Team Motivation!

Today, while driving to work, I saw this couple on the island holding hands, walking together with a trash bag and they would stop, pick up a piece of paper, a cup, or other piece of trash someone dropped and throw it in the trash bag. It really is little things like this that make the world go 'round in my opinion. There is no special monetary compensation for this action. No point system exists where $5 bonuses are given out for every fifteen pieces of trash that someone picks up. There is also no special monitoring system in place which watches for people who don’t do it and then issues penalty points. Yet, people are motivated to do it anyway. I think that's awesome! Some questions arose regarding this on my drive, the primary one being "What drives them to take time out of their day to do something like that?" I came up with something that many people lack, that being MOTIVATION. Individuals lacking in motivation not only detriment themselves but they also effect those around them who are stuck "picking up the trash" so-to-speak. So it's time to get the ball runnin', get crack-a-lackin', and motivate those you care about whom are in a collapsing sink-hole and those who work for, or with you who are basically doing nothing but making yours, and fellow employees jobs, harder.

So we as a society need to encourage folks to get off their lazy "tookis-lingus" (shout out to Brian Buege!) and become a well-oiled team machine. This is not only regarding picking up roadside rubbish, but things we, as individuals need to come together on. Issues such as alternative energy - we definitely need to unite to find a source of usable energy to replace fuel sources without the undesired consequences, if you don't agree with that, I think you're crazy.) and recycling (more available recycling facilities would be nice and one way to obtain those is to join forces but it takes effort, god forbid.), volunteering at pet shelter - those dogs need a good walkin', or just becoming a more successful and motivated person in general. Who likes failures?

We need to start clearly articulating what needs to be accomplished and why (getting people to accomplish things is not that they are unmotivated, it is that they are uninformed), involve people in finding the solutions (people are more motivated to succeed at something if they personally choose to attempt it), link folks personal goals with the general goals and move the negative people off the team because who wants to be around a bummer cloud?

"We cannot live only for ourselves. A thousand fibers connect us with our fellow-men; and along those fibers, as sympathetic threads, our actions run as causes, and they come back to us as effects." - Herman Melville

The willingness is up to you.