S1: E28: Rewards and Recognition
Originally Published on 7/26/2022
In this week’s episode we delve into the world of rewards and recognition from the perspective of behavioural science. Once we understand why rewards and recognition are powerful tools, we can start to build these into our change to help reinforce the desired changes and behaviours. We get deep into why rewards work and what they are, and why recognition works and how to make it effective.
The funniest illustration of this principle is the below linked Modern Love Essay from Amy Sutherland. I highly recommend reading it. It will help deepen your understanding while also making you laugh.
Importantly Recognition needs to be genuine, and if it is seen as a political tool or disingenuous by the peer group, it won’t work.
Links to resources:
The Classic Modern Love Essay from Amy Sutherland: What Shamu taught me about a happy marriage:
The book I mention this week shows up in my Change Manager’s Essentials Guide in Episode 10: Nudge: by Richard Thaler and Cass Sunstein. This is an in-depth investigation on using micro rewards to drive behavior change and how tech can help us capitalize on this. Check out the links to the book below, at a few different retailers.
Fully captioned videos are available on YouTube
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Nudge: Improving Decisions About Health, Wealth, and Happiness
Richard H. Thaler, Cass R. Sunstein