Do your employees drag themselves into work every day? Are things constantly slipping through the cracks? Chances are, they’re just not feeling it - in other words, they’re unmotivated.
Without motivation, even the most skilled and capable workers can become unproductive. Which means your bottom line suffers - big time. The scary thing is that lack of motivation is so prevalent in business. In fact, 70 percent of employees consider themselves disengaged at work, according to Gallup.
But, if you figure out the secret of how to motivate employees and keep them motivated, the benefits for your business can be significant, including:
- Increased productivity
- Reduced employee turnover
- Increased customer satisfaction
- Increased revenue
- And dare we say….earlier retirement??
Here’s how to motivate employees to keep production and satisfaction levels high.
Spoiler alert: it’s not all about money
So let’s break down our 3 secrets on how to motivate employees - and keep them motivated
Understand WHAT motivates them.
Everyone is motivated by different things. Motivation is very personal and varies from person to person so it’s important to figure out what drives each individual on your team. Make sure that you’re able to keep each person excited about what they do and you’ll definitely see the benefits. Happier employees will strive to excel which means boosted productivity, a happier workplace and ultimately a better bottom line. Motivation isn’t a one size fits all - here are 6 different types of motivation to help you understand which type best fits your employees:
- Rewards/Incentives
- Achievement
- Power
- Growth
- Fear of Consequences
- Social Factors
If one of your employees is motivated by the first type, rewards or incentives, a little recognition for a job well done goes a long way. There have been many studies indicating that employees feel recognition is more fulfilling than any gifts or monetary rewards. And always keep in mind that everyone likes to be praised differently---some love everyone to know and that is important to them, while others prefer a quiet acknowledgement of their hard work.
Show them a future
Giving your employees direction of their potential career path within your company will help improve motivation. As a leader, you have a clearer perspective on the bigger picture for your business and it’s easy to forget that your employees don’t. Show them the bigger picture and share information so they feel that they’re an important part of the team, and share a common goal. One way to do this is to lay out the company vision as a team to show them what they’re working towards and make it a collaboration between teammates. Then, keeping the company goal in mind, align each employee’s personal goals with your company goals. Entrepreneur suggests helping employees set goals by employing the SMART framework. Goals should be:
Specific: Goals should answer who, what, when, where and why.
Measurable: Use concrete numbers so goals have measurable outcomes.
Attainable: Set employees up for success by setting goals that are within reach.
Relevant: Employee goals should closely tie to company-wide goals.
Timely: To maintain a sense of urgency, goals should be grounded within a time frame.
When employees can really see your end goals and vision for your business, good performance becomes important to them and will help their daily motivation. And when employees have an idea of what their career path looks like, they’re more likely to be happier—and happy employees can only mean greater productivity and a happier work environment!
Implement effective training
Employee motivation and personal and professional growth go hand-in-hand. Although specific motivators may be unique to each person, the desire and drive to advance is almost universal. We all want to get better at what we do and serve a purpose while we do it. Training your team and equipping them with the skills they need to get where they want to be is another effective way to motivate employees. Create a culture of training. It’s all-too common for businesses to have their training structures in place but they fail to invest in building a strong learning culture.
Learning how to motivate your employees will ultimately boost work satisfaction which positively impacts customer service - keeping customers coming back to your auto shop. Keep employees motivated and invested in your business and they’ll always be willing to give their best.
Your Time Management Hacks. Get time on your side and learn how to motivate employees with these time management hacks! Here’s how to accomplish more with the same amount of time.
References: https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/280668 , http://www.alexandrafranzen.com/2015/06/06/the-six-types-of-motivation/, https://www.inc.com/ilya-pozin/14-highly-effective-ways-to-motivate-employees.html, https://www.thebalance.com/how-great-managers-motivate-their-employees-1918772, https://www.forbes.com/forbes/welcome/?toURL=https://www.forbes.com/sites/victorlipman/2013/03/18/5-easy-ways-to-motivate-and-demotivate-employees/&refURL=https://www.google.com/&referrer=https://www.google.com/, https://www.forbes.com/sites/brentgleeson/2016/11/30/the-best-ways-to-motivate-employees-and-get-results/#70f5901f60dd