Rewarding Performance - How to make the most out of your job14 Dec
At Figuring Out we believe that rewarding work and high performance are closely linked. Work is more likely to be rewarding if it gives you what you want from it and you are more likely to perform at a high level if your work is rewarding.
It is a reinforcing cycle because performing at a high level in itself is often rewarding.
Lets explore the different elements of what makes work rewarding and what enables high performance:
Your Values - What is important to you?
Your values represent what is important to you. Although you may think you know what is important to you, it can be useful spending sometime clarifying this and reminding yourself of the really important things.
Values are about who you are and when you are honouring your values you are being ‘true to yourself’. You are more likely to be happy, content and fulfilled if you are honouring your values.
The process of clarifying your values is not a choice or decision-making process. It is a discovery - to uncover the values that are already there and intrinsic to you and your life. Once you are clear what your values are, you can make decisions that are aligned to being ‘true to yourself’, rather than what you believe you should do.
Your Motivations to work
To be motivated is to feel inspired and excited, and to look forward to doing something. Each of us is motivated by different factors at work, including both the type of work and the environment in which we perform it. We will not perform at our best unless these motivating factors are present.
While many people know the types of tasks they want to perform they are often unaware of what really motivates them. Motives are often unconscious, and as such become a driving force that must be fulfilled. They may appear as needs, wants or concerns and usually include a desire to reach a certain kind of goal.
Values often influence our choices about where to invest our energies, while motives - what motivates us - reflect how much pleasure we get out of certain activities. What are your motivations to work?
Your Enablers. What enables rewarding work and high performance?
There are many things that can enable both rewarding work and high performance. Below are some possibilities and add more that are important to you.
| Enabler | Importance to me | Achievement | Rank |
| I buy into the vision of my organisation | |||
| I believe my contribution makes a difference | |||
| My values of are similar to my organization | |||
| I have clear performance goals and am measured against these | |||
| I have responsibility to make the decisions I need to make to be effective | |||
| I am held accountable for the work I do | |||
| I have a positive attitude to my work | |||
| I can work in my own style as long as I achieve my objectives | |||
| I am given recognition for a job well done | |||
| I receive timely and helpful feedback to support my development | |||
| I receive the support I need from those around me | |||
| I can be creative | |||
Your Skills, Knowledge and Abilities
Jobs consist of a combination of functional or technical skill sets, with management required in many jobs/areas. Rewarding performance is when your skill-set matches the requirements of the job, so you feel you are “good at it” and are “doing a good job”.
Think about the most important skills to your job and out of 10, rate your level of competency in them. Which ones can be improved upon and what difference would that make to enabling higher rewarding performance?
Stock Take
Do a stock take of each of these elements in relation to your current role. Use the elements to look at your job from a different perspective. Then reflect on each element to see how you can make your work more rewarding enabling higher performance.
Written by Fiona Biggins (Career Coach) and Suzanne Cleal (Business Coach) based on the workshop Rewarding Performance.
For more information please contact Fiona Biggins