Gamification means using game design principles to improve something.

The goal is to increase people motivation to complete particular tasks and activities.

Some game design principles are:

• Points: numbers that represent people’s progress.
• Badges: visual representation of people’s achievements.
• Performance graphs: show people performances over time to show people progress.

An example of gamification technique is the Calendar Chain that involves marking an X on the calendar each day you complete a specific behaviour, task or activity. Over time, the Xs form a chain. The goal is to not break the chain.

Here I report various factors that contribute to increase people motivation:

• Having a growth mindset. See Mindset.
• Following self-transcendent values. See Values.
• Creating a vision, but also focusing on execution. See Balance vision and execution.
• Getting quick wins and celebrating successes.
• Using some gamification techniques may help to boost motivation. However it is important that people are intrinsically motivated, otherwise it may not work.

Here I report various factors that contributes to decrease people motivation:

I noticed that I focus more on negative feedback than on positive feedback both addressed to myself or other people.

Researches suggest to focus on positive reinforcements (see Reinforcements and punishment). Although feedback and reinforcements are different concepts (see Motivation - Definitions), positive feedback are a way to give positive reinforcements.

But is it always true that positive feedback are better? In the article Positive versus negative feedback that refers to the research How Positive and Negative Feedback Motivate Goal Pursuit is suggested that the answer to the question depends on the level of expertise of the person to whom you’re giving feedback.

In the course Inspiring and Motivating individuals is suggested a technique to identify what motivate people starting from behaviours and proceeding backward to values and needs that motivated that behaviour.

The technique is quite simple and consists in observing person’s behaviour and then asking ourselves:

• What is the need this person wanted to satisfy with that behaviour?
• What is the value that subtend this need?

I have not found researches about this technique, however it seems to me quite logical considering:

Reinforcements are consequences that increase a behaviour in the future.

A reward given after a desired behaviour, for example, is a reinforcement.

There are two types of reinforcement:

• Positive reinforcement: when, after a desired behaviour, a desirable consequence is presented. For example, a reward given after a desired behaviour is manifested.
• Negative reinforcement: when, after a desired behaviour, an unpleasant consequence is removed. For example, a child doesn’t have to tidy up their room (unpleasant activity) after studying and getting a good score at school (desired behaviour).

Punishments are consequences that decrease a behaviour in the future.

In the book Drive and in the course Inspiring and Motivating individuals are reported various suggestions related to the best practices to reward people. The best practices are based on what the researches in that field say.

The best practices are:

• If the work to be done is a routine:
  • ask yourself if it can be made more varied and connect the work to a purpose.
    • If yes give occasional unexpected rewards and praise people.
    • If not, give rewards but explain the scope of the work. Recognise that the task is boring and leave people the decision about how to do it.
• If the work to be done is not a routine, give occasional unexpected rewards and focus on satisfying autonomy, competence and purpose of the task.
• Rewards must be unexpected, otherwise they become ineffective.
• Rewards must be given only after the completion of the task.
• Payments should be sufficient in order to put the money out of the motivation bench.
• People with similar responsibilities should have similar wages.
• Similar jobs should be have wages similar to other companies.
• Pay a little more than the standard for that job.
• If there are factors that influence payments, they should be important and a little difficult to be reached.
• Rewards must be aligned to the desired behaviours.
• Rewards must be aligned to the person’s needs and values.
• The timing and frequency of the reward is important and should be variable otherwise it become expected.

Intrinsic motivation is more effective than extrinsic motivation. However, in organisation extrinsic motivation through payment rewards are often necessary to motivate people. This because organisation sometimes have goals that do not always fit people goals and therefore payment rewards are a way to maintain people motivated. The risk of using only this kind of rewarding system is that if people find other organisation where payment rewards are higher, they likely change organisation.