For Whom the Bell Tolls
Trying new things to motivate the team is great. But, you have to realize when things aren't working and be ready to move on and try something else.
Carter Cathey
9/22/20251 min read
Years ago, my boss hung a massive brass bell outside my office door. I’m talking bigger than a football, looked like it came off a whaling ship.
The idea? Every time my sales team closed a deal, they were supposed to ring the bell.
The reality?
Nobody wanted to.
It was so loud it disrupted 150 people working in the same open space.
If anyone dared to ring it, they’d get twenty death stares from coworkers on calls.
My boss was disappointed. The bell never caught on.
The lesson I took away:
Trying new ways to motivate a team is a great idea, but you have to read the room. Whatever you do needs to resonate with your team, not just with you. And, you should deeply consider their preferences when thinking about new ideas.
And if it doesn’t work? Don’t force it. Take down the bell and find something that does.
What is your best example of something that was intended to motivate, but didn't quite work out?
About Carter Cathey
Carter Cathey is a sales and revenue leader with more than 20 years of experience helping market research, technology, and private-equity-backed businesses scale revenue, improve operations, and build predictable growth systems.
He writes about leadership, growth, sales operations, organizational design, and business systems.
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About Carter Cathey
Carter Cathey is a sales and revenue leader with more than 20 years of experience helping market research, technology, and private-equity-backed businesses scale revenue, improve operations, and build predictable growth systems.
Throughout his career, he has led sales transformation initiatives, pricing strategy projects, subscription business model transitions, operational redesign efforts, and commercial growth programs.
He writes about leadership, organizational design, business systems, data-driven decision making, and the challenges companies face as they scale.
Learn more about Carter Cathey
