10 Ways To Stimulate Employee Motivation

s fast-moving business environment demands that theas well.
effective manager be both a well-organized6. Encourage contact
administrator and highly adept in understanding people'sMany managers like to hide away behind closed office
basic needs and behaviour in the workplace. Gainingdoors, keeping contact to a minimum. That makes it
commitment, nurturing talent, and ensuring employeeeasy for an administrator, but hard to be a leader. It is
motivation and productivity require open communicationfar better to keep your office door open and to
and trust between managers and staff.encourage people to visit you when the door is open.
1. Understand their behaviourGo out of your way to chat to staff on an informal
People at work naturally tend to adopt instinctivebasis. Keep in mind that building rapport with your staff
modes of behaviour that are self-protective ratherwill effectively increase employee motivation.
than open and collaborative. This explains why emotion7. Use the strategic thinking of all employees.
is a strong force in the workplace and whyIt is very important to inform people about strategic
management often reacts violently to criticisms andplans and their own part in achieving the strategies.
usually seeks to control rather than take risks. So, inTake trouble to improve their understanding and to win
order to eliminate this kind of perspective and totheir approval, as this will have a highly positive
increase employee motivation, it is best that youinfluence on performance and increasing employee
influence behaviour rather than to change personalities.motivation as well.
Insisting what you expect from your employees will8. Develop trust
only worsen the situation.The quality and style of leadership are major factors in
2. Be sure that people's lower-level needs are met.gaining employee motivation and trust. Clear decision
People have various kinds of needs. Examples ofmaking should be coupled with a collaborative,
lower-level needs are salary, job security, and workingcollegiate approach. This entails taking people into your
conditions. In order to increase employee motivation,confidence and explicitly and openly valuing their
you have to meet these basic needs. Consequently,contributions. By simply giving your staff the opportunity
failures with basic needs nearly always explainto show that you can trust them is enough to increase
dissatisfaction among staff. Satisfaction, on the otheremployee motivation among them.
hand, springs from meeting higher-level needs, such as9. Delegate decisions
responsibility progress, and personal growth. WhenPushing the power of decision-making downward
satisfaction is met, chances are employee motivation isreduces pressure on senior management. It motivates
at hand.people on the lower levels because it gives them a
3. Encourage pridevote of confidence. Also, because the decision is
People need to feel that their contribution is valued andtaken nearer to the point of action, it is more likely to
unique. If you are a manager, seek to exploit this pridebe correct. Consequently, by encouraging them to
in others, and be proud of your own ability to handlechoose their own working methods, make decisions,
staff with positive results. This, in turn, will encourageand giving them responsibility for meeting the agreed
employee motivation among your people.goal will encourage employee motivation among your
4. Listen carefullystaff.
In many areas of a manager's job, from meetings and10. Appraising to motivate
appraisals to telephone calls, listening plays a key role.When choosing methods of assessing your staff's
Listening encourages employee motivation and,performance, always make sure that the end result
therefore, benefits both you and your staff. So makehas a positive effect on employee motivation and
an effort to understand people's attitudes by carefulincreases people's sense of self-worth. Realistic
listening and questioning and by giving them thetargets, positive feedback, and listening are key
opportunity to express themselves.factors.
5. Build confidenceIf you follow these simple steps in increasing employee
Most people suffer from insecurity at some time. Themotivation, rest assured you will have a good working
many kinds of anxiety that affect people inrelationship with your staff at the same time boost you
organizations can feed such insecurity, and insecuritycompany's productivity. Just bear in mind that people
impedes employee motivation. Your antidote, therefore,are employed to get good results for the company.
is to build confidence by giving recognition, high-levelTheir rates of success are intrinsically linked to how
tasks, and full information. In doing so, you only notthey are directed, reviewed, rewarded, trusted, and
refurbish employee motivation but boost productivitymotivated by the management.