Behaviour Matters March 2015

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A Thought From Jez wont lie; I’m not in a very good mood. I’m on the Isle Of Man (or Isle I Of Mann, depending on who you speak to or where you look; half of them spell it with one ‘n’ and half of them with two - clearly they don’t speak to each other much). Anyway, that’s not why I’m grumpy. 2 You’d think that traveling such a short distance, from London, would be easy but it’s been one of the worst trips of my entire career. I don’t want this to turn into some sort of unremunerated therapy column so I’ll spare you all the details but needless to say I forgot my passport (the first time in 12 years) so arrived at the airport with little time to spare; was subject to the most thorough security check I’ve ever experienced (not like that, he just had a big hang up about the amount of liquids I had in my toiletries bag and I had to keep throwing things away to make room), got travel sick (the first time in about 10 years) and the new bag I bought is awful: you can’t fit a suit in it, nor can you fold it up like they show you on the box. There. Rant over. Actually, I feel a bit better now. So I arrived at my hotel, at the exact opposite end of the town that the shops were in, walked to the shops to buy a few things I needed for my presentations (my international calling card is fast becoming a giant black rubbish bin with a hole cut out of the bottom of it, left at various international hotels and conference venues) and had a cup of tea and a slice of carrot cake in a coffee shop. And then, as I took a sip of that amber nectar and a mouthful of cake, the world suddenly went from grey to colour. My mood immediately lifted and all of the day’s stresses and strains melted away into the sweet, white frosting. What is it about eating cake that seems to make things so much better?! Well, undoubtedly the sugar certainly perks us up but things that we associate with good times and positive memories help to lift our mood and we thrive on the production of neurotransmitters, which they prompt the release of, such as dopamine (my personal favourite of all of C lient of the Month The Golden Banana Award Debbie Woodward, Galderma UK Congratulations to Debbie; the winner of this month’s Golden Banana Client of the Month award! Debbie’s team were faced with some very specific behaviour challenges when changes to how they were asked to sell were not being carried out, despite great evidence showing a more efficacious method, with greater potential. Having tried different approaches and with some people muting the idea of introducing punishment strategies if people didn’t comply, Debbie knew she had to win both the hearts and minds of her team in order to see changes. Together we devised some training and a strategy to assist with changing the way that her team responded to certain barriers, whilst up-skilling them. Debbie knew they had to do something different in order to get different results and when we spoke, she instinctively understood the need to not only inspire her team but to give them greater purpose and understanding of their roles. As a result, the conference was a huge success and the session Debbie was responsible for organising helped to change how her team approached selling and to embrace new behaviours. the neurotransmitters – I can’t believe I have a favourite neurotransmitter). Your ‘cake’ might well be a run, or some fresh fruit but for most, one thing that’s almost guaranteed to lift the spirits and put a smile on the inside as well as your face, is something sweet, unexpected and reminiscent of a birthday party or other celebration. I’ll show you exactly how we can use this to our advantage in my feature article this month: The Cake Theory Of Management. But for now, keep calm and eat cake! www.thebehaviourexpert.com www.insiderexpert.co.uk Behaviour Matters March 2015.indd 2 10/03/2015 12:20
Inside Jez’s Brain The Cake Theory Of Management If you follow me on facebook (www.facebook. com/thebehaviourexpert) you may have seen my recent post about cake and my Cake Theory of Management. Mrs Jez and I were in London just a few weeks ago, going to the theatre, and we passed a cake shop in Piccadilly, with some really delicious looking cakes in the window display. Mrs Jez didn’t see them at first but my head whipped around so quickly I thought I’d get whiplash: I saw them from the corner of my eye as we walked down the street, lit in a soft, warm glow, which accented all of the colours and gave a sparkle to the glaze. Just thinking about it has put a smile on my face. Inside the shop were a number of people eating cake and chatting and then it struck me: everyone inside the shop was smiling. So, theatre trip temporarily abandoned, I stopped and watched the cake shop, waiting for new people to go inside, to see if their behaviour would change. Mrs Jez is quite a patient person, which you’d have to be if you lived with me. Anyway, the next couple who walked in were clearly cold and they both seemed a little preoccupied, which is often They chose their cakes, ordered and began to tuck in. Within seconds of the cake touching their tongue, their eyes lit up, their shoulders relaxed and a smile spread across their face. indicated by the furrowed brow and darted looks around the room. They chose their cakes, ordered and began to tuck in. Within seconds of the cake touching their tongue, their eyes lit up, their shoulders relaxed and a smile spread across their face. And even though I’ve been applying it for many years now, it suddenly dawned on me then just how powerful the Cake Theory of Management is. I was first introduced to the concept by my boss when I worked in hospital, only she called it the Doughnut Theory of Management and at its most basic, it’s this: you buy people doughnuts and they’ll do what you want them to do. Or at least that’s how she explained it. However, it’s a little more complicated than that and deserves a little bit more respect because if you just buy people things and expect them to do what you want them to do, that’s not an especially reliable method of behaviour change. And if you tell them first that they’re going to get doughnuts if they do as they’re told then that’s technically a bribe and bribes don’t work for long because they quickly become a crutch for desirable behaviour: their behaviour becomes contingent on you buying them doughnuts. Which I’m sure they wouldn’t mind… The Cake Theory of Management (but, yes, it works equally well with doughnuts) is essentially based on the principle of reciprocity, with a sprinkling of the principle of the vital few and a touch of behavioural learning theory added for good measure. What does this all mean? Well, the next time your team, people in your charge or perhaps even your family, do something that is especially worth rewarding, or reinforcing, or encouraging, or something that you’re proud of that’s especially worthy of praise, go out to a bakery or supermarket and buy them cake. Mrs Jez and I have recently finished having our house renovated and while the builders were here, every day I went to the bakery and bought a different selection of cakes for them. As a result, they were more than happy to go the extra mile to help us with a few additional bits and stayed on late without charge. Now, I’m being candid and to the point here but don’t read this as bribery or manipulation because it’s not: I didn’t tell them I was going to buy cake on the condition that they worked harder, or specifically with a view to get them to do more work. I bought them cake to build a relationship; as a gesture of appreciation and reinforcement for the great work they were doing and because I know that cake makes people happy. Everyone at the hospital knew and valued my old boss: after all, who else bought them cake?! It’s a gesture that is unexpected; largely appreciated; seen as an act of kindness and perhaps most importantly of all, builds relationships. Don’t tell them you’re going to do it; don’t make the cake contingent on an outcome and do it unexpectedly and at times randomly. I promise it’ll pay dividends. The trick is to ask yourself: how would this make me feel? Don’t Forget... Like The Behaviour Expert facebook page. You can find it at www.facebook.com/thebehaviourexpert 3 Behaviour Matters March 2015.indd 3 10/03/2015 12:20
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