Self-actualized employees do great work.
Welcome to Google, where signing the offer letter means far more than a commitment to come to work each day. I have a new theory: Google recruits and invests in employees such that they are often in the top-level of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, self-actualization.
Level one is the purpose of the Google office environment (fulfilling basic needs like food, water, and sleep). Hungary? Eat at one of the dozen organic, hormone-free cafe's on campus for free. Thirsty? Walk 20 steps out of your office to one of the micro-kitchens and grab an Odawalla from the fridge or make a caramel latte (all still free). Tired? Rest your eyes in a Google nap pod, sitting along the corridors. Or why not get a professional massage down the hallway (literally, 5 office rooms away from my office).
Levels two through four (safety, love, and belonging) are taken care of during the recruitment process. Their interviews incorperate many efforts to identify highly-functional individuals. However, a few extra perks can't hurt! How about on-site childcare (oh yes, there are Google babies!) or free on-site laundry services?
With all of these levels taken care of, there is only one place left to live: the incredibly rewarding experience of self-actualized work. Need more proof? Here are some of the things that happened to me today which spurred me to come to this conclusion: I sat outside and ate Eggs Benedict while perusing the New York Times morning paper on my laptop; I was assigned a female mentor in the Zurich office and will be "meeting" with her next week over video conference to talk about life; I laughed for a solid half-hour with another PM in the New York office about the possibilities of Google search; I heard Olivia Cabane speak about the "science" of developing charisma; AND (the kicker!) I got a bunch of great work done with Google engineers too.
But don't take my word for it. Come and visit the Google campus. There are a lot of smiling and laughing people. And it's not just the Nooglers. Although you can usually pick out the Nooglers in a crowd, because not only are they wearing the new Google t-shirt they got last week (again) or walking out of the cafes with two plates of food (WARNING: The Google-fifteen is not a joke) ... but they're also the ones writing ridiculously optimistic and sparkly blog posts to the outside world, still in shock that places like this actually exist. Self-actualized employees do great work.
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