Session 3

• Goal


  A person's ambition, an aim or a desired result
• Biggest challenges are in meeting the goals we have set; This could be about being productive, exercising, waking up early or just becoming happier, and even finding the motivation to do daily tasks
• Higher the motivation, the longer you work towards achieving a goal
• 'Motivation is the key'
• Why is Goal Setting So Important?

  • Provides a useful framework for managing motivation
  • Goals are an effective control device in helping the management keep track of how well the organization is performing
• S.M.A.R.T Goals


  • Specific
  • Measurable
  • Achievable
  • Relevant
  • Time Bound
• Specific


  • High performance is attained when goals are specific
  • Specific goals are often quantified and employees are informed of what to reach for
  • Specific goals also elicit other positive goals for an organization such as reducing absenteeism, turnover and lateness
• Measurable


  • Must possess a clear definition of success
  • This component often answers "how much" or "how many" and highlights how you will know you achieved your goal
  • Larger goals can be broken down into smaller tasks and reaching these milestones as you work on your smart goals can make you feel a sense of accomplishment with every step
• Achievable


  • An easy goal will not bring the desirable rise in performance
  • Difficult goals makes performance suffer
  • Challenging goals must be hard as well as within one's capabilities
  • An important factor in goal attainment is self-efficacy by Bandura (1997) which discusses the belief about one's capabilities and competencies
• Relevant


  • A relevant goal is one that is pertinent and important to your life or organization as it is now
  • This is about getting real with yourself and ensuring what you are trying to achieve is worthwhile to you
  • It is a goal that you have the time and resources to accomplish
• Time Bound


  • Goals must be completed within a given time period
  • Unspecified or endless time periods for a goal leads to losing discipline and motivation
  • It is important to set a realistic time frame to achieve your goal to ensure you don't get discouraged
• Goal Setting Theory of Motivation


  Locke and Latham developed the goal setting theory of motivation which focused on the relationship between goals and performance
• How goals affect task performance

  • Directing attention and action
  • Mobilizing energy expenditure or effort
  • Prolonging effort overtime (persistence)
  • Motivating the individual to develop relevant strategies for goal attainment
• Chief Principles of Goal Setting

  • Clarity
  • Challenge
  • Commitment
  • Feedback
  • Task Complexity

  
• Clarity


  • For goals to be motivating they need to be clear and they should be concise
  • Ambiguity or complexity makes it harder for people to understand goals. This, in turn, makes them less motivating
• Challenge


  • More motivated by challenging goals
  • Challenging but achievable
  • Increase feelings of achievement and drive people harder
• Commitment


  • The extent to which someone is personally interested in reaching a goal
  • Ownership of a goal increases the probability of its achievement
  • Understanding and agreeing on goals is necessary for effectiveness
• Feedback


  • For individuals to be motivated by goals they need to understand how they are doing in relation to them
  • Timely and accurate performance related feedback is important
  • Feedback on goal attainment helps to determine how well you are doing and the nature of adjustments required to improve performance
• Task Complexity


  • Goals of high complexity can become overwhelming
  • Break down complex goals into smaller sub-goals for continuous motivation
  • Sufficient time, resources and pressure to be provided to work towards the goal, improve performance, practice and learn
• Expectancy Theory of Motivation


  The intensity of a tendency to perform in a particular manner is dependent on the intensity of an expectation that the performance will be followed by a definite outcome and on the appeal of the outcome to the individual
• Key Expectancy Theory Variables

  • Expectancy - Belief that working hard will result in desired level of performance
  • Instrumentality - Belief that successful performance will be followed by desirable rewards
  • Valence- Value a person assigns to rewards and other work related outcomes
• Motivation is a product of the individual's expectancy that a certain effort will lead to the intended performance, the instrumentality of this performance to achieving a certain result, and the desirability of this result for the individual, known as valence
• Expectancy


  • Belief that one's effort will result in achieving the desired outcome and performance
  • Better efforts will lead to better performance
  • Effort is influenced by an individual's self- confidence (self- efficacy), past experiences, level of perceived difficulty of the goal
• Value


  Value a person assigns to rewards and other work related outcomes
• Expectancy Theory of Motivation


  According to expectancy-value theory, behaviour is a function of the expectancies one has and the value of the goal toward which one is working
• When more than one behaviour is possible, the behaviour chosen will be the one with the largest combination of expected success and value
• Motivation


  A product of the individual's expectancy that a certain effort will lead to the intended performance, the instrumentality of this performance to achieving a certain result, and the desirability of this result for the individual, known as valence
• Expectancy


  Belief that one's effort will result in achieving the desired outcome and performance
• Expectancy


  • Better efforts will lead to better performance
  • Influenced by self-confidence, past experiences, perceived difficulty of goal, and amount of control
• Expectancy


  • If I work hard for one week my performance in the Psychology report will be better
• Expectancy


  • Attained by possessing suitable skills, support, resources, and training
• Self-efficacy


  Does the individual believe they have the required skills and competencies to perform well and achieve the goal?
• Past Experiences


  Does the individual have experience putting in effort and achieving desired outcomes in the past?
• Goal Difficulty


  Goals that are too difficult with high expectations lead to low expectancy
• Control


  Sense of control over the expected outcome leads to high expectancy
• Instrumentality


  Belief that if one meets performance expectations they will receive a greater reward
• Instrumentality


  • Influenced by trust, control, and policies
• Instrumentality


  • If I make more sales will I get a bonus/greater commission or an award/recognition?
• Valence


  Value the individual personally places on the rewards of an outcome
• Valence


  • Influenced by needs, goals, preferences and values
  • An outcome that one employee finds motivating may not be motivating to another