Tips to keep your employees motivated

Motivated employees are efficient, creative and can help increase overall profitability and bottom-line results. Furthermore, they are better problem-solvers and are innovative, proactive and more productive.

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Employees are the lifeblood of any business.

 

Motivated employees are efficient, creative and can help increase overall profitability and bottom-line results. Furthermore, they are better problem-solvers and are innovative, proactive and more productive.

 

Now more than ever, entrepreneurs must be proactive and have the right strategies in place to keep their employees motivated. If your business is still starting up, you will need everyone on board to take it to the next level.

 

We offer some tips to keep your team working at optimal levels.

 

Set goals

 

Goal-setting gives employees meaning in their day-to-day roles. To motivate your team, you should establish what is expected of them, help them visualise what success in their role looks like and explain how they make a difference to the business. Creating the connection between your employees’ objectives and the goals of the business is very important.

 

Create a positive work environment

 

A positive work environment is a productive work environment. This is why you should work to develop people skills among those in management and invest in regular team-building activities that forge bonds between employees.

 

Having an aesthetically pleasing, well-lit, functional, and fun space makes work a lot more pleasant. 

 

Value individual contributions

 

Entrepreneurs must ensure that employees understand how their individual efforts contribute to the business’s overall strategy and direction. People like to be part of a winning team. Employees will take pride and be engaged in their work if they understand how their efforts impact the overall business.

 

Encourage teamwork

 

Through teamwork, employees will learn to trust each other. It also makes them look beyond themselves. Healthy competition in the team setting will help in keeping your employees motivated.

 

Celebrate small and big successes

 

It’s not just the big wins that should be acknowledged: setting and celebrating smaller milestones keeps employees motivated on a daily basis. In addition to yearly goals, set goals to track what your people are achieving on a weekly or monthly basis. When a smaller success isn’t achieved, take the opportunity to see what’s blocking your team’s progress and how it can be overcome.  

 

Provide training opportunities

 

Continuous learning is one of the best employee motivators. Investing in employees helps increase employee engagement and commitment to the business. Leadership training for management is also important. Leaders and managers must engage and empower employees to stay focused and develop innovative solutions.

 

Ask questions and listen to answers

 

Employees want to see the business they work for succeed. Many have great ideas, ranging from money saving to operational improvements and streamlining processes. Leaders must take time to ask and listen to suggestions not only to make employees feel valued but for the sake of their businesses. Asking questions can help develop critical innovative thinking.

 

Keep your promises

 

Keep employees motivated by establishing an atmosphere of trust and consistency. Be mindful of the promises you make. If an employee’s hard work is met without the promised reward, it’s not just motivation that suffers. It can also lead to feelings of resentment and betrayal, which inevitably leads to increased employee turnover.  

 

Provide meaningful feedback

 

In addition to asking questions and listening, giving specific, targeted feedback proves to your employees that you’re paying attention. The same goes for providing constructive feedback on areas of improvement: keep this feedback personalised and actionable. Remember that the goal should be to help your people grow and develop, so providing ongoing, timely feedback is crucial.

 

Value work-life balance

 

This is a big deal to today's employees. Make sure you ask employees about their idea of work-life balance in the business and how they would like to see the business help them create a balance between their work and personal lives. This kind of personal touch is effective in that it creates the impression that management is ready to collaborate with their employees in achieving their aspirations.

 

Keep learning 

 

As with most things, there is no magical, one-size-fits-all formula for keeping employees motivated. Maintaining motivation in your team is an ongoing task filled with opportunities to experiment and learn what works and what doesn’t. 

 

As your crucial human capital, your employees staying motivated and passionate about your business goals should be one of your top priorities.

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