Why Motivating People Doesn't Work...and What Does, Second Edition: More Breakthroughs for Leading, Energizing, and Engaging

Top leadership researcher, consultant, and coach Susan Fowler says stop trying to motivate people! It's frustrating for everyone involved and it just doesn't work. You can't motivate people—they are already motivated but generally in superficial and short-term ways. In this book, Fowler builds upon the latest scientific research on the nature of human motivation to lay out a tested model and course of action that will help leaders guide their people toward the kind of motivation that not only increases productivity and engagement but that gives them a profound sense of purpose and fulfillment.

Fowler argues that leaders still depend on traditional carrot-and-stick techniques because they haven't understood their alternatives and don't know what skills are necessary to apply the new science of motivation. Her Optimal Motivation process shows leaders how to move people away from dependence on external rewards and help them discover how their jobs can meet the deeper psychological needs—for autonomy, relatedness, and competence—that science tells us result in meaningful and sustainable motivation.

Optimal Motivation has been proven in organizations all over the world—Fowler's clients include Microsoft, CVS, NASA, the Catholic Leadership Institute, H&R Block, Mattel, and dozens more. Throughout the book, she illustrates how each step of the process works using real-life examples. Susan Fowler 's book is the groundbreaking answer for leaders who want to get motivation right!

Susan Fowler is the founder and CEO of Mojo Moments, a company dedicated to building psychological capacity in leaders at all levels. The Mojo Moments channel partner network spans the globe to deliver empirically sound and innovative learning experiences. Fowler has more than forty years of experience in leadership and motivation as a researcher, consultant, and keynote speaker in over forty countries worldwide. She is the creator and lead developer of The Ken Blanchard Company’s Self Leadership curriculum. She teaches executive leadership at the University of San Diego, and she is the author or coauthor of eight books, including the bestseller translated into fourteen languages Why Motivating People Doesn’t Work . . . and What Does, Master Your Motivation, and with Ken Blanchard, the bestselling Self Leadership and The One Minute Manager.