Meranda Writes' blog caught my eye today. Hassled by her editor to submit some of her stories for national awards, she confesses that awards or "external praise," as she calls it, serve as no motivation for her when it comes to doing her job.
Motivation is actually something that I've given quite a bit of thought to lately, yet it's a topic that doesn't seem to come up much. Motivation just exists. It just "is," like breathing or walking. Everyone is motivated by something, but we don't often take time to think about what it is that continues to push us and drive us to achieve our highest potential.
In an attempt to coax more daily progress out of my newspaper-focused coworkers (aside: remember that I'm the only magazine rep, so I'm on a completely different schedule from them), my ad director initiated the Awesomeness Board. Posted right outside her door, the Awesomeness Board consists of a piece of posterboard with our names written down the left-hand side and plenty of empty space next to them. The idea: every time one of us does something awesome, we get a sticker. The sticker then goes next to our name on the Awesomeness Board for all the world to see.
Apparently, the Awesomeness Board works wonders for my coworkers. They all have so many stickers that we'll need to add another board soon. I think have four stickers total. I was honest with my boss.
"That doesn't motivate me."
"Well, it doesn't motivate me either," she said. "Money motivates me."
Ah, money. I can think of at least two more of my coworkers who are driven by cash. Offer a $150 spiff and they'll work and work and work until they meet their goals. However, at the moment, money doesn't motivate me either. Not that I don't need it. I just don't place as high a value on it as my married coworkers with two or three kids to support.
So what does motivate me?
Expectations. Goals. I want to be the best of the best. I want to surpass everyone's expectations and then some. I want to do better than my predecessor. I want people to be amazed at what I can do at my age. I want challenges, and I want obstacles. And I want to blow it out of the water.
I think my boss has figured it out already. Two weeks ago I met my goal on one of my magazines. While I was happily rejoicing, she looked at me and said, "I want you to get $1,000 more." At first, I looked at her in astonishment. There was no spiff involved, no bonus, no extra anything. There was just the challenge. A week later, it was done. $1,700 over my goal.
So yeah, money's nice. Being awesome is nice. Winning awards is nice. But ultimately, meeting challenges and being above average is what drives me to succeed.
What motivates you?
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Friday, June 26, 2009
Lunch Duty Rap - Week 4, Persistence Pays Off
It's amazing what three months of sales experience will do for you.
Through my own experiences as well as watching my coworkers, I've gone from thinking solely like a reporter to understanding the vital importance of the sales team and how the whole process goes down. Of course, I still have much to learn, but I can't even imagine what 15 or 30 plus years of experience would give someone.
One of the most useful things I've learned is the importance of persistence. I know it sounds a little cliché, but without it, you're not going to meet your sales goals.
I've already explained my process as far as how I go about getting in touch with my customers. I do anything from calling to emailing to dropping in for a quick chat. For most of my customers, it works fine on the first visit. However, with some, it might take weeks to track them down.
With each magazine, I end up with a list of people that I can't get on the first try. So I wait a couple days and try again. Still nothing? Wait a week, try again. Repeat. I get frustrated and agitated and want to just throw my hands up in the air in defeat. But it never fails - when I'm down to the wire and I try them that one last time and finally get a yes, it's worth all the trouble I went to to get it.
Persistence is one of the hardest skills to maintain but one of the most rewarding, as long as you:
1. Get over the frustration of not being able to reach a customer.
2. Don't forget about the customer. Write it down and make sure you try them at least one last time before your deadline.
3. Ignore the idea that you're bugging their assistant to death and she's eventually just going to hang up when she hears your voice.
4. Start calling your customers early. The longer you have before your deadline, the more time you have to track people down.
Then, I can guarantee that persistence will ultimately push you over your goal in the end.
Through my own experiences as well as watching my coworkers, I've gone from thinking solely like a reporter to understanding the vital importance of the sales team and how the whole process goes down. Of course, I still have much to learn, but I can't even imagine what 15 or 30 plus years of experience would give someone.
One of the most useful things I've learned is the importance of persistence. I know it sounds a little cliché, but without it, you're not going to meet your sales goals.
I've already explained my process as far as how I go about getting in touch with my customers. I do anything from calling to emailing to dropping in for a quick chat. For most of my customers, it works fine on the first visit. However, with some, it might take weeks to track them down.
With each magazine, I end up with a list of people that I can't get on the first try. So I wait a couple days and try again. Still nothing? Wait a week, try again. Repeat. I get frustrated and agitated and want to just throw my hands up in the air in defeat. But it never fails - when I'm down to the wire and I try them that one last time and finally get a yes, it's worth all the trouble I went to to get it.
Persistence is one of the hardest skills to maintain but one of the most rewarding, as long as you:
1. Get over the frustration of not being able to reach a customer.
2. Don't forget about the customer. Write it down and make sure you try them at least one last time before your deadline.
3. Ignore the idea that you're bugging their assistant to death and she's eventually just going to hang up when she hears your voice.
4. Start calling your customers early. The longer you have before your deadline, the more time you have to track people down.
Then, I can guarantee that persistence will ultimately push you over your goal in the end.
Friday, June 5, 2009
Lunch Duty Rap - Week 3, Longing for Photoshop
Teaching Online Journalism's post today reminded me of an issue I've been thinking a lot about lately.
It quotes Renee Barnes' question, "What skills are most important for an online journalist?"
The main skills that emerge include these:
1. Evidence of blogging and interaction with a wide range of blogs
2. An understanding and active use of social media (Twitter, RSS, social bookmarking etc.)
3. The ability to tell an engaging story using still images and audio (audio slideshow – see my previous post for great examples)
4. Ability to shoot, edit and tell stories using video.
5. Basic ability to create interactive story elements using Adobe Flash
6. Ability edit audio and produce podcasts
7. Ability to file from the field breaking news
8. Ability to moderate online discussion
Personally, I feel that all of these skills are not only important but absolutely necessary for journalists today. The speed with which we're moving toward online products and competition is fast-paced and inevitable. In order to best be able to market yourself and serve your community, you have to fully embrace technology and online journalism.
However, there is only one issue with this reality - access to resources.
Most of the technology referenced above is not free. Programs for photos, video, podcasting and web building can cost hundreds of dollars. If you work for a newspaper or online publication that is willing to foot the bill, then that's great. But what about the rest of us?
I work at a small newspaper with minimal funding and even less online use. I can barely access email, let alone any Flash programs or Photoshop. So in order to have the same opportunities as everyone else, it's up to me to fund my own education in technology.
The same goes for freelance writers, laid-off journalists, or journalists who are actively job searching. It's the Catch-22 of the journalism industry. In order to make yourself marketable, you need access to technology. But when you're unemployed or living on a very low income, it's hard to fork over hundreds of dollars in the hopes of keeping up with technology and successfully marketing yourself. In all honesty, sometimes it's a gamble that I'm not willing to make.
The solution? Who knows. Maybe a technology grant that journalists can apply for and receive. Maybe free classes or free access to some of these programs at public libraries. Maybe there are some things out there already that I don't know about yet. Luckily, blogs, social networks and story-writing are all free, so there's still hope for some of us. I do the best that I can with what I've got. While I'm constantly nervous about being so far from where I should be as far as technology is concerned, I hope that my knowledge of the industry and my love of learning will get me past any hump that may come along in my search for jobs in the future.
And as soon as I have some extra cash, it's going straight to a Photoshop fund.
It quotes Renee Barnes' question, "What skills are most important for an online journalist?"
The main skills that emerge include these:
1. Evidence of blogging and interaction with a wide range of blogs
2. An understanding and active use of social media (Twitter, RSS, social bookmarking etc.)
3. The ability to tell an engaging story using still images and audio (audio slideshow – see my previous post for great examples)
4. Ability to shoot, edit and tell stories using video.
5. Basic ability to create interactive story elements using Adobe Flash
6. Ability edit audio and produce podcasts
7. Ability to file from the field breaking news
8. Ability to moderate online discussion
Personally, I feel that all of these skills are not only important but absolutely necessary for journalists today. The speed with which we're moving toward online products and competition is fast-paced and inevitable. In order to best be able to market yourself and serve your community, you have to fully embrace technology and online journalism.
However, there is only one issue with this reality - access to resources.
Most of the technology referenced above is not free. Programs for photos, video, podcasting and web building can cost hundreds of dollars. If you work for a newspaper or online publication that is willing to foot the bill, then that's great. But what about the rest of us?
I work at a small newspaper with minimal funding and even less online use. I can barely access email, let alone any Flash programs or Photoshop. So in order to have the same opportunities as everyone else, it's up to me to fund my own education in technology.
The same goes for freelance writers, laid-off journalists, or journalists who are actively job searching. It's the Catch-22 of the journalism industry. In order to make yourself marketable, you need access to technology. But when you're unemployed or living on a very low income, it's hard to fork over hundreds of dollars in the hopes of keeping up with technology and successfully marketing yourself. In all honesty, sometimes it's a gamble that I'm not willing to make.
The solution? Who knows. Maybe a technology grant that journalists can apply for and receive. Maybe free classes or free access to some of these programs at public libraries. Maybe there are some things out there already that I don't know about yet. Luckily, blogs, social networks and story-writing are all free, so there's still hope for some of us. I do the best that I can with what I've got. While I'm constantly nervous about being so far from where I should be as far as technology is concerned, I hope that my knowledge of the industry and my love of learning will get me past any hump that may come along in my search for jobs in the future.
And as soon as I have some extra cash, it's going straight to a Photoshop fund.
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