Benefits
Pride -> Passion -> Innovation
"Pride is a much more powerful motivator [than money] — just look at the employees of extraordinary organizations such as Southwest Airlines, Microsoft, or the U.S. Marines. Pride drives their exceptional service, their continued innovation, their commitment to the organization." - Jon Katzenbach, author of Why Pride Matters More Than Money
By showing your staff how to see the profit-making aims of your business as noble, as something to be proud of, we show your staff how to see their work as a mission.
"A mission is ...work that corresponds to our inner passion. We give our deepest selves. In return we find meaning. Our intuition and creativity come alive."
- Richard Barrett author of Liberating the Corporate Soul, Building a Visionary Organisation
With this attitude, employees see their work as so important, and find so much enjoyment in it, that even their spare time is engaged in generating ideas.
'People . . . come to work at the company to enjoy themselves. That feeling would lead to innovation.”
- Soichiro Honda, founder of The Honda Motor Company
In this increasingly competitive age, corporations must seize every chance to foster innovation, which has been described by management guru Peter Drucker ((Peter F. Drucker, Harvard Business Review 1995) as a company's core competency.
The Principles of Success
To feel business pride we must not only see the aims of the business as noble, we must also see the actions we take as we work in the business, as important and worthy. Ayn Rand’s Objectivist Ethics enable us to see in a very positive light the actions that business success requires. And by showing your staff the great value of the Objectivist Ethics to them personally, by showing them how the seven virtues help with the pursuit of happiness, and raise their self-esteem, we can motivate them to follow them at work, with great benefits to the company.
These are the seven virtues: rationality, productiveness, pride, independence of thought, honesty, integrity and justice.
These virtues are also described in this video of the speech 'Leadership & Values' by John Allison, former CEO of the award-winning bank BB&T, one of the top ten financial holding companies in the United States.
Read on for the benefits.
Greater Commitment
When employees see productiveness as one of the cardinal virtues, their priorities in life are re-aligned. They are able to commit themselves wholeheartedly not only to their careers but also to each task in each day. Their sense of right and wrong is closely intertwined with working hard, with achieving goals and with producing results. Taking the easy way out is no longer acceptable to them, and this is made very clear from the feeling of self-reproach that accompanies any default on doing their best in their work.
Higher Achievements
Growing self-esteem fuels greater achievements. Self-esteem is the result of two kinds of self-appraisal: knowing that we are worthy and deserve happiness; and knowing that we are competent. Under a rational code of ethics, productive achievements strengthen both aspects of self-esteem.
Firstly, we become more aware of our moral worth. If we accept productiveness as a cardinal virtue, then the more productive we are, the better we feel about ourselves.
Secondly, as we achieve, our awareness of our competence grows, and this gives us the confidence to aim higher for our next goal.
This process continues in a cycle, with our self-esteem continually growing, and in turn providing the fuel to set higher and higher goals.
Higher Morale and Motivation
When the principle of justice is not scrupulously observed by management, the effect on employees is very de-motivating, not only to the employee concerned, but to anyone perceiving it.
Conversely, where management is ethical, employees feel supported by management, and proud to be part of the organisation. Because management deals with them respectfully, and rewards good performance, they feel happier, and are therefore more likely to be creative.
Closer Teams
When the importance of honesty is understood (and when management is ethical and fair), employees are less likely to fiddle expense sheets, or steal company property. They are also more likely to admit to mistakes rather than trying to cover them up; consequently others are less likely to be blamed for something they did not do.
People who respect and trust each other are more likely to talk to each other. On the other hand, people tend to avoid people they consider to have acted immorally. Acting fairly and honestly builds trust and respect and improves the flow of vital information.
Reduced Stress
When people feel fulfilled, a major cause of stress is removed. Happiness drives out stress and makes it easier to tolerate it. This leads to lower absenteeism and staff turnover.
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