In this textbook excerpt the authors work to dispel the persistent and widespread belief that people who work in the public sector are fundamentally lazy and unmotivated by presenting tools and perspectives that would helpful to public sector managers in motivating themselves and others. The authors frame their approach by having the reader first look at ourselves and discover our own motivations and how that impacts our behavior. The majority of the chapter is spent focusing on motivational theories and how these can be employed to change our perspectives on motivation. The chapter concludes with a nine-point means test to help managers identify and evaluate their motivations and the motivations of others when confronted with issues of employee motivation.
This reading certainly gave me a good look at myself and my own motivations. In one of the exercises presented in this chapter, I learned that some of the items important in terms of motivating me in my present work environment are not factors that lead to motivation or job satisfaction. I also learned that I am guilty of “motivation projection” as many people are, where I believe that things that motivate me must also motivate others, and this can force my thinking into a “one size fits all” approach to motivating people. This article really showed me multiple perspectives on motivations and gave clear guidance on how to approach scenarios where either I am unmotivated and need to make a shift or will need to encounter the motivations and working styles of colleagues and future direct reports.
LO 3: Address complex challenges by collaboratively leading teams across disciplines, distances and sectors.
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