Other people's behaviour acts as a cue for what to do, buy, or believe.
More quotesA fine for late collection sounds like punishment. Some parents heard a price list.
That is the mischief of incentives: they alter meaning as well as maths.
Before the fine, lateness could feel like imposing on staff and other families. Afterwards, it could feel like purchasing overtime. A referral bonus can turn a personal recommendation into paid distribution. Points for every community contribution can make generosity feel like farming a leaderboard. Activity may rise while the original motive quietly disappears.
Money is perfectly appropriate when the relationship is already transactional. Pay overtime. Reward sales. Compensate difficult work. The problem comes when managers attach cash to trust, identity, pride or reciprocity without asking what story the payment tells. A tiny reward may signal that the task is trivial. A penalty may grant moral permission to break the norm. Remove the incentive later and discover the old reason has not returned.
Before adding pounds or points, name the current motive. Does the intervention recognise effort or purchase an exception? Does it strengthen “people like us do this” or announce “nobody would do this unpaid”? Run the thought experiment from the recipient’s side, not the spreadsheet’s. Incentives are pieces of communication with numbers attached. Treat them as neutral levers and do not act surprised when people read the message.