“Using Awards as a Motivator” – some thoughts on validation and pride in the workplace

I don’t know if you’d agree with me, but I think no matter how modest a person may be, inside every person is a yearning to be recognized…to be validated.  This is only natural.  We all feel insecurities, often unconsciously, and when someone validates us as a person or recognizes something we have done that is of worth to us, we feel that it was worth our efforts. In a sense, it is when we are validated or affirmed by other people that we feel that life is indeed worth living.

It is the same principle in the workplace.  Being validated is very important for employees to feel that they are valuable, that their contribution has meaning to the company, and that without their efforts, things wouldn’t work.  They need to feel and know that they are needed. It is the sense of pride that drives people to do better.

Warning – deep thought on pride, here.

Friedrich Nietzsche considers pride as a master set of values which acknowledges the good and the noble, and rejects the weak and insipid.  Without pride, a person will lack self-esteem—one the greatest driving forces of motivation. Pride, the emotion of having a strong sense of self-respect and having belief in one’s abilities and capabilities, drives people to do better.  It is the emotion that gives people the strength to pursue something grand, brilliant, exceptional, even feats that are seemingly impossible.

How do you motivate people?  By instilling pride in them.  How do you do that? When you make an incentive the primary goal, the challenge also ends in the attainment of the incentive – you achieve the goal of being rewarded with the money, the gadget, the trip, etc.  These are all temporary motivators that fail to provide a deeper sense of fulfillment.  A better long-term motivator is giving recognition awards (of course in the form of plaques, acrylic awards or crystal awards provided by Trophies2go.com) or other gifts that honors or signifies performance.  In this case, the feat and the recognition are more important than the item itself.  The recognition award becomes the symbol of the achievement, and it also becomes a vehicle for re-experiencing the achievement.  When receiving an award, the motivation doesn’t end with the acceptance of the award.  The award will also instill pride and self-esteem, giving the person more reasons to do better, and to pursue higher goals.