Last week I had the pleasure of hosting a Train-the-Trainer
on the Workplace Motivator’s Model for both my internal facilitation team as
well as my Mastermind Group. I’m not
sure if you have ever heard or participated in a "Mastermind Group,” but the
best way to define it is a group mentoring process. Several women entrepreneurs from around the
country get together periodically and mentor each other on best practices,
lessons learned and share various strategies to maintain harmony in the
workplace and increase productivity. We
have been meeting for over six years and hold each other accountable for our
business plans and goals, support each other professionally and pay devil’s
advocate if we think one of us is going down the wrong path.
We even support each other personally. For example, when I lost my mentor (Dr. Jan
Northup) over two years ago, I was touched to the core as I received notes of
compassion from various colleagues in my Mastermind Group. They were also there to offer words of
congratulations when I purchased my dream home (on a lake) that I had set as a
goal several years ago.
I thought it was a wonderful learning experience for my
internal team (made up of my Vice President–Jennifer Sellers, my Training
Manager–Trisha Milligan and my Co-facilitator/Trainer–Melissa Uzzo) to not only
gain a credential around the Workplace Motivators assessment, but to also
experience the power of a Mastermind Group. It was an awesome and energizing experience!
The training was facilitated by Judy Suiter. Judy is a walking encyclopedia about DISC and
Workplace Motivators. She is the
co-author of The Universal Language DISCand the author of Exploring Values!
Releasing the Power of Attitudes. She helped us understand the missing link — workplace motivators and the
integration of it with DISC behaviors.
We met in
Old Town Alexandria, Virginia which was a perfect environment for learning but
also provided easy access to some wonderful restaurants and shopping in the
evenings.
My take aways…
The Workplace
Motivator’s Model is a unique tool that goes beyond the DISC Behavioral
assessment and gives managers and team members a unique perspective on what
motivates each employee in the workplace and how and what stressors can
breakdown a team.
Every
individual has different passions and motivators. These are the actual values
that drive a person to do and act the way they do. Of course not everyone shares the same
passions in life, but it is important to understand what drives others and self
and how different individual workplace motivators will impact the team.
There
are six motivators that make up an individual value system. As we all most
likely have more than one — to varying degrees - there is usually one that
stands out in front.
Think
about what you value and which of these could be considered you motivator(s):
·
Theoretical: How one values and approaches knowledge
and information.
·
Utilitarian: How one values and approaches time and
resources.
·
Aesthetic: How one values form, harmony and balance.
·
Social: How one values and approaches efforts to
help people and causes.
·
Individualistic: How one values and approaches authority,
power and control.
·
Traditional: How one values and approaches traditions
and a system of living.
Consider
each of these categories and how they may drive you in your work and
relationships. Then think about the others
that surround you and what may be driving them. When we know what is important
to those we spend our workday with, we are better equipped to respect and embrace
what motivates them and can in turn make the workplace more harmonious and
productive.
How will I apply this new
knowledge…
Armed
with this deepened knowledge around workplace motivators, I hope to help the
individuals I am mentoring understand the culture of the workplace and find
work that appeals to their own value system.
