company, she sometimes seems rather distracted.

If Alex is only looking to management technique to get better productivity, it will always be hit and miss. Sometimes he will accidentally find something that strikes a chord with one of his people. But, if he will make the effort to learn what fulfills each one’s purpose, and facilitate that need, the outcome will be exactly what he is looking for.

Fulfill the Purpose

Each individual starts their work on the basis of their own purpose, not the purpose of the company. The trick, for the manager, is to create a situation where the purpose of the company and the purpose of the individual coincide. Once that common ground can be developed, the worker will work for the company as if working for self.

Perhaps there is a way to create opportunities for Bill to spend extra time with his wife while doing certain company projects. Perhaps there is a way to help Jack with his language so he can do more in less time. Perhaps there is a way to help Ramona with scheduling so that she can be more productive during the time her kids are in school. If they knew that Alex was trying to help them this way, would they be more loyal? More productive? More satisfied with their job situation? Absolutely!

In fact, the satisfaction they receive from being more fulfilled will cause them to work in ways that generates more customer loyalty and higher profits for the company. Over time, the job satisfaction will turn to job passion. And as we all know, passion pays!

Dr. Freddy Davis is the owner of TSM Enterprises and conducts conferences, seminars and organizational training for executives, managers and sales professionals. He is the author of the book Supercharged! as well as the “Nutshell” Series of books for strengthening business. Sign up, free, for Freddy’s twice-monthly e-letter, Nutshell Notes, at http://www. tsmenterprises. com. You can contact Freddy directly at 888-883-0656 or by e-mail at info@tsmenterprises. com.