Chickenpox, Strep Throat or Professional Burnout? Cynthia Seelhammer Deputy City Manager City of...
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Transcript of Chickenpox, Strep Throat or Professional Burnout? Cynthia Seelhammer Deputy City Manager City of...
Chickenpox, Strep Throat or Professional Burnout?
Cynthia SeelhammerDeputy City Manager
City of Phoenix
Charlie McClendonCity Manager
City of Avondale
Huey LongCity ManagerCity of Safford
Staying Motivated
What is Motivation?
• Internal state or condition that activates behavior & gives it direction
• Desire or want that energizes & directs goal-oriented behavior
• Influence of needs & desires on the intensity & direction of behavior
What Causes a Loss of Motivation?
• Feeling unappreciated
• Routine or uninteresting work
• Personal problems
• Overwhelming issues
• Too many personnel issues
• Loss of a key staff person
Things to Avoid
• Drowning in self pity– Give yourself an hour then move on
• Destructive behaviors– We each have our favorite
• Inertia & inaction
• Over analyzing the situation
• Turning on others – or turning to gossip
What are Some Motivators?
• Advancing in an organization provides recognition, which is a powerful motivating force
• Developing ideas– Creativity is a natural self motivator
• Adventure– Exploring provides a high-powered learning
environment
• Seeking continual change & adapting to it
Motivating Myself
• Take advantage of my support group
• Reward & recognize myself
• Shake up my surroundings
• Take a vacation
• Envision advancement and recognition
• Motivate myself by paying attention to the needs of others
• Develop a plan to address the problem – whatever it is
Keeping Your Staff Motivated
Why Bother to Motivate?
• People who are motivated & happy at work will accomplish more, perform better, build positive relationships with others & encourage others to do the same.
• People who are motivated are engaged in their work & spend their energy accomplishing positive results.
Motivation Advice & Ideas• Motivate yourself
– You should be modeling the behavior & attitude you expect from staff
• Do simple things often – provide recognition & praise – Give constant positive feedback/recognition when deserved
• Be “future-oriented” – Don’t dwell on past problems– Fix the problem, don’t blame & know when to move on
• Display optimism– Show people where the organization is going, what you want to
become & identify benchmarks– Show people what is possible
Recognize Differences
• People are individuals & motivations are different for each person
• Get to know the individuals in your organization
• Recognize & respect the differences – What motivates one person may not motivate another
• Take the time to learn the dreams & ambitions of people– Help them get there
Environment versus Work
• WORK: Sometimes you can change the work, providing new experiences & new opportunities
– Consider job rotation, cross training, temporary assignments
• ENVIRONMENT: If you can’t change the work, you can probably change the environment
– Remember, the salary is seldom the number one reason people choose to stay in a job or choose to leave a job.
– Other factors may be more important
Changes to the Work Environment
• Job sharing• Flex hours• Telecommuting• Reward programs• Family-friendly policies• Celebrate success• Humor• FISH• Thank-you notes• Congratulation notes• Copies of photos• Publish stories
• In the past some of these options have been hard to implement in the public sector.– Perception of special
treatment
• In today’s job market we are all competing for the same scarce talent & some of these flexible options are now the norm in the private sector.
Alternatives to Monetary Motivation
• What motivates people other than money?
– Recognition– Time off– Involvement in decisions– Promotions– Freedom– Education– Growth– Fun
What Motivates You?
• Secretary: “Being included so that I know what is going on. Having a personal connection with those I work with. Building positive relationships. Having my work acknowledged.”
• Technical experts: “Freedom to do my projects the way I want to, but knowing I am always able to go to my manager to bounce ideas around or ask advice.”
• “The variety of projects so that it never gets boring. I can always move from one project to the other and switch my focus.”
What Motivates You?
• Management Assistant: “I know I can completely change jobs or take on a special project if I want to, all I have to do is ask. I know I am not expected to die in the harness doing the exact same thing for many years. I know I will have opportunities.”
• Department Manager: “Flexibility so I can be with
my family when I need to be, and work a modified schedule when I need to. A culture where my ideas are welcomed and taken seriously. Opportunities for training or learning.”
BurnoutA Professional Reality
Burnout – A Professional Reality!
• Professional burnout (PBO) is a serious problem
– It can cause executives & families great unhappiness & emotional pain
– It can impair judgment and put their business and career at risk
• PBO is not as easy to spot as chickenpox or strep throat, but it is quite common
Burnout – A Professional Reality!
• A significant percentage of executives will suffer an episode of PBO at some point in their careers.
• City management types are a hardy, hard-working group.– They have to be in order to get to where they are
today
• Some executives find themselves unable to function or, perhaps even worse, are able to function but in a compromised manner that places themselves or their organization in harms way!
Contributing Factors to PBO
• High stress
• Loss of control– personal or career
• Political change
• Staff upsizing & downsizing
• Economic conditions– prosperity – poverty
• Changing behavior to meet political criteria
• Relentless & unforgiving daily demands
• Business conditions & competitive factors
Contributing Factors to PBO
• Pursue high-level business educational success
• Executive trying to do too much– Perfectionism
• Not willing to define your limitations– Superman Complex
• Your leadership role– Being a leader exacts a price
Note:
Maintaining a
powerful family & support
mechanism can be
one of your best
anti-burnout
strategies.
Signs of Burnout• Chronic fatigue –
exhaustion, tiredness & physically rundown
• Anger at those making demands
• Self-criticism for putting up with demands
• Cynicism, negativity & irritability
• Exploding at inconsequential things, frequent headaches, & gastrointestinal disturbances
• Weight loss or gain
• Sleeplessness & depression
• Shortness of breath
• Suspiciousness
• Feelings of helplessness
• Lack of accomplishment
• Increased degree of risk-taking
Conquering Change
• Managing the stress of change to prevent PBO
– Exercise– Eat right– Create change coping mechanism– Create your plan for change– Know when to get help
Audience Interaction