Positive Reinforcement - It's Not Just for Puppies and Children

Human behavior research indicates that people do things for which they are rewarded and stop doing things for which they are not. In your own career, how many times have you done become discouraged because no one seemed to notice the effort you put in on a particular project?  How enthusiastic were you about working that hard the next time the opportunity presented itself?

The famous behavioral psychologist B.F. Skinner once said, “People don’t come to work to get paid, they come to work so the pay doesn’t stop.” In other words, employees don’t think of their paychecks as a reward.  To most employees, a weekly paycheck is like oxygen. It only becomes important when there isn’t enough of it.

 So, if an employee doesn’t see their paycheck as a reward, can it be used to motivate him or her to work harder? The answer is, in most instances, it cannot. If you want to truly motivate the employee, you’ll have to look beyond the paycheck.

If you want your employees to engage in positive behavior, they must receive positive reinforcement as soon as possible after they have performed the behavior that you are looking for. This isn’t about false compliments. This is about praising good behavior when you see it. And the great thing about praise is that it costs you nothing.

When was the last time you walked past the front desk and heard an employee conversing politely with a caller, and then complimented the employee? Yes, I know that’s her job; praise her good work anyway. If an employee stays late without complaining, thank him for his commitment to the practice. At the end of a particularly crazy week, cater lunch in for your staff and say “thank you” for their efforts. Yes they were just doing their jobs. So what! Praise them anyway.

Rewarding employees for doing the right thing is like depositing money in an interest bearing account at the bank. You will always get back more than you put in.

If you are not getting the behavior that you want from your employees, try catching them doing it right (even if it is just that one time), and reward them for it. Your odds of getting a repeat performance will go up dramatically.