At the suggestion of Kristen Doyle, our Director of Strategic Marketing, I'm going to begin occasionally sharing some Top 5 Lists of great blog posts that I have read around certain areas of Recruiting and Retention that I believe will have a huge impact on you as a Leader.

With so much in the news today about worker productivity and its impact on the US and global economy, Motivation seemed like a very logical place to start. Add to it, the last 3 CEO's that I've spoken with all listed "Self-Motivated" as one of the most important traits that someone possess to be successful at their company.

What do you think about these? Have I missed any? Please comment or send me an @Reply on Twitter so that your fellow readers can benefit as well.

1. Animated Video about Motivation 3.0 - a few months ago, Henry Sauer of Rackspace sent me a copy of Pink's new book DRiVE and when I read that cash bonuses have the same impact on the brain as cocaine, I started to really pay attention. If you're not into reading books, this 10 minute video is a great summary.
2. If You Want Performance, Give Intent - Simon Sinek has been talking about Purpose-driven organizations and the impact it has on motivation and productivity. This post shares a military story about trust and accountability that will really cause you to think.
3. Dave Kurlan's 5 Ways to Motivate Salespeople - from encouragement to demands, this one's short but powerful.
4. The Significance of Purpose - A short blog post that references a much longer study completed at Wharton that confirms just how powerful a purpose motive actually is.
5. Zappos CEO's Letter to His Team - his open, honest answers to all of the questions that the employees were asking of each other are a great example of how you should communicate to encourage productivity as opposed to the alternatives.