How to Motivate and Empower Your Employees, Money Isn’t Everything
When starting a career, believe that money was the only, or at least the most effective, way to motivate employees. But over the years, learn that people’s motivations vary widely when giving raises and trying to buy out honest employees.
For some, financial reward may not seem like the most important thing. The basic responsibility of every job seeker. People with different personalities place different values on different aspects of work and life. Employee motivation can take many forms, and will examine it through two different categories of motivation: intrinsic and extrinsic motivation.
Intrinsic motivation centers around your own satisfaction and participation in reward-driven activities for (in this case) your own goals and personal achievement. Extrinsic motivation, on the other hand, revolves around external incentives. Believe that creating a good workplace for employees requires a balance between internal and external perspectives.
Intrinsic Motivation Factors
Freedom
I have found that giving employees the freedom to make their own decisions not only increases job satisfaction, but can also be more profitable while engaging. new talent. If you needed more evidence that raises aren’t the best motivator, research shows that nearly half of employees would give up a 20% raise in exchange for managing more of their work.
This method may not be possible, so if it’s the case, consider letting your employees self-determine their own work and make their own schedules. You may be surprised to see that many of them follow their own schedules if they have your approval and permission.
Flexibility
This has great appeal for people like me who prioritize managing a healthy work-life balance. Remote work hours may include features such as a shared workspace or the ability to customize your work hours and hours. Adaptability can continue to enable employees to choose the jobs they like best and even if they like to collaborate.
Education
Remember the importance of teaching and educating your members. Some employees are driven by their aspirations to ascend the corporate hierarchy and attain particular job positions. Hence, I strongly urge you to identify those employees who have mapped out specific career paths.
Take the initiative to engage in one-on-one discussions with them and actively support their journey towards their aspirations. Offering direct access to leadership can be an influential resource, particularly in larger corporate settings where personalized attention is less common.
Extrinsic Motivation Factors
Recognition/Awards
For recognition and awards to hold genuine significance, they must be sincere and tailored to the individual. Make a point of publicly acknowledging your employees in the presence of their peers to allow for multiple congratulatory moments. This may also encourage other members of the group to achieve similar results.
But recognition does not always depend on a multitude of targets. It can also be used to reward certain behaviors. For example, if an employee recently worked overtime or contributed outside of their normal responsibilities to help with a project, praising these behaviors can increase motivation and satisfaction.
According to HubSpot research, 69% of employees said they would go above and beyond if their contributions were recognized. Gaining the respect of peers is closely related to the sense of belonging. Employee recognition can boost employee morale and increase job satisfaction.
Also, offering special gifts such as tickets to a sporting event or concert or a gift card to a restaurant of their choice can be a way to keep employees happy. I like to give private encouragement to people who work harder or better than me. It reflects our commitment to each other’s success.
Giving Leave
Give your employees time off as a performance reward and monitor their motivation levels. Personally, as a CEO, I find this to be the most motivating thing. It’s also worth noting that this motivation can foster a greater sense of unity and increase overall performance and morale when employees collaborate within a team.
For example, you can give an extra day to your employees who achieve their goals and perform well in their roles. But even a simple gesture like taking an afternoon to show your appreciation can have a big impact and leave employees feeling productive and fulfilled when they return.
It is also important to note that the reward period does not coincide with the achievement of performance measures. Companies that pay special attention to raising sales targets and financial targets will not support a work culture that is solely focused on achieving the brand.
If your goal is to retain good employees while motivating them and performing well, I believe it is important to strike a balance between internal and external motivation. It should be noted that relying on external rewards can lead to conflict among employees, so compromise is important. So your motivation should not only be financial support.
In addition to extrinsic motivation elements such as recognition, rewards and leave, positive motivation elements such as independence, freedom and direction that the employee needs should also be included. Help maintain a healthy work-life balance.
Summary
A balance between internal and external perspectives is essential for a successful workplace. We create harmony by realizing personal satisfaction (intrinsic) and extrinsic rewards such as recognition and permission (extrinsic). This balance can benefit employees and organizations through motivation, job satisfaction and overall well-being.