The volleyball story – how pressure affects motivation

It’s a tie game at the high school volleyball playoff match. The home team coach has gathered his players for a timeout huddle. From the stands a parent screams:

“Come on girls you gotta want this!”

The coach turns to the parent and quietly says: “They do want this, too much actually. I am trying to calm them down here, could you help me out please?”

Research shows conclusively that too much pressure reduces motivation and degrades performance. Sport stars who are said to “play great under pressure” in reality, simply “degrade less under pressure.”

To help people to stay motivated, make sure they know that as long as they give their best effort mistakes are okay. Our people need to know that we are not going to put unreasonable pressure on them as long as they give us their best.

IBEX Payroll extends our profound respect and immeasurable gratitude to all the ancestors and keepers of the land on whose traditional territories our work takes place. We acknowledge that we are on Treaty 1 territory, the traditional gathering place of the Anishinaabe, Cree, Oji-Cree, Dakota and Dene people and the traditional homeland of the Métis people. This land is sacred, historical, and significant.

Every time we acknowledge this truth, we have an invitation and an opportunity to reflect on the wrongs of the past, what we do in the present, and what we can do to continually honour the people whose lands and water we benefit from today.

This statement only acts as a first step in honouring the land we reside on and its peoples, and must be paired with education, understanding and informed action.