Motivation 101 for Sales Leaders

“It doesn't interest me
what you do for a living.
I want to know
what you ache for
and if you dare to dream
of meeting your heart's longing.”

from Invitation by Oriah Mountain Dreamer

(Link to video)

Motivation is the general desire or willingness of someone to do something.

And as a leader, you are motivating when providing a reason or reasons for someone to do something, to act or behave in a particular way, to be challenged or transformed.

The latter is similar to a motivational speaker. They relate their own personal experience to an audience to motivate them towards a challenging or transformative goal.

Consequently, every leader needs to be a motivational speaker, with the ability to motivate in front of a larger audience, as well as in personal one-on-one conversations.

A leader in sales often starts with a background of having been a successful individual contributor. In that context, he or she successfully provided reasons for clients to purchase a product or service.

So, following all this logic, one would think that a successful individual contributor is also a great motivational leader.

Well, it ain’t so! Hence, Motivation 101. What are motivators that are available to a Sales Leader?

· Culture: More traditional or hierarchical corporate cultures like Japan value their elders for the wisdom and experience they provide to the company. Age equals rank in Japan, so the older the person, the more important. Motivation, aka the reason to do something, simply comes from respecting the elder and their wisdom.

· Fear: Ashley Arcel writes that fear “hides all of the really good stuff. All of the exciting next steps and the big life changes are crouching behind some amount of fear, no matter how small.” As an individual, I can choose whether to tackle the fear to find the “really good stuff.”

Using fear as a sales leader, however, is counterproductive. Robert Wilson offers an excellent description of what happens: “Fear can be too powerful to use as a motivator because it can also paralyze - the classic deer in the headlights syndrome. … You can tell an employee he or she must sell more, but unless you show them how, fear will cause flight or worse: paralysis."

· Money: Does money motivate? I love the German word “Jein” as an answer: in a way, both yes and no. The NBRI writes “money is a crucial incentive to work motivation. It is a medium of exchange and the means by which employees can purchase things to satisfy their needs and desires.

It also serves as a scorecard by which employees assess the value that the organization places on their services. Employees can also compare their value to others based on their pay.” And it is only one part of the story. Humans are diverse and not all characters are motivated by money. And most are not motivated by money alone.

· Mission: The Servant Leadership Institute writes: “Some employees do work that’s not exciting or stimulating. It may be repetitive and at times even boring. But if you have a meaningful mission, then no matter what they’re doing, employees can say their activity has impact and meaning. They actually change lives by processing paperwork, building a product or packing a crate. That connection can be a powerful motivator.”

· Job Satisfaction: Michael Wolfe writes that “the terms job satisfaction and motivation are often used interchangeably. However, this is incorrect. Job satisfaction refers to the pleasure or reassurance that a job provides a person. By contrast, motivation refers only to the reasons a person performs a job, regardless of whether the job brings him pleasure. However, the terms are closely related.” Job satisfaction is a type of motivation, and like many, it cannot stand on its own feet.

It sounds very confusing, doesn’t it? What is the advice?

If you lead a team in Japan, accept that you will not change the culture, and hope your hair is grey
Stay away from fear as a motivator.
Use the mission of your organization to your advantage.
Understand how and where money can be a motivator, and then fight your Finance and HR for fair and encouraging compensation for your team.

And beyond those factors create an environment that provides your team satisfaction and pleasure; a positive, friendly, and competitive environment where they feel acknowledged; make them want to work there. In short, be a leader.

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Quesacco – 7 Reasons your Customers Buy your Products

Servant Leadership Institute – Using the Mission to Motivate

Ashley Arcel – 5 Reasons Why You Should Use Fear As Motivation To Achieve Better Things

Robert Wilson – The Most Powerful Motivator

Michael Wolfe – What Is the Difference Between Motivation & Job Satisfaction?

NBRI – The Truth About Motivating Employees to Be More Productive