Game Over
“There is a design practice called “gamification” which attempts to use the trappings of games (reward structures, points, etc.) to make people engage more with product offerings. Does it miss the point of games? It is often layered on top of systems that lack the rich interpretability of a good game. A reward structure alone does not a game make.” Theory of fun for game design by Raph Koster
The idea of gamifying work has been around for a while: If you do this, we will give you a bonus, stock options, a promotion, something just out of reach. In the end, everyone is dissatisfied. The employee never quite gets the reward they want, and the employer has to constantly increase the rewards. Otherwise, the employee will leave to start a new game with a new company to see if they can play it better the next time around. It’s a finite game.
In these two articles, I have tried to think instead about work systems that are infinite in nature. In Grow vs. Manage, I explore how to avoid the standard crisis management version of leadership by using a more sustainable approach in which people practice daily skills that lead to growth over time, preventing the typical all-or-nothing system.
In Leadership, I explore the idea that leadership is not about having all the answers, but instead, it’s about setting up a “rich interpretable space” that gives people the support and tools they need to lead from the bottom up. It can be hard to describe this type of leadership because it’s not about what you as an individual have to do but more about what you can create for others.
In the same way that playing a game with poorly defined rules can lead to frustration, working in environments that don’t encourage growth and only offer short-term rewards often lead to game over before you ever get to explore the rich possibilities of any job.
Below is a collection of books that talk about this idea of leadership and team cultures that allow for the creation of a rich interpretable space.
Dune by Frank Herbert
“Give as few orders as possible,” his father had told him…once…long ago. “Once you’ve given orders on a subject, you must always give orders on that subject.”
Punished by Rewards by Alfie Kohn
“American adults, including parents, are firm believers in rewards. Typically, it is assumed that rewards will increase children’s interest in an academic assignment or their commitment to altruistic behavior.“
Creativity Inc by Ed Catmull
“Asking this much of our people, even when they wanted to give it, was not acceptable.”
Ask Iwata by Hobonichi
“This is why I spent my first month as president interviewing everybody at the company. The discoveries were endless.”
Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel
“You learn nothing about men by snubbing them and crushing their pride. You must ask them what it is they can do in this world, that they alone can do.”
