How to be a better manager? Get these two things right

This lockdown we faced two problems

Problem 1

My nephew started playing FreeFire (a game similar to #PUBG) a lot

Problem 2

He used to cry and complain that teachers are giving so much work and wasn't willing to study

We tried solving it the EASY way

1. Told him to stop playing FreeFire for a month

2. Asked him to study for a minimum of 2 hours

I believe this is what MOST OF US do

Results

1. He started timing his study hours and was only passing time to finish 2 hours

2. He started watching FreeFire live streams on YouTube

We failed

New Approach to the same problem

I called him and asked him if he wants to play the game to which he replied in affirmation

I told him then he will have to earn it

He asked, "how?"

I gave him a context of how his father spends 10-12 hours of his day working and that's how he earns. I told him how I work for 10-12 hours daily and how at the end of the month I receive the salary which I can spend as per my choice

Similarly every hour he studies, he unlocks 8 minutes of FreeFire. He is free to play or watch during these 8 minutes

He agreed.

NOW

He tries to study for a minimum of 2-4 hours to earn sufficient times of playing. Even on Saturdays and Sundays, when he has no homework, he insists on us taking tests or teaching him something so that he can play

What I learned

Two things are important to make your team more productive

1. Get the CONTEXT right

2. Know what motivates your team members

With the right motivation and context, your team can work for you on holidays too.

To explore what motivates your team members, you can read Daniel Pink's book: The Surprising Truth of what motivates us

A team member leaves your side only when he thinks your actions are going out of context or if they aren't rewarded as promised. So now I also earn 8 minutes of PUBG for every hour I work and occasionally he gets an extra game of free fire when he performs well in the tests or is willing to learn his mistakes post the test and re-do the wrong answers :)

Also, motivation and context are not fixed. So this is an ongoing exercise.

#ProductivityHacks #Manager #ManageBetter #Motivation