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The Progress Principle: Using Small Wins to Ignite Joy, Engagement, and Creativity at Work Kindle Edition

by Teresa Amabile (Author), Steven Kramer (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 285 ratings
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What really sets the best managers above the rest? It’s their power to build a cadre of employees who have great inner work lives—consistently positive emotions; strong motivation; and favorable perceptions of the organization, their work, and their colleagues. The worst managers undermine inner work life, often unwittingly.

As Teresa Amabile and Steven Kramer explain in The Progress Principle, seemingly mundane workday events can make or break employees’ inner work lives. But it’s forward momentum in meaningful work—progress—that creates the best inner work lives. Through rigorous analysis of nearly 12,000 diary entries provided by 238 employees in 7 companies, the authors explain how managers can foster progress and enhance inner work life every day.

The book shows how to remove obstacles to progress, including meaningless tasks and toxic relationships. It also explains how to activate two forces that enable progress: (1) catalysts—events that directly facilitate project work, such as clear goals and autonomy—and (2) nourishers—interpersonal events that uplift workers, including encouragement and demonstrations of respect and collegiality.

Brimming with honest examples from the companies studied, The Progress Principle equips aspiring and seasoned leaders alike with the insights they need to maximize their people’s performance.

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  1. Print length
    270 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  4. Publisher
    Harvard Business Review Press
  5. Publication date
    July 19, 2011
  6. File size
    885 KB
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Editorial Reviews

Review

“It's a very instructive read that I highly recommend… a groundbreaking book.” - Huffington Post

“In The Progress Principle, Teresa Amabile and Steven Kramer have provided an inspiring combination of solid scientific research and management insight. They have succeeded in bringing to life a new paradigm in management, fully supported and elegantly presented.” — Research-Technology Management

“This practical orientation for managers makes the book an important resource for organizations experiencing a decline in productivity and employee engagement.” — CHOICE Magazine

“Filled with honest, real-life examples, compelling insights, and practical advice, The Progress Principle equips aspiring and seasoned leaders alike with the guidance they need to maximize people’s performance.” - Innovation Watch

"The Progress Principle by Teresa Amabile and Steven Kramer is a masterpiece of evidence-based management—the strongest argument I know that "the big things are the little things." A masterpiece every manager should have...I believe it is one of the most important business books ever written." – Bob Sutton

“The book...is one of the best business books I’ve read in many years.” – Daniel Pink

“But in singling out one book that offers the most important message for managers this year, I recommend The Progress Principle. The breakthrough in knowledge it provides makes it my choice as best business book of the year. This a pioneering work on employee engagement, with lots of memorable examples culled from those in-the-trenches diary entries.” – The Globe and Mail

“You will never return to the older and outmoded theories of employee motivation again.” – Blog Business World

“When Bob Sutton, a leading management professor at Stanford University, says a new book “just might be the most important business book I’ve ever read,” the rest of us should take notice. Sutton is right. The Progress Principle is...fantastic. I am a big fan of this book, and I have decided to make it one of the alternate end-of-semester book assignments for the master’s students in my introductory public management course this fall.” – Steve Kelman, Federal Computer Week

“This is the roadmap to how to create progress, even baby steps through small wins, and therefore create a culture that supports a meaningful and joyful “inner work life”, which is the secret to great leadership and harnessing the best of employee psychology.” – Innovative Influence (Suzi Pomerantz's Blog)

“Those who appreciate the work of people like Dan Pink (Drive), Chip Conley (Peak) should seriously consider adding The Progress Principle as the third member of a very compelling trio of books offering just about everything you need to know about tapping the deepest wells of human creative performance.” – Matthew E. May, Guru Forum (American Express)

“…the authors have done a good job in reminding us all that "it’s people, stupid" who lie at the heart of successful organisations.” – Nita Clarke, People Management Magazine (UK)

“This book is a must read for those wants to be good leaders (or those wishing they worked for one).” - LeaderLab

“It’s a clear guide that can help managers with a potentially challenging and frustrating task.”- 800CEOREAD

About the Author

Teresa Amabile is the Edsel Bryant Ford Professor of Business Administration and a director of research at Harvard Business School. The author of numerous articles and books, including Creativity in Context, she has long studied creativity, motivation, and performance in the workplace.

Steven Kramer is a developmental psychologist and has coauthored a number of articles in leading management periodicals, including Harvard Business Review and the Academy of Management Journal.

Margaret Strom, a New York-trained actress, graduated from the American Academy of Dramatic Arts and holds both BA and MA degrees in theater, as well as an MS degree in educational administration and supervision. She has narrated more than 500 books for the Library of Congress, and is the voice of business, private, nonprofit, medical, and government industrials and commercials. A lover of many genres of literature, she confesses that she holds children's and youth literature in a place of its own.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0054KBLBI
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Harvard Business Review Press; 1st edition (July 19, 2011)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ July 19, 2011
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 885 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 270 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 285 ratings

About the authors

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  1. Teresa Amabile

    Teresa Amabile

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    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    Teresa Amabile is the Edsel Bryant Ford Professor of Business Administration and a Director of Research at Harvard Business School. Originally educated as a chemist, Teresa received her doctorate in psychology from Stanford University. She studies how everyday life inside organizations can influence people and their performance. Teresa's research encompasses creativity, productivity, innovation, and inner work life - the confluence of emotions, perceptions, and motivation that people experience as they react to events at work.

    For more about Teresa or The Progress Principle, visit http://progressprinciple.com.

    Teresa recently spoke at TEDxAtlanta. The video from her talk is available here: http://tinyurl.com/6xoej4c

    Teresa's most recent discoveries appear in her book, The Progress Principle: Using Small Wins to Ignite Joy, Engagement, and Creativity at Work. The book, based on research into nearly 12,000 daily diary entries from over 200 professionals inside organizations, illuminates how everyday events at work can impact employee engagement and creative productivity. Published in August 2011 by Harvard Business Review Press, the book is co-authored with Teresa's husband and collaborator, Steven Kramer, Ph.D. Her other books include Creativity in Context and Growing Up Creative. Teresa has published over 100 scholarly articles and chapters, in outlets including top journals in psychology (such as Journal of Personality and Social Psychology and American Psychologist) and in management (Administrative Science Quarterly, Academy of Management Journal). She is also the author of The Work Preference Inventory and KEYS to Creativity and Innovation. Teresa has used insights from her research in working with various groups in business, government, and education, including Procter & Gamble, Novartis International AG, Motorola, IDEO, and the Creative Education Foundation. She has presented her theories, research results, and practical implications in dozens of forums, including the World Economic Forum in Davos, the Young Presidents' Organization annual university, and the Front End of Innovation annual conference.

    As an educator, Teresa strives to teach leaders and aspiring leaders ways in which they can simultaneously achieve their most passionate career aspirations, further the success of their organizations and employees, and serve the higher aims of the societies in which they work. At Harvard Business School, Teresa has taught MBA and executive courses on managing for creativity, leadership, and ethics. Previously, at Brandeis University, she taught social psychology, organizational psychology, the psychology of creativity, and statistics. She served as the host-instructor of the 26-part series, Against All Odds: Inside Statistics, originally broadcast on PBS.

    See more on the author's page
  2. Steven Kramer

    Steven Kramer

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    Discover more of the author’s books, see similar authors, read author blogs and more

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Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
4.4 out of 5
285 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Alan L. Chase
5.0 out of 5 stars Celebrating Small Steps Towards Progress In The Work Place
Reviewed in the United States on December 1, 2014
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It is always a good sign in reading a book when the early chapters prompt me to think about colleagues and friends to whom I will want to send a copy of the book. Such was the case when I began reading "The Progress Principle." Teresa Amabile and her husband, Steven Kramer, have assembled the results of in-depth research into the small wins that make the difference between effective workplace environments and those that are less than optimal.

Using sanitized journal entries by individuals who noted the interactions with team members and management in a variety of companies, the authors present a very convincing case for paying attention to the inner emotional life of workers as a key metric for predicting success of the team and the company.

In analyzing over 12,000 journal entries, Amabile and Kramer describe the challenges that a manager faces in encouraging and pointing out small and incremental steps of progress in a team setting. The evidence shows that many mangers and leaders assume that highly qualified team members do not need this kind of "coddling," when in fact every human being needs to sense that what they are doing day by day is contributing something of value, and that their contribution is both noticed and appreciated.

One very practical aspect of this book is the discussion about using checklists to ensure that a manager is tracking both catalysts and inhibitors to productivity and satisfaction among their team members. The authors cite the work of a very successful surgeon who found tremendous improvement in his rate of success when he developed and employed checklists to use in surgery:

"If you are like most of the surgeons that Gawande tried to convince to use his checklist - or even like Gawande himself - you will think the checklist is beneath you. Surely you are far too expert to need such a simplistic crutch. But it's precisely because you are an expert and therefore have so many things to think about, that taking five minutes for the checklist can be so important. We know from our own experience, and from that of many leaders we have spoken to, just how easy it is to become overwhelmed by the pressures of work and to lose track of those little successes that will eventually lead to that next breakthrough. It's even easier to ignore those little setbacks that can derail." (Pages 172-3)

These insights align perfectly with similar points that are raised in the recently published "The Organized Mind" by Dr. Daniel J. Livitin. He proposed that in an age of information overload, the more we can successfully outsource data to external tools and instruments - like checklists - the more we can make use of cognitive energy for important decision-making and creative thinking. As a pilot, I was trained early in the game to use checklists to make sure that nothing was omitted in doing a pre-flight a inspection or a run through of all of the cockpit instruments prior to taxiing for takeoff.

In collecting and commenting on these anecdotes from a variety of companies, the authors have made a significant contribution to our understanding of the small daily steps that we can take in making ourselves and our colleagues more productive and more satisfied in our work as we make progress toward the completion of significant achievements.

This book will be a good addition to the personal and professional library of anyone who strives for excellence in their work.
6 people found this helpful
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Christina Vourcos
4.0 out of 5 stars More for leadership than the worker
Reviewed in the United States on February 22, 2024
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I really thought that this book would focus more on strategies for those who work versus what leadership can do. This would be good for leadership in any field. It’s more of analytical essay with some suggestions, but overall it’s a way to convince leadership on the progress principle. There are some things that are suggested that I will use such as the journaling (along with the questions) and the questionnaire for workers to do. Hopefully there will be a book in the future that can be for workers in any field. I’m in the education field and also an independent author.
One person found this helpful
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D. Kanigan
5.0 out of 5 stars I was a member of the 95% who didn't know the #1 employee motivator...
Reviewed in the United States on October 23, 2011
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The authors surveyed 100's of managers around the world and asked what motivated employees. They were startled to find that 95% of these leaders fundamentally misunderstood the most important source of employee motivation. It's not about getting the right people on the bus. Or about higher incentives. Or about athletic facilities and free child care. Their research has found that the best way to motivate people is by facilitating progress, even small wins. Yet managers surveyed, had ranked "supporting progress" as dead last as a work motivator.

The authors conducted a rigorous analysis of nearly 12,000 daily diary entries provided by 200+ employees in 7 companies. They found that the best managers create a high quality of "inner work life" for their employees. Inner work life is about favorable and unfavorable perceptions employees have about their managers, the organization, the team, the work and even oneself. A positive inner work life determines whether the employee has the motivation to their best work - it determines their attention to tasks, the level of their engagement and their intention to deliver their best work.

The authors found that there are 3 types of events that are particularly important in creating a positive inner work life:

1) Progress in meaningful work (e.g. small wins, breakthroughs, forward movement, goal completion),

2) Catalysts that directly help work (setting clear goals, allowing autonomy, providing resources, providing sufficient time, helping with the work, learning from problems and successes, allows ideas to flow),

3) Nourishers/interpersonal events (e.g. respect, encouragement, emotional support, affiliation/bonds of mutual trust & appreciation) that uplift people doing the work.

Research found that #1, progress in meaningful work, was the most important event in creating a positive inner work life.
People's inner work lives seemed to lift or drag depending on whether or not their projects moved forward, even by small increments. Small wins often had a surprisingly strong positive effect, and small losses a surprisingly negative one. So, small actions to try to reduce daily hassles can make a big difference for inner work life and for overall performance.

It's also important to note that small losses or setbacks were found to overwhelm small wins. Small everyday hassles hold more sway than small everyday supporting activities.

Be sure that you are not the source of the obstacles. Negative team leader behaviors affect inner work life more broadly than positive team leader behaviors. And employees recall more negative team leader actions than positive events and do so more intensely and in more detail.

Chapter 8 includes a Daily Progress Checklist which is worth the price of the book. A self assessment asking questions on Catalysts/Inhibitors, Nourishers/Toxins, the state of the Inner Work lives of your team and Action steps. e.g., Did the team have clear short term and long term goals for meaningful work or was there confusion? Did I give help when they needed it or did I fail to provide help? Did I show respect to team recognizing their contributions to progress or did I disrespect any team members? Did I encourage team members who have difficult challenges or discourage a member of the team in any way?)

Bottom line, to harness the powerful force of the quality of your employees' inner work lives, you must ensure that consistent forward movement in meaningful work is a regular occurrence in your employees ` work lives, despite the inevitable setbacks.

The book was laborious to wade through but it has important findings, conclusions and recommendations which merit it being required reading for managers at all levels.
43 people found this helpful
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Nourishing
Reviewed in the United States on January 3, 2024
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I really enjoyed this book as it brought forth the importance of nourishing those who are working for us but our co-workers.

This book identified what a good co-worker, leader, supervisor, manager, and company should look like, but it also brought to light the bad techniques. I highly recommend this book for anyone even, especially, a CEO, corporate president and VP, and board of directors.
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars o caráter motivacional
Reviewed in Brazil on September 20, 2020
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Uso para reflexões e ensino sobre criatividade, sendo a obra e o pensamento principalmente de Amabile, sobre criatividade no ambiente de trabalho muito importantes.
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Andrew Ebling
5.0 out of 5 stars Absolutely outstanding insight
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 5, 2020
Verified Purchase
I bought this eBook for reference purposes after listening to the Audible audiobook, which I found deeply helpful. The book is full of gold-dust insight for managers and for managers-of-one - it has made sense of so many small incidents in my career which had a surprisingly large impact (both good and bad).
One person found this helpful
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Gustavo Perez
5.0 out of 5 stars Texto muy necesario para gerentes
Reviewed in Mexico on February 10, 2017
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Un libro que ayuda a antender cómo las empresas pueden perder el rumbo si no orientan el esfuerzo de los trabajadores. La clave del libro está en el concepto del manejo de la sensación del progreso al interior de las células de trabajo.
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francois cartier
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in Canada on December 1, 2015
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Excellent book on how to motivate your team
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Brillant
Reviewed in France on September 13, 2015
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I just love this book. I read it again from time to time when I feel like needing a kick...
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