Work Motivation

Somedays, especially in winter, I find it difficult to get motivated about work. The skies are sullen; the air is frigid; and the value of re-writing the “About Us” section of some client’s website is wholly missing.

Fortunately, there are a multitude of books and articles to turn to on motivation. By reading on business-related subject, I can fool myself into believing I am working.  So what have I learned?

Motivation books fall into 2 categories: motivating yourself and motivating employees. The difference is the assumption that entrepreneurs are motivated because they are working to fulfill a dream while staff have to be motivated since otherwise,  they are only working for pay, and Workopolis has shown that this is insufficient. The fallacy pointed out by writers is that many people start a company because they cannot find work. Their company provides them with a job. Even those of us who have a dream may find oursleves working onclient-centred objectives that don’t fit our master-plan.

What motivates us then?

Word on the street: Motivation depends on delivering a positive corporate culture where employees can utilize and improve their skills and advance up the ladder.  In other words, if you want to feel good about going into work, join a company that expects to prosper for many years to come.

Next Question: What happens in the lean years?  If staff evaporate when times are tough, are they really committed when times are good?

Question 2: Has anyone studied if the assumption is true? If you provide  resources, flex time, training time, downtime, open democratic exchanges with the boss on performance issues with no personal criticism, and promise of a future, are staff more productive?  (ie producing quality work most of the time, on time).

Question 3: Why do people watch TV, surf the web and play video games instead of pursuing some noble goal at home where they have the opportunity to increase and utilize their skills?

Question 4: Does it make a difference that if an employee is unproductive, they know they will be fired? Is it possible that the most motivating factor for staff is knowing that their job depends on near-perfect work performance?

We should celebrate successes, but rewarding people for succeeding at the work they are paid to do, may not lead them to work harder. Rewards may be perceived as a company benefit, like dental insurance and an indication, since they are not evenly distributed, that the receiver is among the favoured and likely to prosper in the company as long as they continue to perform.

So on those days when the company doesn’t feel prosperous, how are any of us to stay motivated enough to slog away at it until tomorrow and the day after that? At this point the books begin to say:  remind yourself of your successes, plan how to improve business, consider ways to branch into exciting ventures…..

Or eat a bar of chocolate.

Accounts for small business

Recently a friend asked my advice on whether or not to hire an accountant as she starts her new business. She provides a high end service as a usability expert. Here is my response:

You probably only have a dozen large clients the first year, so your invoicing is limited. Your expenses are fairly small and there’s no staff. The book-keeping itself isn’t hard, and frankly, it’s a good idea to do it to learn the real cost of doing business. Set aside 2 hours a week, scheduled, for the task.

Track all of your expenses and keep the receipts.

Tips: don’t bother with the car expenses unless you travel a lot. You must keep odometer readings and you must not make any personal side trips while using the car for business.

Check the city by-laws to find out the maximum part of your home that you can use for business. It varies by municipality. Make sure there is nothing personal in that space. GST will likely audit you the first or second year and personal stuff/use is one of the things they check for. GST and federal taxes are handled and audited by different organizations and the rules are different for both regarding what is fair use. Be conservative, and you will be okay.

Before deciding about an accountant consider your legal setup.

*Are you incorporated?* It’s a good idea, and easy to do online, because you reduce your liability. If someone sues you because they claim your work/advice was flawed and they lost money as a consequence, you want to be insured against the claim and you want that claim to be against the company, not you personally. As a director, you are still financially liable, but incorporation and insurance will help.

*If you are a sole proprietor* DIY. Buy a tax program with a business expenses module. They cost about $75/ann. If you have been tracking your expenses, it’s just like doing your usual tax return.

*If you incorporate,* remember that the company is a different entity and keeps its own records. You will have to decide if you are paying yourself a salary or taking a shareholder return. You can do an annual reconciliation where you and the company work out how much you owe each other, but it must be on the books. The tax return, isn’t difficult, just /really /different from a personal tax account. I would call in a tax expert or accountant to go through it with you the first year so you can learn what’s what. Then year 2, try to do it yourself.

Why DIY?  Because it will make you painfully aware of costs and earnings.

Year one: Let an accountant walk you through the tax return so you know how to do it.
Year two: if life is busy, hire a really good, recommended book-keeper and do your taxes yourself, so you know how it is done.
Year three: hire someone, if your earnings warrant it. But now you understand what they are doing and when you sign the documents, you know what you are signing. Remember, having an accountant does not protect you from errors or responsabilities. Your signature is at the bottom of the return, and the government assumes you checked and verified the information. If you don’t understand the return, you leave yourself open to embezzlement, fraud, incompetence, and error.

Wow! That’s it, just Wow

Google estimates that some 13 hours of content are uploaded to YouTube every minute.

Government Monitoring of the Internet

We are all familiar with the way China monitors the internet and blocks some websites. You may also know that the Turkish government recently demanded Google block pages that it found offensive. Did you know that Australian Communications and Media Authority is also in on the game. They are currently testing a filtering system that will block a series of websites that they have black-listed.

Meanwhile, the UK government is working to establish a database that maintains a record of all our searches, emails, and phone calls. The Communications Data Bill is under discussion now. As with the above security efforts, the claim is that they will make public services more efficient and cost-effective. Just remember that the real cost is your privacy.

Security Gone Insane

If you are in an airport be wary of where you sit, where you walk and how you talk. You may be monitored for emotional stress indicating terrorist inclinations. Claiming that targeting people on “behavioral” indicators is less instrusive than racial or ethnic profiling and body scans, several security companies are developing technologies to detect increased heart rate, perspiration, and tightness in the vocal cords.

Not only is this an invasion of your personal privacy, but it is designed to be unintrusive, so you won’t even know that your fear of flying is being recorded until a security guard pulls you aside for a strip search.

Get more details on http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/12/02/airport.security/index.html

Telecommute to Green

It’s catch up time with the magazines: this from Information Week November 17 Green supplement. One person telecommuting for one day saves the planet 16-23 kW hours of electricity, 1.4 gallons of fuel and 17-23 kg of C0(2). That is offset by what you do in the home.

Marketing Online

CPM: counts how often your ad is displayed and is used for branding campaigns where you are less concerned about people clicking through to a site than you are about getting your name visible. Make it a visually compelling banner.

CMC: counts the numbers who clicked on your ad and went somewhere. Make sure they went someplace relevant. There should be a landing page at the other end of their click. Use this for direct mail-like campaigns.

CPA counts actions resulting from the clicks, so it is harder to monitor but you get higher results. Use it for narrowly defined campaigns where you are targeting sectors. Keep in mind that ad networks can often target potential visitors by region.

CPE is similar to CPA but reflects engagement. Many ad networks allow you to create engaging new media that promote both a brand and an experience.

Really push the envelope with a retargeting campaign. Once someone visits your site, they are followed by ads for your company the rest of the day as they surf the net.

Democracy Begins in Halifax

The first time that democratically elected representatives of the citizens of a colony in what is now Canada, gathered to make decisions, was in Halifax, Oct 2, 1758.

Politics and Online Media

I have a query. I am looking at some stats from eMarketer about how different generations use the internet.

The US population is 301Million
Just over 3/4 of both men and women are online
Over 90% of people under 40 are online.
Almost 80% of people under 60 are online.
90% of people with incomes over $40K are online.
93% of people with university or college are online.
and so on

But only 66% of rural people are online
40% of those who dropped out of school
60% of people earning under $40K

So if you run your presidential (or any marketing) campaign by focussing on online media, there would appear to be a sector of society that is missed. Does that sector equate with the poor or the working class?

As near as I can see from taxfoudation.org about 40% of Americans earn under $40K. That’s 120million Americans of whom 48 million (1 in 6) are not online.

Are You Too Dumb to Enjoy the Arts?

Mr. Harper seems to believe the “ordinary working people” support his cuts to the arts because the arts are elitist. He characterises the arts as something that only the rich can access: an opportunity for the wealthy to attend gala social networking events.

I work with an artist whose single, working mother recently re-mortgaged her home. She’s that wealthy and she appreciates and encourages her son in his artistic ambitions.

My father, born and raised in the dockland of Liverpool, took art classes once a week at the local library, where he hobnobbed with other wealthy patrons of the arts.

I’ve worked all my life and the arts have provided me with nothing … but time away from the frustrations of work, a chance to see another person’s vision of the world, background music to carry me through a long day, photographs of people in other parts of the world that bring me closer to understanding my humanity, the written word in all its expression.

When I lived in New York, the major museums were crowded with people who gained entrance by paying what they could because that was the price at the gate.

The arts provide us with joy, insight, recognition and understanding. They enter into our lives from a thousand angles. They attend us in church, at rallies and at home in front of the television. They inspire our technology and ensure that the table we sit at is not just a slab of wood, but a tangible piece of design that makes life a bit more satisfactory.

Support the arts.