Would You Work for Praise?

Some jobs you hate; some you love. But would you work for praise and recognition alone?

BusinessWeek reporter Stephen Baker explores how money-making ventures are harnessing creative energy of people without paying them for their time. Here is how it works:

Entrepreneurs like [ThisNext's Gordon] Gould build meeting places that provide visitors with tools to express themselves, mingle with friends and strangers, and establish their personal “brands.” The result, when all goes well, is an outpouring of creativity.

If you think about it, a recognition economy isn’t much different from volunteering your time an energy in other peer recognized arenas.

Capitalizing on people who desire self-sufficiency, this trend is an evolution of the engine that drives other volunteer-based internet and computer technology.

[M]asses of free laborers—from coders building Linux open-source software to editors fine-tuning an entry on Wikipedia—continue to toil without ever seeing a payday, or even angling for one. Many find compensation in currencies that predate the market economy. These include praise from peers, a respected place within a community, victories in online contests, and satisfaction from helping others.

If you think about it, we have a “recognition economy” already. The difference appears to be that, instead of using talent to expand a knowledge base such as Wikis, entrepreneurs are harvesting this talent pool for profit. The ethical considerations are immense. Then again, it could be a way to exploit the craving for Andy Warhol’s “Fifteen Minutes.”

Here are other articles I have written on this topic:

• Peter Weill: IT Savvy Can Be a Strategic Asset
• Writing a Strategic Communications Plan: Evaluation
• Advertising Picks Up, Recession Nears End?
• Beige Book’s Midwestern Summary
• Argonne Credit Union Annual Meeting
• Why Would the General Assembly Stimulate Housing Inventories?
• Book Review: Game Theory at Work