(no subject)

[geekchick]

Today is Pungenday, day 6 in the season of The Aftermath, 3269.

Today's dailysoulsearch:

When you finish an important task (for instance, at work) is it more important to you receive payment for what you've done, or recognition? Does it motivate you to receive a reward, or would you work equally hard just for the sake of doing the best job you can do, even if there were never any extra payment or recognition?

If I'm doing something at work, it certainly wouldn't occur to me to expect extra payment for something that's part of my job (unless you're talking something like some comp time for the extra hours put in while working on it). Recognition is nice though, either public or private. I admit that I really like having someone say "thank you for your efforts" when I've done something major and have put a lot of time into it. There are several people I work with who are very good about doing just that, and I appreciate it a lot. In fact, I'm usually happier to take on large projects for people who I know will appreciate the work that I put into whatever I'm working on for them. This is not to say that others don't appreciate it, but they don't tend to say anything about it; I don't know if the thought process is along the lines of "well, it is your job, after all" or not. I try to thank people when I know they've done a lot of hard work as well; for example, on the most recent project I just finished I had a lot of help from someone at our PR firm. Quite frankly, she worked her ass off on the section of the project she was handling, and I made sure she knew just how much I appreciated her hard work (not least because it meant that I didn't have to do that particular task ;) ).

While I am often happier about tackling projects for people who recognize others' hard work, I don't think it makes a difference in the level of effort I put into the tasks either way. I will work harder on projects that interest me or stretch my skills, whether I get my "pat on the head" or not. My mental state at the time also has some influence; if I'm depressed, my level of effort decreases all around, and I'm more likely to get discouraged when I find a stumbling block. Let's also not forget the motivating force of "that's going out with your name on it", which is a fair amount of inspiration for doing the best job you can on something. There are some kinds of recognition that are not so good. ;)

Comments

[brian1789.livejournal.com]

unless you're talking something like some comp time

Overtime, comp time... almost unheard-of nowadays. At least in technical areas. Extra pay for extra work? Bonuses? Awards? Forget it. The work had better be worth the effort invested, on its own merits... at least, that's my observation.

That said, recognition is nice. Sometimes it is essential if I'm going to continue to be enthusiastic about working on a particular project. Give a pound of flesh, sacrifice my health and home life, and then get neither financial rewards or recognition? After a few of those experiences, I start looking for other areas of work, or other bosses.

[geekchick]

The work had better be worth the effort invested, on its own merits... at least, that's my observation.

That's actually not true at my employer. In the 20 months I've been there, I've received both an award (with essentially a bonus included), a couple of review-related raises, and recognition for work I've done. They seem to be pretty good about recognizing their employees' effofts, at least in the time I've been there. I don't get overtime since I'm salaried, but I do get comp time if I need to take it and I have some built up.

[patgreene.livejournal.com]

I certainly hope you got a "pat on the head" for the last project.

[geekchick]

Yep, I got a couple of them. Was nice. =) For now, I'm taking the lack of comments as being a good thing, since no one would feel any hesitation about letting me know about something they think is horribly broken.

[hammercock.livejournal.com]

I find recognition very important, but I'm not going to turn up my nose at a reward, either. :-} Recognition always has gone a long way toward keeping me motivated, though, because I hate feeling like I've worked my ass off and no one's noticed or cared.

This last week I worked 2 hours late almost every day, simply because the gargantuan task at hand had to get done. Since it's a nonprofit and I have to choose my requests for overtime judiciously, I mostly settled for recognition. However, I also chose leaving early on Friday as a reward. Other times I've been able to choose creative flextime as compensation. I'm not eligible for comp time where I work, as it's pretty much reserved for those who are exempt from overtime and it has to be preapproved anyway. I am non-exempt, but I only put in for paid overtime when I'm required to give up any part of my weekend (which has happened three times since I started working for UUSC).

[geekchick]

I hate feeling like I've worked my ass off and no one's noticed or cared.

Exactly! (And no, I don't turn my nose up if someone feel like offering me cash either. ;) )

I don't get overtime pay since I'm exempt, and generally I don't use my comp time. I do occasionally though, if I happen to have some built up and I need to leave a couple of hours early or something.

A Side Effect of Being Hourly

[telnar.livejournal.com]

I suppose that my situation is unusual, but because I'm self employed, almost all of the computer work that I do is hourly. One thing that I like about that arrangement is that it's self correcting. When I'm swamped with work, I get paid more which encourages employers to give me less work (or at least allows me to take a vacation after the project is over.)

That said, I find the extra cash which comes with being paid for more hours and being able to justify higher hourly rates based on happy customers to be far more important than any recognition I might get.

I've been fortunate in not having to face the second question, but the answer is "no." I would put an upper limit on the quantity of the work I was willing to do if doing more did not lead to being paid more. Doing the best job I can with the time available, though, I consider automatic. So, I would never bill for non-work stuff like LJ.