February 8, 2008

“Every race has a moment.  Sometimes it’s at the start, other times it happens at the far turn, down the backstretch, on lap number three, or even at the wire.  You have to be ready for that moment because that’s when the race is decided.”

“Isn’t that great?  He’s running a mile and we’re in an all-out sprint.”

The force of outside motivation is an interesting thing.  To be effective, it needs to be timely and informed.  Motivation should resonate with the intended audience, evoking feelings of shared emotion and commitment.   

We’ve all probably experienced the heightened feelings that come from a well-delivered, heartfelt, and stimulating speech.  The spark plug within us begins to fire.  We want to do more and perform better.  We’re anxious to “take the hill”.  While this stimulus is often short-lived, the impetus it provides may give us the boost we need to get over the top.    

Sometimes, however, the best pep talk is the one never given.  So it was on the occasion of this week’s quote.  A small group of us had been assigned to find a way to reduce our bid price by nearly 20%.  Doing so would enable the large deal.  Failure to find a way would likely cause our potential client to continue forward without using our services.  We had less than 16 hours to respond in order for the new bid to be reviewed by the prospect and later presented at their board of directors meeting.  We had all the incentive we needed. 

Aware of the situation yet unaware of how he might help, into our conference room walked one of our senior executives.  Our momentum stalled as he sat down and began his attempt to motivate.  We listened to story after story of his career.  He went on for nearly thirty minutes.  Several in our small group began to fidget, anxious to get back to the task at hand.  The stories continued, culminating as the executive recounted races from his high school track and field experience.  We remained courteous, albeit beleaguered, as he concluded, “Every race has a moment.  Sometimes it’s at the start, other times it happens at the far turn, down the backstretch, on lap number three, or even at the wire.  You have to be ready for that moment because that’s when the race is decided.”

As he left the room, I heard the whisper from across the table, “Isn’t that great?  He’s running a mile and we’re in an all-out sprint.”  Outside motivation should be timely and informed.  It should resonate.  When a team is hitting on all cylinders, the best coaches understand the game situation and let them play.