Is Effort or Result What Matters? | Differences in Thinking Between Business and Education

The 8th installment collecting golden words from the Undercover Billionaire.
A quick recap of the show.

Following these rules, billionaire Glenn Stearns dove into an unfamiliar city with nothing but his bare hands.
You can watch all episodes for free on the Discovery Channel YouTube channel.

In this article, I have written about education based on the golden words I learned from EP. 8 (the 8th and final episode) of Glenn's journey.

1. Two Golden Words from Undercover Billionaire EP. 8

With the money earned at the BBQ festival and the track record of winning the contest, Glenn is rushing preparations to finally open the restaurant "UNDERDOG BBQ."

For the "UNDERDOG BBQ" restaurant to remain a local Erie business even after Glenn's challenge ends, the team members need to take on the appropriate roles.

EP. 8 was the moving final episode where Glenn finally revealed his true identity and handed over UNDERDOG BBQ to the team. These are the two golden words gained from it.

Now, let's look at them one by one.

2. What is important: effort or results?

The team is rushing preparations to open the "UNDERDOG BBQ" restaurant in the remaining four days.

During these preparations, Glenn assesses who will lead the team after he leaves. At the same time, he must also consider their positions so that the team members can take on the appropriate roles.

Meanwhile, one concern is Christine, who was the pitmaster at the BBQ festival.
Although Christine worked hard, she made repeated mistakes in inventory management.

Glenn says:

Glenn tried to bridge the gap in their thinking while finding the right role for her, but in the end, Christine walked away.

In class and at home, children work hard at their studies, and their abilities are tested through regular exams and academic achievement tests.
The results of that effort become clear in their test scores, and at the end of the term, they are notified of their grades based on specific criteria.

Some children may feel their efforts were rewarded, saying, "I'm glad I worked hard."
On the other hand, there are not a few children who say, "I worked so hard, but it was no good at all."

How should a teacher respond to the children at that time?
Should they sternly push back, saying, "Effort isn't everything"?
No, they surely couldn't do that (^^;

They might offer encouragement along the lines of, "That effort will never be wasted. The buds may not have appeared yet, but strong roots are growing beneath your feet. Let's keep making an effort, believing that strong buds will eventually emerge."

While offering encouragement, it is also necessary to provide advice on how to put in effort and how to study.
How to put in effort efficiently. How to put in effort that leads to results.
That is what Glenn means when he says, "Working hard is a prerequisite, but how you work smart is what's essential."

And so, when the buds eventually appear, the children willtruly realize the value of their efforts.

3. Are you skimping on rewards?

Glenn revealed his true identity to the team.
He was worried that everyone would be angry, but the members understood Glenn's position and accepted his request to continue growing UNDERDOG BBQ into a business rooted in the local Erie community.
The united team proceeds with the remaining opening preparations at a rapid pace.

The restaurant's opening day finally arrives. It is also the final day of Glenn's 90-day challenge.

As his final task, Glenn visits the members who cooperated with this project.
He gives them rewards commensurate with their work and asks them to continue cooperating with the team.

Although the amounts differ slightly for each person, they are tens of thousands of dollars each (which amounts to several million yen). In any case, it is an exceptional reward.

Rewards commensurate with effort and results.

If you can obtain a reward as proof of a proper evaluation for the results of your actions,it will lead to the feeling that your efforts were rewarded and motivate you for the next step.

By the way,what is a reward in education??

A common one is, "If you get a good test score, I'll buy you such-and-such."
Parents might do this, but teachers cannot use such tactics, and while such methods might be effective in the short term, they could have negative effects in the long run.

Then,what is a reward in school?

It is nothing other than thebrain hormone "dopamine"obtained through successful experiences.

Dopamine, also known as the "motivation hormone," is a substance that acts as a "trigger" to get energized, such as by feeling "pleasant," "experiencing a lot of happiness," or "increasing motivation."

Accumulating small successful experiences is said to trigger the release of dopamine.
Schools are places where these successful experiences happen frequently.
So frequently, in fact, that we often pass them by without even noticing them (^^;

It is the teacher's role to not overlook these, but to praise and acknowledge them.
"You did it!"
"Great job!"
"I'm so happy for you!"
Even with simple words like these, if you can share in that success with them, there is no doubt that the children's dopamine will be released.

The important thing is not to be stingy with such rewards.

"That's nothing special."
"You should be able to do that much."
Parents and teachers alike tend to view small successes and changes in that way.
Sometimes we even brush them off, thinking, "I don't have time to deal with every little thing."

No, no, you must not be stingy with rewards. Just as Glenn did for his team, let's prepare rewards so generous that they might even feel hesitant to accept them.

Conclusion | A Place Where We Can Celebrate Success Together

In this article, I explored the common ground between business and education based on the final episode of Undercover Billionaire.

What I have felt after working as a teacher for many years is that while the vectors of their efforts may differ, neither the children nor the teachers ever spare any effort.

However, I have also seen many cases where such efforts did not lead to results, or they lost motivation and stalled halfway through.

Persistent effort, receiving appropriate rewards for that effort, and successful experiences shared with companions gathered at school.
I believe that school is a place that holds the potential for these things to intricately intertwine and cause a chemical reaction.

Now, having watched Glenn's challenge over the course of eight episodes, I found that there were many common points between the business philosophy and educational philosophy shared by the billionaire that should be referenced.

The children in front of us now include those who will jump into the business world in the not-too-distant future.
I also believe it is important to tell them that school and society are connected based on these business philosophies.

End

Part 1 ◀︎ Click here for the 7th collection of golden sayings obtained from EP.7.

👇 I have collected the golden sayings from all 8 episodes in a magazine.