Footsteps3

The Queen touches on an important but complex subject of
leadership: recognition and rewards. She may not have been an
expert on the subject, but in this one proffered counsel she had
it right. The experts say that for a reward to have maximum
effectiveness, it must be contingent upon the behavior of the
employee. As in the Queen's example, leaders should encourage
or praise only when deserved. (Charles C. Manz & Henry P.
Sims, Jr., Super Leadership, 1989).
This is easier said than done. Surveys (even at Queen's) show
that many employees feel they are not adequately rewarded
(whatever form that may take), or when rewarded, the rewards
do not really match their performance.
Part of the trick is to catch people doing the right things. For
leaders, this requires being sensitive and alert, open and generous,
willing to share the credit and the applause, and making a
commitment to helping people maximize their potential.
24. LAZINESS
"Never help those who are too
lazy to help themselves. "
No one would dispute the King on the merits of this statement.
But what should we do with such people? He might have called
them, as Hawaiians of old would, kuki'i persons as inactive as a
wooden image, or, worse yet, 'ae'a hauka'e, figuratively defiled
persons, and dismissed them.
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