One of the most important things for any business owner is selecting the right employees for the job – however, even with exceptional employee choices, it is possible for your staff to lose motivation. There are several psychological factors that can be tapped into to help your staff keep motivated, allowing you to get fantastic results from your team.
Everyone that will ever work for you will have their own goals, dreams and ambitions, things they like and dislike and a manager who is capable of maintaining a positive workplace with high morale will experience higher levels of staff performance, increased productivity, fewer mistakes and lower absenteeism.
Here are 7 surefire ways you can build a positive environment for your employees.
1: Know your employees. A person is much more than a name and number or just a face you see at work. Most people like to be talked to as people rather than employees. Getting to know your employees, greeting them, and talking to them in an informal way will break down potential barriers, allowing them to get to know you and relate to you as a person instead of just a manager. By communicating well with people and making them feel cared about, you will help to keep them motivated.
2: Freedom: A good manager knows that a competent employee who was hired to perform a specific task or function will be able to do this without constant supervision. Micromanaging competent employees can make them feel undervalued and harassed and add pressure to a workplace that can become problematic over time. Sometimes, if you are not seeing results it can be good to take an employee to one side and have an informal talk with them, attempting to resolve problems they may have outside the earshot of other employees. In most cases though, leaving an employee to do what they do best will give you the best results you can hope for.
3: Respect your staff. It is always important to respect the opinions and thoughts of your staff. Asking for the opinions of staff members during meetings, and really listening and responding to their thoughts and concerns can help keep your staff feeling valued and motivated. Every employee has something to say, and even if they disagree with you fundamentally, valuing their input will be reciprocated by your staff. It can even help you progress with your business on a different path than you were expecting.
4: Challenge your staff: Nothing beats a boring work environment to be a black hole for staff motivation. Sometimes it can be a good idea to give your staff tasks that will offer a change of pace. Bring up your company agenda and stretch people to perform tasks or learn new skills that could help them achieve more when working for your company. You can approach things in a variety of ways, and telling people that you believe in them and that you know they can do it will help keep people inspired.
5: Feedback: You should always consider giving employees regular feedback on their work. We would always recommend looking for ways to give positive reinforcement to employees, rather than critical analysis, which could in itself be potentially damaging The main aim is to create a work environment in which an employee feels valued, and good positive feedback given regularly will improve staff performance. It will show the staff that their work is valuable and they, as individuals, are valued for the way they handle their tasks and perform at their job.
6: Set tasks to experience: If an employee will perform a task to a higher level based upon their personal skills and experience, it is a good idea to set them that specific task. Other less experienced workers may have trouble, and staff will generally resent being set tasks that are outside their comfort zone. It is important to ensure that you set tasks to people who can accomplish them quickly and efficiently. If you have one or two outstanding employees, make sure you do not overburden them by giving them too much to do. Spread tasks out as evenly as possible whilst delegating to the best staff for the job.
7: Believe in your staff: The most powerful motivation for any employee is to have a manager who genuinely believes in them. Nothing helps raise self esteem and boosts performance than having a boss who has faith in you. A good boss knows that their employees are capable and lets them know that they are valuable. Keeping a positive system of believing in your staff will inspire them to work harder and more efficiently for you, and will generally get you superior results above managers that do not value staff in the same way.
It is important to always be genuine with your staff, treating employees well using these techniques will only go so far if you do not truly believe in your staff. It is good to have a positive environment in which your employees will feel supported and safe, and it will benefit your business for years to come.
