Since we were studying at school, our teachers tended to motivate us by evaluating the work we did. This “tradition” continued at universities and smoothly went to our career life. Our bosses believed that only such kind of incentives could trigger us to work hard. However it’s not the best strategy indeed.
Counter-intuitive discover
Sam Glucksbery, a scientist from Princeton University, conducted two experiments. He asked two groups of volunteers to find a solution for one puzzle. The first group was promised to gain financial rewards for the person who would do it faster than others. The second group was told to do just fast as they could without any incentive. The results were really tremendous as it took 3,5 minutes longer for the first group to find an appropriate answer.
The second experiment demanded less creative thinking for both groups showed that the primitive solution was found faster by the “rewarded” group.
So, the conclusion is that the financial incentives work only in the case when creative thinking is not necessary.
Another experiment
A similar experiment was held by Harvard economist Roland Fryer who applied the same system to schoolchildren. So, the reward worked when the pupils were asked just to attend the lessons properly and not to be late. However when they needed to figure out some tricky tasks in maths, for instance, they performed not so well. Thus, the so-called monetary incentive didn’t work in this experiment too.
A good example
Ed Smith, a former England cricketer, claims that it’s better to be an amateur than a professional. It sounds really weird; however he explains his position. He used to be a professional cricketer who was literally obsessed with his occupation. But because of trauma, he had to stop playing. So, he decided not to return to the sport ever.
Fortunately, he reconsidered his decision, and, after 3 years of doing nothing, he started playing just as an amateur. What was extremely surprising, he played even better than he did during his professional career. Analyzing this illogical output, he eventually discovered that now he didn’t have any pressure (fear of failure, rewarding or suchlike) but he felt freer and was totally into game. He did it because he loved it. And it was the only incentive since that time.
In order to perform better whether it’s at work or study, or even private life, it’s recommended to focus on the process but not just on what you finally get. So, the best motivation in any sphere of our life is love.
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