26th Dec 2006
Motivation and Your Colleagues?
I’ve often wondered how my motivation is affected by those around me.
I had a coworker I absolutely adored, who I could talk into getting something to eat (usually a breakfast burrito) at any time of day, anywhere in northern New Mexico. She would do anything for her to not to be in the office and to watch me practice my Spanish (apparently very entertaining). Did hanging out with her affect my productivity?
What about spending time with the coworker who hits the ground running every Monday morning? Her own productivity used to inspire me, though it also made me exhausted when I tried to keep up.
Does the bored colleague who seems to do nothing other than eat and laugh at my bad Spanish affect me? Does the super charged colleague affect my productivity?
Apparently yes at least in terms of the highly motivated colleague motivating me.
In an article in Slate, Do hardworking employees make their lazy colleagues more productive? we see that economists studying supermarket cashiers found that simply being in the proximity of a more productive colleague was enough to raise productivity.
I suppose we could conclude that you should be careful who you sit next do (or stand next to). But while the productivity of a cashier can be measured somewhat easily (at least quantified easily), productivity is somewhat more elusive in other jobs.
