The puzzle of motivation

Examining the puzzle of motivation, starting with a fact that social scientists know but most managers don't: Traditional rewards aren't always as effective as we think.

Dan Pink

Jul 15, 2009 • 18 min read

4.69 (13)

View Ted Talk Review Share

Rewards

Creativity

Motivation

Intrinsic Motivation

Job Performance

Summary

Career analyst Daniel Pink makes a very interesting Ted Talk presentation on the dilemma that hovers above motivations in the business world stating that social scientists have the answer but managers don't. He uses the ''Candle problem'' to factually explain that traditional rewards aren't always as effective as we think citing that if a task is a bit complex, they do more harm than motivate the team. Watch the Ted Talk to know more about the puzzle of motivation - why rewards work best in straightforward tasks, and why they restrict our possibility when handling complex tasks.

Takeaways

The goal of incentivizing is to sharpen the teams' thinking and accelerate creativity. In businesses, incentives work best with tasks that have a simple set of rules, and clear destinations to go to because they narrow the focus and see straight to the goal. While for complex tasks, incentives narrow the focus and restrict our possibilities.
There is a mismatch between what science knows and what business does, businesses ignore what is proven through science.
Traditional rewards aren't always as effective as we think. Actually, when the task is complex enough, rewards do more harm than motivate.