The Challenge Dividend

Inside Seinfeld's Challenge

I think I'm a pretty good presenter.  Presenting and speaking in public is something I've loved for years.  In fact, I'd probably rather speak in front of 300 people than walk up and strike a conversation with 1 stranger at a party. 

Part of what makes me better is a desire to continue to improve.  Every time I see another person take the stage I immediately go into learning mode - judging his or her approach, what's working, what's not, and what I want to build into my skill set.  It's why I read the Presentation Zen blog, and why I rushed to buy a DVD that shares the remarkable story of another "presenter" that continues to challenge himself: Jerry Seinfeld.

The movie, Jerry Seinfeld - Comedian, has actually been on the market for around five years.  It is a documentary film that follows Seinfeld as he tries to return to his stand-up comedian days.  We follow him from months in small venues working on his craft, to his big moment back before crowds of thousands.  The film dissects the process of writing and testing new material.  We see Seinfeld's drive to keep performing again and again, even though he has nothing to prove and plenty of money to burn.  In driving after midnight in hopes that a club is still open, Seinfeld says, "I could be in Bora Bora snorkeling right now."  But he presses on.

The movie is also fascinating in that it shows how Seinfeld continues to learn from other comedians.  In the bar between acts, he pulls insights from Colin Quinn, Robert Klein, and Bill Cosby.  Despite his success, Seinfeld isn't too proud to admit that he is struggling and he even bombs in front of the crowd (and cameras) a few times.

There's a ton to learn from this 82 minute movie, and each person will take away different lessons.  For me, it's a great reminder that even though I have skills and success, I must push myself to perfect my craft.  I must remember that each performance is a fresh start, a new audience and another challenge.  Kudos to Jerry Seinfeld for opening up his ego to criticism.  By challenging himself in this way he improved, and so do we.

1-Year Daily Journal Anniversary

A year and a day ago on August 13, 2008 I challenged myself to start a new habit of writing a short journal entry at the end of each day.  I drew inspiration from Gretchen Rubin at the Happiness Project blog, where she talked about her own anniversary of starting a "one-sentence" journal.  I also used the Seinfeldian Chain to mark off successful days on a calendar to build the habit.

It's been a very interesting personal experience so far, with several benefits.  First, it really helps me reflect on what was meaningful over the course of each day.  When I have bad days, I have a way to work through the pain.  On the good days, I smile again and revel in what went well.  On the average days, I find something worth remembering.

I'm also really happy that my journal will be something that my children and their children (and so on), can read long after I'm gone.  I see the benefit of such journals when I read the Little House on the Prairie books to my girls.  They are priceless first-hand accounts of a life that is long past.  In fact, I often write thinking about what my ancestors might say when the read my words 100 years from now. 

Finally, it's not really that much work.  I have a reminder system but don't need it as much anymore.  I really look forward to writing my entries 5 minutes before bed.

I haven't looked back at any posts, and I rarely go back to read my journals that I've kept on and off in the past.  I don't want to relive past memories, but writing the present memories helps me appreciate what's next so much more.

France Makes Good

I've blasted the French a few times here in this blog.  While I love visiting France, I feel that its cultural aversion to free market competition has led the country toward ruin.  In April '06, for example, the country caved to protesters after trying to weaken laws that make it almost impossible for companies to fire workers.  But now France seems to be making positive steps, as last week the government-imposed 35-hour work-week was finally scrapped.

France's President, Nicolas Sarkozy, was elected on a platform to modernize France's economy.  He has been unafraid to attack sacred cows and cut government bureaucracy.  The 35-hour work week has been one of his most visible targets.  It was introduced 10 years ago in an effort to solve 13% unemployment by spreading hours over more people.  Economists show that while unemployment did drop to 9%, it came at the cost of $17 billion a year in government aid, and drove the country to under-perform versus most other developed nations in terms of growth.

Some complain that the 35-hour week helps retain a unique cultural difference in France.  The country takes pride in its zeal for enjoyment of life.  According to a BusinessWeek article from way back in 2003, "The French work fewer hours than just about anyone in the developed world, and 24% less on average than workers in the U.S."

But the French have come to realize that they need a little more balance in their work-life.  In order to retain their culture and lifestyle, they must have a growing economy.  And a growing economy is one that is competitive with the rest of the world.  Touche.

TSA Embraces Performance Pay

As a frequent traveler, I've had my share of frustrations with the Transportation Safety Administration (TSA).  But a few months ago I started to form more of a relationship with the TSA.  No, I didn't get put on the terror watch list.  Rather, I began to read the TSA's blog.  Back in April '08 I blogged about the TSA blog, which does an excellent job of putting a human face on the organization and explaining why they do the things they do.  In my day job at a digital marketing agency I tell the TSA blog story continually, suggesting to clients that "if the TSA can do it, you can do it!" (Alas, most still don't get it...but that's another story).

A few weeks ago my love for the TSA deepened, as I discovered that this government organization - usually a sign of bureaucracy and little innovation - is using a pay-for-performance model for its employees.   Called the Performance Accountability and Standards System (PASS), the focus of the effort is on random tests of its screeners, whose results are used to determine compensation.  I was frankly blown away by some of the comments on the blog and the testimony from TSA Deputy Administrator,  Gale Rossides.  Here's some killer quotes:

• Our belief is that rewarding excellent performers is one way to motivate a workforce with a deadly serious job to do. Conversely, not rewarding mediocre performance based solely on seniority is a way to motivate people to step up or consider other career options.
• When you get paid more to do a better job, you do a better job. PASS is targeted to reward excellent performance. That is an incentive to perform at the highest level to which you are capable. PASS rewards the individual performance necessary to achieve TSA's organizational goals and that increases security.
• TSA's pay-for-performance system is driven by validated data. Its performance metrics are standardized, measurable, observable and almost completely objective. PASS has been adjusted based on feedback from our Officers about what the real job is.
• Our Officers have told us they want a pay-for-performance system because they know what is at stake: they want to know that their fellow officers are equally competent.
• TSA supervisors have a significant stake in the PASS program as well, and they are evaluated on how effectively and fairly they administer it. Successful implementation of the program is a component of their own PASS ratings.
• Our goal is for our Officers to be switched on and always at the ready. Pay for performance drives their higher level of performance because their earning power is directly tied to their learning power.
• While significant advances are being made in our technology and security processes, each day's success begins and ends with our Officers...Pay-for-performance is vital to sustaining this top performing workforce.

It almost brings a tear to my eye to read the story of a government going against the odds to implement a Challenge Dividend-friendly performance pay system.  Not only does it take fresh thinking to come up with this idea, but the TSA leadership continues to have to defend it against complaints from the federal employee unions.

So it begs the question: Why did the TSA take such a measure?  I believe it's because the stakes are too high, and the TSA leadership chain knew that it had to model the best management tools from the competitive private sector to succeed in this absolutely critical job.  So the next time you're going through the usual routine in airport security, you should breathe a little easier knowing that your TSA officers are as motivated to succeed as you are in your job.

Hospitals' Incentive to Be Nice

Back in September of 2006 I blogged about a study showing that doctors who are nice to their patients are sued for malpractice less often - despite the fact that nice and mean doctors make about the same number of mistakes.  Two years later, hospitals are starting to see the religion of making nice.  And patients and hospital owners are smiling about the results.

On the Freakonomics blog on July 21, guest columnist Julie Salamon (who spent a year watching from inside Maimonides Medical Center in Brooklyn) writes that hospitals have banded together in the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Hospitals to require its 15,000 member hospitals, nursing homes, and other health agencies to create and abide by a "code of conduct that defines acceptable and unacceptable behaviors and to create a formal process for managing unacceptable behavior."

This "better behavior commission" agrees that patients who feel their have been treated fairly and kindly are less likely to bring lawsuits against doctors.  But their report also suggests that disrespect among staff members can worsen treatment as well.  Doctors who treat nurses poorly, for example, create a tense atmosphere that can lead to blinding emotions and resulting mistakes. 

While she does not report on any change in malpractice suits or hospital financial performance, Salamon shares the results of a Maimonides survey below, which shows dramatic improvement in staff behavior.

As I said nearly two years ago, the real magic of The Challenge Dividend occurs when challenge not only improves business results and innovation, but when the by-product is a better society.