By Evan Hackel
On April 26, 2012, the Harvard Business Review published an article entitled “Increase Your Team’s Motivation Five-Fold.” In the years since, the article, which was written by a McKinsey consultant named Scott Keller, has become a classic, widely read by social scientists and leaders who study what motivates people to become invested in their work. Keller, who is a leader of the Strategy & Corporate Finance Practice at McKinsey, tells the following story in his article, which I will summarize for you here . . .
Researchers once ran a simple lottery ticket experiment that produced unexpected results. Some participants in the study were handed lottery tickets that were already printed with random, preassigned ticket numbers. Others were given blank lottery tickets and asked to write down any number they wanted. Then the researchers asked participants, “How much would you sell your ticket for?”
Here’s the unexpected thing that happened. People in the study who had been allowed to pick their own ticket numbers demanded dramatically more money for their tickets – sometimes five times as much for them. In contrast, people who held tickets with pre-assigned numbers were willing to sell their tickets for much less. In fact, some people were practically willing to give their tickets away.
So, what does this experiment tell us? It shows that as soon as people exert an influence on what they do, they feel a powerful sense of ownership.
The Power of Ownership
The concept of ownership goes beyond just material possessions; it taps into a fundamental human psychological need to feel a sense of control and contribution. When individuals feel ownership over their work and outcomes, their engagement and commitment skyrocket.
The bottom line? People support what they help create.
The Psychology Behind Ownership
Two key behavioral concepts explain this phenomenon.
- The Endowment Effect
Nobel Prize–winner Richard H. Thaler has found that people assign higher value to things they perceive as theirs. Once they own something, they defend, protect, and elevate that object or idea. Richard H. Thaler is an American economist and the Charles R. Walgreen Distinguished Service Professor of Behavioral Science and Economics at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.
- Self-Determination Theory
Psychologists Edward Deci and Richard Ryan discovered that autonomy, competence, and connection drive motivation. When people feel empowered to shape their environment, their motivation soars. Deci and Ryan are renowned psychologists from the University of Rochester. Their work emphasizes that fostering intrinsic motivation requires satisfying three basic needs: autonomy, competence, and relatedness.
From Experiment to Leadership Practice
The simple act of choosing transforms obligation into enthusiasm. Too often, leaders overlook this lesson. They build strategies behind closed doors, finalize decisions, and announce them to their teams — expecting excitement and buy-in. But real commitment doesn’t come from being told what to do. It comes from helping decide what to do.
That’s the heart of Ingagement — the leadership philosophy I teach at Ingage Consulting. Ingagement isn’t about doing things to people; it’s about doing things with them. Engagement happens when people are invited to co-create their future, not when they’re asked to comply with someone else’s vision.
Leadership today isn’t about having the best ideas. It’s about unlocking the best ideas in others.
Why This Matters More Than Ever
We’re living in an age of chronic disengagement. Gallup reports that only 23% of employees globally are engaged at work (Gallup State of the Global Workplace Report 2023). The rest are either detached or actively disengaged — costing the global economy $8.9 trillion a year in lost productivity. Source: Gallup State of the Global Workplace Report 2023).
Some Practical Steps to Build Ingagement and Ownership
All this is practical, not theoretical. When you cultivate ownership in your franchise, you dramatically increase your chances of profitability, growth and success.
Here are some practical steps to help make that happen:
- Begin new projects by inviting your franchisees, employees – and everyone else – to contribute their best ideas. Then don’t be the person who selects which ideas to accept or which to reject – get out of the way and let people get started.
- Set up group brainstorming sessions in which you capture all ideas from people on whiteboards, without judging them. Then allow participants to decide which ideas to develop and explore.
- Use what I call Ingaged Listening, in which you never reject ideas, but listen instead for what people are saying that is right, not wrong. Wherever possible, allow people to decide and develop the processes they will apply to bringing their ideas to life.
- Cultivate the practice of hiring people who know more than you do in key areas of expertise. Then get out of the way and let them apply their knowledge.
- Assign work to task forces that are teams of equals, not hierarchical structures controlled by people who have higher authority.
- Respond to every suggestion and idea that people make regarding their work and processes. When you ignore ideas or let them die a slow death, you kill excitement and motivation through the ranks.
- Apply an open-door policy as a leader and encourage people to share their ideas and input in real time.
- Welcome and relish the opportunity to be proved wrong by the people in your organization.
- Develop a culture of learning in your organization by demonstrating enthusiasm for learning about what is new and better.
- Assign projects to multi-functional teams and give them autonomy. Don’t micromanage. Turn them loose and let them surprise you with what they can do.
- Take time to solicit feedback and input from people in your organization who are on the front lines. The knowledge they bring to your door is usually the most valuable you can find anywhere in your franchise and organization.
This Truth Is Timeless
People don’t fight for what you tell them to do — they fight for what they build. So, as you go about your daily and weekly routines of leading your franchise, remember the lessons from the Lottery Ticket experiment.
The more you encourage people to put their own stamp on what they do, the more powerfully your franchise organization will grow.
About Evan Hackel
As an author, keynote speaker, consultant, and entrepreneur, Evan Hackel has been instrumental in launching more than 20 businesses and has managed a portfolio of brands with systemwide sales of more than $5 billion. He is the creator of Ingaged Leadership, the author of the book Ingaging Leadership: The Ultimate Edition, and a thought leader in leadership and success.
Evan is the CEO of Ingage Consulting. Visit www.evanhackel.com