False Integrity - Tumblr Posts

Motivating Followers

This is in response to the following article:

An Effective Leader Gives People a Cause in Which They Can Believe http://businesstimezone.com/?p=8838

My Response:

Leadership is defined as "Guiding Intent with Integrity" towards a goal.  The article speaks of two aspects of leadership, guidance and goals.  Studies on followers motivations, intrinsic or extrinsic, where discussed in, "Why motivating people doesn't work" by Susan Fowler. She argues that tapping into peoples intrinsic motivation is stronger than extrinsic motivation.  A shared motivation.

From this perspective, the statement, "The leader’s vision is often so compelling that followers put their requirements second to that of the organization. " is false.  In that, the followers don't put their needs second, it is that their motivations fall in line with those of the company.  

Millennials were told repeatedly, "You can do and be anything you want!".  The problem though is that everyone expected them to follow the same old work ethic that their forefathers did.  Which was, "Work hard and you will be rewarded". Millennials grew up with the fallacy of this statement.  Working hard, only rewarded the investors, while wages and living conditions continued to deteriorate.

With this mindset in place, Millennials, feel that the following statements are false, because they break the social contract of integrity.

- "It basically has to be something that gives the reasons why everything that they do each day matters and contributes.",

- "Wise leaders ensure that every single sacrifice made by followers are noticed and receive individual appreciation.",

- "The job of the leader in this case, is to inspire people to make difficult choices to support the vision, but also to inspire them to continue to repeat them."

If the motivation doesn't lead to a reward that is in line with Millennials motivations, no amount of discussion on the aspect of the larger picture will motivate them to help your company succeed.  Which is evident in the support that Bernie Sanders is receiving from the Millennial generation.  Basically, more Millennials than any other generation are saying, "NO, we won't help the company become rich at our expense!  We want a fulfilling opportunities that allow work life balance and help both the economy and ecology."