When I call forth a team of bright-minded, intuitive individuals to come up with and execute a project idea, we usually don’t find the end.
It doesn’t say much about the specific team members. Like I said, they are all intelligent, all creative and all ambitious. The problem is what I call the Lottery Project Effect.
To them (to anyone I call on) it’s as if they’ve been given the chance to buy a lottery ticket. They show up to the first meeting, they arrive, bringing a determined and creative aura with them. They’re ready to win the lottery.
As Seth Godin says, “The thrill of possibility, the chance for recognition, the chemical high of anticipation. That’s what people pay [show up] for.”
Buying a lottery ticket incites the anticipation and thrill. On the project end, though, being called on is the lottery ticket purchase. The thing is, they don’t cash in the ticket when the project is complete. They’re cashing in the ticket when they show up. The opportunity to create is the reward. They’ve won. But then starts the hard work.
If you didn’t know already, most people who win the lottery end up unhappy in the long run and continue to buy lottery tickets. So it goes on the project side, the thrill of possibility dies down, the chance for recognition that they hoped for starts being fulfilled the moment they meet other team members, the chemical high of anticipation gets trumped by the idea of “I’ve just won the lottery, now what the hell do I do?”
As the project leader, do you keep giving them lottery tickets? Or wait for a team that isn’t interested in the lottery.
Stay Positive & Tough Call, Huh? (That’s the Lottery Project Effect for you.)
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