Ways to Keep Employees Motivated

Have you ever stopped to consider that your employees probably aren’t motivated exclusively by money. Would you be surprised to learn that they actually care more about doing satisfying work, and being appreciated. Seriously.

Employees are happiest when they’re engaged, recognized, excited, and kept in the loop. And it’s not just them. We’re all happier when we feel appreciated. And here’s the great news: a happy employee is a motivated employee.

Motivated employees are more productive, and also more loyal. The benefits of that are clear: lower turnover rate (which saves you money), more consistency, and a better finished product.

Start using these tips today to keep your employees motivated.

1. Keep Them In the Loop

One of the biggest mistakes business owners make is not keeping their employees in the loop. When employees are asked to work blindly, it’s difficult for them to see the big picture. It’s hard for them to know why what they’re doing matters. You can’t just expect employees to understand on their own. Keep them up to date on goals, progress, and achievement, including important news, and growth direction.

Adapt a culture of openness and transparency. You’ll be surprised at the results. Your employees will jump on board if you let them. And they may prove to be more valuable than you thought.

2. Recognize Their Achievements

When your staff does something great, let them know. When they work hard (even if the product isn’t great) let them know! Positive reinforcement is much more effective at motivating than negative punishment. If you want them to keep doing what they doing – thank them. Tell them how valuable their work is and how much you appreciate it.

We all love the feeling we get when someone else recognizes our achievements. When we know how to get it, we’ll go out of our way to get it again.

3. Notice When They’re Struggling

As managers we tend to get so caught up in our work that we don’t notice when our employees are struggling. When an employees needs help they usually won’t tell you. This is because they don’t want to disappoint you, or get in your way.

If your staff has been distant or less engaged — do some probing. It could be they have something personal going on and you reaching out will mean a lot. It could also mean they’re struggling with a challenge at work. Offer to help them through it. If you can’t help, match them up with someone who can.

Showing your employees that it’s OK to have challenges. By helping them get through it and grow professionally, you’re showing them you care. There is no greater way to breed loyalty.

4. Share Your Excitement With Them

This is more than just keeping your team in the loop. When something great happens in your business, let them in on the excitement — even if you feel like the achievement was all your own. So much of our time at work is spent working through challenges, putting out fires and doing the impossible.

Not only do you need to stop and celebrate progress from time to time, but your team does too. Remind them of all the great things that are happening and why what they’re doing is important. Who doesn’t love to be part of a positive work environment?

5. Value Their Input

Your employees may not know as much as you do, and they may not fully understand your goals (they should if you have a transparent culture), but they have ideas. Some of them won’t be that useful but some of them will be great. Front-line employees understand a different side of the business you may not have thought about. Truly, they have value to add. Get their input.

What’s more, when employees feel like they’re opinion is valued, they have been given the best compliment possible. They will feel important and they will rise to that standard in the future.

By Casandra