Give a little at a time rather than taking away

Give a little at a time rather than taking away

I'm sure there's research somewhere that explains this phenomenon*, but in my experience, most people are more bothered when you take something away from them than they are when you give them very little to start with and add as needed.

Here's what I've seen: if you give your database users full access to everything (e.g., full admin rights), and then at some point decide to take some of that access away, even if they never used the functionality you're taking away, they will perceive this as a slight or punishment or a loss.

On the other hand, if you give them very limited rights and then add more rights as they are needed, you'll hear very little complaining at all.

So when you're implementing a new AMS, or you're adding new users to an existing system, start by giving the users as little access as possible and add more as they need it, rather than giving them everything and taking things away. Everyone will be much happier!

===

*It turns out this phenomenon is called "loss aversion."

Wes's Wednesday Wisdom Archives

Engagement is measured by the customer

May 27, 2020

Engagement is Measured by the Customer I’ve written a bunch about measuring engagement in the past. (Click […]

Yes, you do have a process for that

May 13, 2020

Yes, you do have a process for that When I work with clients on pretty […]

“Correct your mistakes before they become your habits”

May 6, 2020

“Correct your mistakes before they become your habits” Yet another great quote from James Clear: “Correct […]

Sometimes it’s a process issue

April 29, 2020

Sometimes it’s a process issue When I work with clients on developing a needs list […]

First ask: “How will I use this data?”

April 22, 2020

First ask: “How will I use this data?” Whether it’s during data conversion, adding a […]

“We run the report three times and get three different results.”

April 15, 2020

“We run the report three times and get three different results.” “We run the same […]

How do you know if you’re making progress?

April 8, 2020

How do you know if you’re making progress? We all want to improve our data management, […]

Don’t move too quickly OR too slowly

April 1, 2020

Don’t move too quickly OR too slowly This may sound like a big “duh!” but I’ll […]

“Your current habits are perfectly designed to deliver your current results.”

March 25, 2020

“Your current habits are perfectly designed to deliver your current results.” “Your current habits are […]

There is value in just going through the exercise

March 18, 2020

There is value in just going through the exercise I was working with a client […]

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Scroll to Top