A-ha! Performance: Building and Managing a Self-Motivated Workforce - Hardcover

Douglas Walker; Stephen Sorkin

3.5

8 ratings by Goodreads

9780470116340: A-ha! Performance: Building and Managing a Self-Motivated Workforce

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 047011634X ISBN 13: 9780470116340

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons Inc, 2007

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Praise for A-HA! Performance

"Since I wrote Choice Theory many years ago, I have come to the conclusion that there is only one major human problem: we have yet to figure out how to get along well with each other. In this book, Walker supports this conclusion with humor, creativity, and great insight. Managers who both follow his suggestions and teach them to those they manage will be rewarded with a happy and profitable workplace. And do it at less cost than the company is spending now."
--William Glasser, MD, President and founder,William Glasser Institute, and author of Choice Theory and Reality Therapy

"If ever there was a title that perfectly matched the content of a book, this is it. I have never experienced more a-ha's from a book in my life. One of the biggest a-ha's is that you don't build a motivated workforce--you already have one! If you manage people--and especially if you aspire to truly lead people--then this book is required reading. Rock-solid ideas from a master on motivation."
--Joe Calloway, author of Work Like You're Showing Off!

"An amazingly practical and prodigiously useful resource to help create and bolster a world-class sales force, but also a blueprint for better living in general. An absolute mandatory read for all my employees, not to mention friends and family members. I don't know anyone who couldn't benefit from applying the A-HA model. The title might be more apropos if it were 'Holy cow! Where's this been my whole career?'"
--Robert H. Fleet, Branch Manager, National Builder Division, Countrywide Home Loans

"A-HA! Performance should be mandatory reading for every manager. Each chapter offers simple and compelling methods for building and managing a self-motivated workforce. The realistic examples presented throughout the book reinforce the steps in the A-HA model and provide the foundation for easy application to professional and personal situations."
--Ann Owens, Vice President, Total Rewards Management, QUALCOMM

"Avoiding a fight-or-flight reaction from an employee who needs coaching on improved performance or behavior changes requires the manager understand the employee's vested interest. Walker teaches the skills required to effectively create three wins: for the company, the employee, and the manager. It's a must-read for all leaders who want to be more proficient in getting needed performance changes from their employees by improving their own nurturing, coaching, or mentoring skills. I'm reading it for the third time and still gleaning more tips and insights. Even though it's constructed as a managerial self-help book, it's really an insightful, powerful textbook, and as such needs to be studied."
--Ron Cook, National Accounts Manager, 3M

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From the Inside Flap:

Many people are great at what they do, but when they become managers they aren't given basic human motivation management tools. Successfully building and managing a self-motivated workforce requires an awareness and a skill set far different from the expertise managers had in their specialty. Attracting and retaining top talent and continually improving performance requires a strong focus on the vested interests of employees. Managers who understand the eight Intrinsic Motivation Points (IMPs) that drive human performance have an edge over managers who don't.

This book reveals a powerful alternative to carrot-and-stick motivation. Achieving better results or maintaining desired results in an ever-changing environment requires an engaged and self-motivated workforce, one that will go the extra mile because its members want to, not because they fear the stick, or because they want the carrot, but because doing and achieving makes them feel good.

Getting other people to do the right thing, in the right time frame, with the right attitude is what makes success so challenging in business. In fact, getting ourselves to do the right thing, in the right time frame, with the right attitude is often challenging too. Doing the right thing requires the right kind of motivation.

Between what leaders ask of people and what they get from them is a series of internal steps, a thought process based on the eight IMPs. A-HA! Performance reveals that process and how to leverage those IMPs to energize performance and lead to better results. This revolutionary book provides the insight and information needed for building and leading a self-motivated workforce, showing how to manage employees, peers, bosses, and customers in ways that encourage buy-in and disarm resistance. Whether you need to improve performance, motivate and retain top performers, or improve your workplace environment, A-HA! Performance pinpoints what to do and how to do it.

For managers and business leaders in any industry, A-HA! Performance is a practical, timeless tool and a powerful philosophical framework that will not only improve the bottom line but also improve all your business and personal relationships.

About the Author:

Douglas Walker, MS, is cofounder of A-HA! Performance Solutions, cre-ator of the A-HA! Performance Model, a highly regarded manager and sought after keynote speaker, trainer, executive coach, human capital management consultant, executive career advisor, and leading expert in intrinsic motivation management. He teaches A-HA! at SDSU and UCSD and served as senior faculty at the William Glasser Institute and as the Managing Consultant of the San Diego office of DBM, an international leader in transition services.

Stephen Sorkin, MBA, is cofounder of A-HA! Performance Solutions, focusing on business development and marketing, while also involved with developing and delivering A-HA! Performance products and services. He has repeatedly commercialized and developed ideas into globally competing businesses, including award-winning and industry standard–setting human capital management solutions.

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