Employees are the most important resource a company has. Without people to do the work—or worse, without motivated and engaged employees—you won’t get far.

Understanding how to motivate and create a positive work environment can often be a tough nut to crack. Human emotions, thoughts, attitudes, and reactions are often unpredictable, making it difficult to know how to lead and motivate everyone effectively.

So, what should you do?

SHOW EMPATHY

You’re leading a group of people, not robots. Empathy is the ability to understand another person's feelings. Being aware of how your employees feel makes it easier to make decisions and create a work environment that removes negative attitudes and emotions.

WHAT MOTIVATES THEM?

Have frequent one-on-one meetings. Find out what gets your employees out of bed in the morning. What are they passionate about? What are their life goals and interests? In other words, do you really know your employees? Good leaders show interest in people's job and career goals to motivate them properly. It’s about emotional engagement.

DEVELOPMENT

Most people want to develop, learn more, and feel they’re mastering new things. Provide employees with opportunities to acquire new and relevant knowledge that can help them tackle future tasks and roles. No company wants to lose a skilled and engaged employee due to boredom. If you give them knowledge they can use for new projects, you’ll have a satisfied employee for a long time.

EMPOWERMENT

Assign tasks and responsibilities, along with the necessary resources and opportunities, so that employees can succeed. Allow them to take ownership of a task and complete it fully. It’s crucial not to micromanage everything but instead to show that you trust their competence and qualities. Nothing is more demotivating than a manager who constantly hovers over your shoulder, trying to control every move. They were hired to do a job, so trust that they can do it.

GIVE FEEDBACK

Even though they have authority and full responsibility, it’s important to provide feedback on their work. Ask how things are going, what they might need, and discuss possible alternatives. Constructive feedback is key, highlighting what’s working well and what could be done differently. Give them something to think about and consider, without demanding it.

LEAD BY EXAMPLE

Be honest, innovative, and a good team player. Even in tough times, it’s important to keep your composure when things get hectic. Maintain structure and stay aware of what everyone is doing. If things heat up in the department, be ready to roll up your sleeves. Employees will feel that you’re a team player and that you’re not afraid to pitch in. Take responsibility and stand by the decisions you make.

RECOGNIZE ACHIEVEMENTS

Did Kari deliver great results last month? Tell her! Did Ivar go the extra mile to ensure everyone was happy? Give him a pat on the back. Let them hear it, preferably every week. According to Gallup, this is a critical point for increasing productivity and employee engagement. Take time to express what you appreciate about each employee, whether through text messages, emails, phone calls, or, ideally, in person.

ACTIVE INVOLVEMENT

Good leaders understand that leadership is not just a one-way street. While decisions sometimes come from the top, it’s often best to let information, decisions, and distributions flow from the bottom up, leveraging the team’s engagement and experiences to solve challenges. They’re often the ones with detailed knowledge and insight into how things work on the front lines.

BE TRANSPARENT

If there was a leadership meeting where something important was discussed that everyone should know about, inform your team. Send out a summary after the meeting to keep everyone in the loop. Ensure open communication and be honest. It’s not helpful to ask an employee for something you thought you requested long ago but maybe didn’t. It’s easy to think you’ve communicated something when it was just a thought. This leads to misunderstandings, dissatisfaction, and stress. Explain where the company is headed, what goals are to be achieved, and what actions are being taken—then get the rest of the team involved.

CREATE A SENSE OF BELONGING

It’s important for everyone to feel that their work is meaningful. Let them know why their job is so important to the company. If you work at a hotel, tell the cleaning staff about the positive feedback on the cleanliness of the rooms, how the bathroom sparkles, and how fresh the linens smell. Tell the receptionist that they are the face of the hotel and that maybe their excellent service was the reason a guest returned.

INCLUDE EVERYONE

Invite employees to company events such as holiday parties, kick-offs, gatherings, or trade shows. Consider hosting awards ceremonies. For example, you could recognize the best salesperson, the most positive team member, the hardest worker, the brightest star, or the top earner for the company that year. There are countless possibilities! The most important thing is to include everyone, giving them a positive experience and a sense of importance to the company.

(Sources: smallbusiness.ng, medium.com, talerlisten.no)

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