Job satisfaction doesn’t always mean financial rewards. Many people attribute being happy with their jobs and feeling like they are a valuable part of the team as what gives them job satisfaction. Being appreciated consistently and getting feedback on their performance can affect a business’ chance of keeping employees motivated.
However, appreciating employees doesn’t mean giving them a pat on the back and telling them they did a good job. They need to know what they did to make it worthy of praise.
As busy Team Leaders, it’s easy to forget to encourage and reward the team members for keeping them motivated. Motivation is often just using some type of common sense. It’s also about encouraging team members to expand their knowledge and skillset.
For instance, I had an Assistant who lacked confidence in her own capabilities and was reluctant to try new tasks. I knew if I encouraged and gently pushed her outside of her comfort zone that she would succeed. The result is that she felt good about herself, and the tasks got done.
Here are 10 ways to inspire your team members to be motivated and engaged.
- Keep your promises to them. If you made certain promises when you hired them, and you should have, your employees expect you to keep your promises. Things like pay, working conditions, and job security are basic expectations.
- Challenge your team members. Those employees who are the most sought after seek challenges to help them grow and learn.
- Don’t use fear as a way to motivate. Making your team members fear the loss of their job will only lower morale and energy levels.
- Use their creativity as a motivator. Give them projects that let them use their own creativity.
- Don’t be too strict and formal with your rules. You should have clear standards set and stick to them fairly, but you also need to allow for a little wiggle room.
- Know your team member’s personal goals and values. This lets you see how you can inspire them and keep them motivated. Pay attention to their lives outside of work. Showing them, they are valued as team players, and you will gain their respect.
- Outline clear career paths for each team member.
- Make sure your team members have what they need and want. Don’t take for granted they have all the tools and training they need or the support they need from their supervisors.
- Keep the lines of communication open. Make sure you offer plenty of training sessions, send out regular newsletters, use memos, and regular meetings. Ask questions and if they don’t understand or are confused about something, find a way to get the message to them in another format or wording.
- Coach them for success. Practice random acts of kindness. Give useful but positive feedback often. Give feedback in a way that encourages your team members to continue doing good work. If you must give negative feedback, do it quickly and privately. Don’t discuss problems while other members are present. Don’t forget to say “Thank you” to team members who have done a good job.
- Treat all your team members the same way and with respect and trust. Use your best judgment and experience when problems arise. When you make a mistake, apologize and admit you’re wrong. Your team members will relate to this, and you will earn their respect for being honest.
- Make work fun. Smile. Making work fun lets people be more relaxed. That let’s get more work done since they are more likely to enjoy themselves.
- Put into action some type of incentive for performance and improvement. It can be a monetary incentive or something else. Monetary incentives are a high motivator for many employees, while others are more motivated by recognition of some type.
No matter how many team members you have, your turnover rate will drop drastically if employees are happy in their jobs. They try hard to be better at what they are doing, employee morale stays high and your business will be more enjoyable for all involved.
