Want to be 31% more productive? Or have 37% greater sales? Read this post and watch Shawn Achor’s video embedded here! Make notes, because he talks FAST!
Most of us were raised in a carrot dangling world.
Parents used it to keep us in line “You’ll never be happy if you don’t do your homework, study hard and get good grades.” But somehow, when we brought home shiny, high grades on our report cards, the bar suddenly raised.
Coaches used it to push us beyond our natural abilities. “No pain, no gain!” they’d say. Great potential future athletes blew their knees and permanently damaged their bodies, believing they’d be happier if they pushed through their body’s alarm system. But records are broken all the time. “Almost” is little compensation for a lifetime of pain management and physio appointments.
Bosses used it to get higher productivity out of us. “Work hard and you’ll be up for a raise at your performance review.” Often that performance review never happened, or at least, did not happen the way we anticipated. Negatives and shortcomings were emphasized. Targets were moved. No matter how great we were, we were never quite good enough.
Push harder. Work longer. The greater the sacrifice, the greater the reward.
Well … the science is in, and we’re doing it all wrong!
Enjoy the TED Talk from Shawn Achor called “The Happy Secret To Better Work” and be prepared to look at your staff and your own approach to work in a whole new way!