10.
There Is More Than Money at the Bottom Line

When I speak to business leaders and managers all over North America, the question I am asked most often is this: “Are Xers really motivated by anything other than money?” The answer is an emphatic “YES.” Of course, Xers want to be fairly remunerated for the work they do. Who doesn’t? What is more, if the job ever becomes “just a job,” then money will be the most important incentive in a manager’s repertoire. But, Xers want much more than money out of work. Work is critical to Xers’ self-definition and sense of well-being because it is Xers’ greatest opportunity to build a new kind of success and security from within themselves. That means that managers have it within their power to provide nonfinancial incentives which are profoundly important to Xers.

The non-financial incentives most sought by Xers are Self Building incentives:

•   Learning new marketable skills and knowledge;

•   Building long-term relationships with individuals who can help them;

•   Tackling creative challenges and collecting proof of their ability to add value in any workplace.

If you are an empowering manager and have created the conditions for effective delegation, you can send Xers’ motivation level into the stratosphere by offering these Self Building bonus incentives:

•   Greater responsibility for tangible results;

•   Increased creative freedom;

•   More power to plan their own work schedules.

Self Building Incentives Brainstorming Exercise

You can create your own Self Building incentives and bonus incentives packages by doing a thorough inventory of all the latent Self Building opportunities already available in your organization and then positioning those opportunities as non-financial rewards.

Create Your Own Self Building Incentives Package

Create Your Own Self Building Bonus Incentives Package