A client shared concerns that her staff was becoming complacent and asked me about ways to motivate them to up their game. She discussed “blowing up” their evaluation system or making radical changes to shake things up. I offered the opposite advice: “Think small.”
I was reminded of the first line in Jim Collins’ book Good to Great: “Good is the enemy of great.” If things aren’t ‘bad’, it’s harder to have the momentum to change; therefore, seeking big changes will be difficult. Instead, I recommended focusing on a culture that values small innovations, experiments, and continuous improvements. Seek a “tweak of the week” from everyone, praise those changes that work, and learn from those that don’t.
Peter Sims’ book Little Bets provides a framework for the strategy I suggested. He recommends making little bets on something new, seeing the results, and then going big if the outcome is positive. Little bets can often yield small wins, giving staff the motivation to continue improving, especially when they are praised in public.
It’s easy to become comfortable with the status quo as it saves time and mental capacity when functioning on autopilot. Better to encourage innovation in small doses to make it a norm instead of an aberration.
