In the 1940s psychologist Abraham Maslow had a go at understanding human nature. He studied mature, successful and fulfilled people and concluded that we could all be like this if we could overcome our inner blocks. You might have heard of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. The theory is that us humans start at the bottom of the pyramid and focus all our efforts on getting the basic needs of food and water. Once we have this sorted we worry about shelter, clothing and safety. Then it’s our social needs including being part of a group or tribe and then our emotional needs. Once these are met we go after self-esteem and according to coaching godfather Sir John Whitmore self-esteem is a prerequisite for performance.
Maslow’s needs in the workplace
People do the things that meet their needs and this applies to work-life as well. At the most basic level, work meets our primal need to feed, water and house ourselves and our families. In a good workplace it can tick off the belonging to a group level as well. The best performing teams are further up the pyramid and have their self esteem needs met, allowing them to work on business outcomes instead of seeking validation and approval.
How do you get self-esteem at work?
Trust and autonomy. Self-esteem in the workplace is built when people are seen as worthy of making choices. This is why agile principles, empowered product managers and servant leadership approaches are better than command and control.
Find what people like to do. When people are doing what they love at work then it doesn’t feel like work. Encourage your colleagues to notice what they’re doing when they feel happy at work and to move their careers in that direction. It’ll probably be something they’re naturally good at.
“Find a job you enjoy doing, and you will never have to work a day in your life.”
Mark Twain
Training and development. Consolidating experience with training increases confidence and with that comes self-esteem. Another approach is to try something new that on the surface looks daunting. It’s likely not going to be that hard in practice, particularly with a bit of support and when done successfully the self-esteem-ometer goes up!
A tangent on Millennials
I’ve heard this group described as being lazy and entitled. This reputation is unfair. In some ways Millennials are more mature than their seniors because they seek meaning and purpose sooner. If their jobs don’t provide it, they’ll quickly move on. Less mature occupants of the Gen X or Boomer generations are at the prior ‘status and recognition’ level, deploying command and control and doing all sorts of brown-nosing and manipulation to get more pay and status. It’s not their fault, they learned it from their bosses. Harnessing the power of motivated Millenials is a big part of the most successful new businesses.
If you can help your teams find belonging, meaning and purpose with the work they do for you it’s like a super-charger for your company and customers. Self-esteem through autonomy and happiness is the way.
Thanks for reading!
Cheers Iain
High self-esteem dog courtesy of Gratisography