What is the most powerful motivator in the workplace? A recent article from Harvard Business Review suggests that the #1 motivator in the workplace is not money but, instead, people’s natural tendencies to measure their own performance against their coworkers.

Harvard Business School professor Ian I. Larkin studied the power of social comparison among salespeople at a large enterprise software company, where salespeople’s earnings are mainly based on commissions.  The firm employs a “commission accelerator” program that boosts the commission of salespeople who make a high-volume sale at the beginning of a given quarter. The company’s other incentive for salespeople is a president’s club for salespeople who outsell their coworkers by 90 percent each year.

At the end of a given year, salespeople at this software firm are often faced with two options: make the sale right away and gain entry into the president’s club, or delay the sale and increase their salary for the next year.

Larkin’s study found that, surprisingly, the salespeople who were on the margin of being admitted into the club were actually willing to give up greater commissions (nearly $30,000 on average) in return for entry into the president’s club.

Even more surprisingly, this club had no financial benefits except a weekend trip to a tropical destination worth much less than the value of a commissions boost. Other than that, all they got was an email from the CEO, company-wide recognition, and a gold star on their name board.

Do we ever outgrow our desire for basic rewards, like the gold-star board for kids? Larkin’s study suggests that, even as adults, a gold-star system is so impactful that people would actually give up money to get a gold star.

Even in a work environment, our competitive nature and desire for basic rewards drives us even more than money, according to Larkin’s study. So what does this mean for managers? More rewards and non-monetary incentives for employees — and a little healthy competition never hurt anyone!

You can read the original article from Harvard Business Review here.