5 Sources Of Meaning At Work; Does Your Job Provide Any Of Them?

There are five possible reasons why people work. To get the best out of your employees, figure out what motivates them.

Start with the obvious: People can be motivated by the personal.

At its most basic, that’s, “I review documents. You give me a paycheck.”

That’ll justify working.

But you can also put a slightly nobler spin on it: “I want to be a great lawyer. You’ve let me take a half-dozen depositions in my first two years here, and you say I’ll get to first-chair a trial next year. So long as the joint keeps making me a better lawyer, I’m sticking around.” That’s still an employee who’s focused on himself, but it’s not quite pure capitalism.

Second, people can be motivated by their team experience.

“The five of us took this case from start to finish in just three months. We first heard the plaintiff’s name in January, and the jury returned its verdict, after an expedited trial, in March. We won. I’m exhausted, but that was a great team, and a great experience, and I’ll remember it forever. Sometimes, you love your work.”

People can be motivated by being part of a high-performing team, or by enjoying the company (even if it’s purely professional company) of coworkers, or by enjoying the environment (even if it’s high-pressured) in which the team operates. This has little to do with the individual or the thousand-lawyer firm; it’s all about the team.

Third, people can be motivated by clients.

“BigCo was dead. But we saw a solution to the problem, and we executed it, and the company is now back on its feet. We did nice work, and the client appreciated it. My colleagues at this firm can occasionally be a pain in the neck, but the clients make it all worthwhile.”

That’s quite different from being motivated by a paycheck or being part of a high-performing team.

Fourth, people can be motivated by the firm.

“At the awards ceremony last night, my colleagues and I at Bigg & Mediocre were recognized as the Litigation Department of the Year. And several of our cases appeared on the front page of the Journal. We’re at the top of the law-firm pack, and we routinely defeat the competition. This is a great place to work.”

Finally, people can be motivated by the contribution they make to society.

“We got an injunction that prohibits OilCo from pumping slime into the pond that’s home to baby seals. I feel good about what we achieve!” Or, perhaps, “In my work at an insurance brokerage, we helped clients secure hundreds of millions of dollars in payments from insurance companies in just one month after the earthquake. We got that community back on its feet, and I’m proud of us!”

When you put people in a room and ask what motivates them about work, the room quickly divides into fifths: About 20 percent of people say they’re motivated by each of the five categories I just explained.

What’s a person to do?

As an employee, figure out what motivates you. Pick your employer accordingly; you’ll be happier.

As an employer, figure out what motivates your employees. If a particular employee likes to be part of a high-performing team, for example, see what you can do to satisfy that desire.

And, when talking to groups, remember that equal parts of your audience are likely to be motivated by (1) me, (2) team, (3) client, (4) firm, and (5) society. Tell your story in a way that will appeal to all of them.

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Mark Herrmann spent 17 years as a partner at a leading international law firm and is now responsible for litigation and employment matters at a large international company. He is the author of The Curmudgeon’s Guide to Practicing Law and Inside Straight: Advice About Lawyering, In-House And Out, That Only The Internet Could Provide (affiliate links). You can reach him by email at [email protected].