“You have to measure what you want more of.” ~Charles Coonradt
I remember sitting in my former CIO’s office and listening to him explain to me the importance of keeping score. “How can we know we’re winning or losing the game?” he said with conviction. That lesson stuck with me ever since.
How do you if you are getting more of what you want in life?
Why would you want to keep score?
Charles Coonradt, author of The Game of Work, says that scorekeeping in the workplace stimulates us to generate more positive outcomes.
Think about it. Addictive games have flooded the market for iOS and Android in the past 6-7 years. The simplest games (like ninja or stack by Ketchapp) can keep a person entertained for hours. There is a natural inclination in our behavior to want to improve our score.
If we can see that someone else has scored just a little more than we have, the inclination to try and beat their score probably makes it even stronger.
Games work on a subconscious level.
Can the same thing happen at work?
Can we realistically apply game principles to something we do at work? Sales Managers have been implementing point systems for the longest time. Countdown timers and charity goal thermometers have been used to motivate people into action.
An example of scorekeeping my admin work
I use a timer when I have to complete boring tasks like doing administration or preparing thousands of documents that are made from templates. I set a timer to see how many I can do within a certain limit without making mistakes. The game is simple and I repeat the cycle trying to get better each time.
Soon enough I realize that i’ve gone through most of what needs to get done and can now take a break.
Your Turn
How have you implemented scorekeeping a task or project at work?