Progress Principle, The MP3 CD – Unabridged, May 6, 2014

It is always a good sign in reading a book when the early chapters prompt me to think about colleagues and friends to whom I will want to send a copy of the book. Such was the case when I began reading "The Progress Principle." Teresa Amabile and her husband, Steven Kramer, have assembled the results of in-depth research into the small wins that make the difference between effective workplace environments and those that are less than optimal.Using sanitized journal entries by individuals who noted the interactions with team members and management in a variety of companies, the authors present a very convincing case for paying attention to the inner emotional life of workers as a key metric for predicting success of the team and the company.In analyzing over 12,000 journal entries, Amabile and Kramer describe the challenges that a manager faces in encouraging and pointing out small and incremental steps of progress in a team setting. The evidence shows that many mangers and leaders assume that highly qualified team members do not need this kind of "coddling," when in fact every human being needs to sense that what they are doing day by day is contributing something of value, and that their contribution is both noticed and appreciated.One very practical aspect of this book is the discussion about using checklists to ensure that a manager is tracking both catalysts and inhibitors to productivity and satisfaction among their team members. The authors cite the work of a very successful surgeon who found tremendous improvement in his rate of success when he developed and employed checklists to use in surgery:"If you are like most of the surgeons that Gawande tried to convince to use his checklist - or even like Gawande himself - you will think the checklist is beneath you. Surely you are far too expert to need such a simplistic crutch. But it's precisely because you are an expert and therefore have so many things to think about, that taking five minutes for the checklist can be so important. We know from our own experience, and from that of many leaders we have spoken to, just how easy it is to become overwhelmed by the pressures of work and to lose track of those little successes that will eventually lead to that next breakthrough. It's even easier to ignore those little setbacks that can derail." (Pages 172-3)These insights align perfectly with similar points that are raised in the recently published "The Organized Mind" by Dr. Daniel J. Livitin. He proposed that in an age of information overload, the more we can successfully outsource data to external tools and instruments - like checklists - the more we can make use of cognitive energy for important decision-making and creative thinking. As a pilot, I was trained early in the game to use checklists to make sure that nothing was omitted in doing a pre-flight a inspection or a run through of all of the cockpit instruments prior to taxiing for takeoff.In collecting and commenting on these anecdotes from a variety of companies, the authors have made a significant contribution to our understanding of the small daily steps that we can take in making ourselves and our colleagues more productive and more satisfied in our work as we make progress toward the completion of significant achievements.This book will be a good addition to the personal and professional library of anyone who strives for excellence in their work.

The authors surveyed 100's of managers around the world and asked what motivated employees. They were startled to find that 95% of these leaders fundamentally misunderstood the most important source of employee motivation. It's not about getting the right people on the bus. Or about higher incentives. Or about athletic facilities and free child care. Their research has found that the best way to motivate people is by facilitating progress, even small wins. Yet managers surveyed, had ranked "supporting progress" as dead last as a work motivator.The authors conducted a rigorous analysis of nearly 12,000 daily diary entries provided by 200+ employees in 7 companies. They found that the best managers create a high quality of "inner work life" for their employees. Inner work life is about favorable and unfavorable perceptions employees have about their managers, the organization, the team, the work and even oneself. A positive inner work life determines whether the employee has the motivation to their best work - it determines their attention to tasks, the level of their engagement and their intention to deliver their best work.The authors found that there are 3 types of events that are particularly important in creating a positive inner work life:1) Progress in meaningful work (e.g. small wins, breakthroughs, forward movement, goal completion),2) Catalysts that directly help work (setting clear goals, allowing autonomy, providing resources, providing sufficient time, helping with the work, learning from problems and successes, allows ideas to flow),3) Nourishers/interpersonal events (e.g. respect, encouragement, emotional support, affiliation/bonds of mutual trust & appreciation) that uplift people doing the work.Research found that #1, progress in meaningful work, was the most important event in creating a positive inner work life.People's inner work lives seemed to lift or drag depending on whether or not their projects moved forward, even by small increments. Small wins often had a surprisingly strong positive effect, and small losses a surprisingly negative one. So, small actions to try to reduce daily hassles can make a big difference for inner work life and for overall performance.It's also important to note that small losses or setbacks were found to overwhelm small wins. Small everyday hassles hold more sway than small everyday supporting activities.Be sure that you are not the source of the obstacles. Negative team leader behaviors affect inner work life more broadly than positive team leader behaviors. And employees recall more negative team leader actions than positive events and do so more intensely and in more detail.Chapter 8 includes a Daily Progress Checklist which is worth the price of the book. A self assessment asking questions on Catalysts/Inhibitors, Nourishers/Toxins, the state of the Inner Work lives of your team and Action steps. e.g., Did the team have clear short term and long term goals for meaningful work or was there confusion? Did I give help when they needed it or did I fail to provide help? Did I show respect to team recognizing their contributions to progress or did I disrespect any team members? Did I encourage team members who have difficult challenges or discourage a member of the team in any way?)Bottom line, to harness the powerful force of the quality of your employees' inner work lives, you must ensure that consistent forward movement in meaningful work is a regular occurrence in your employees ` work lives, despite the inevitable setbacks.The book was laborious to wade through but it has important findings, conclusions and recommendations which merit it being required reading for managers at all levels.

Too many words,Too little substance.The authors repeat the same concepts through the book giving very little light to best practices.Book summary: help people make small wins often. It will put them in a positive feedback loop. Pay attention to their thoughts, emotions, and responses as they do their work. Pay special attention to roadblocks that might detract joy at work.And help people stay on the path of meaningful, productive work.

I bought this eBook for reference purposes after listening to the Audible audiobook, which I found deeply helpful. The book is full of gold-dust insight for managers and for managers-of-one - it has made sense of so many small incidents in my career which had a surprisingly large impact (both good and bad).

Very insightful “the progress principle” I really get that. I found myself skimming much of the evidence, stats and stories. I believed the concepts portrayed and didn’t need the academic back up. I will probably do a mindmap of the essentialsGood work!

Really enjoyed this book. The authors do a great job of sifting through all the data and keeping the message simple and to the point.

This isn't the most riveting of books to listen to ... but it the content is extremely useful and important.A keeper, in my opinion.

Great content - and liked listening to it in the car. Hadn't factored in the accent of the reader though which grated on this UK English ear