Not every task at work is going to feel like a day at Six Flags. That's okay. What's not okay is having a team that feels like every day is a slog. You don't need a ping pong table or a kegerator in your office to make work fun. Find little bits of fun in everyday activities, and focus on what it is that makes working in your organization great.
Taking time out of your day to slow down and practice mindfulness might sound like it would negatively impact productivity, but in many cases, the opposite is true. Many of us work in jobs where stress is a matter of course, but as the Harvard Business Review staff explains in their article Mindfulness in the Age of Complexity, "Stress is not a function of events; it’s a function of the view you take of events."
Sometimes a small shift in scenery can provide a big shift in motivation. If it's possible, think about how the environment your team works in impacts motivation. If there aren't many sources of natural light coming in, it might be valuable to step outside together from time to time.
Rewarding employees for their hard work is a motivational rule that nearly goes without saying. However, there are several ways to go about doing that, and some are more effective than others. Annual bonuses are a common way many employers reward employees for their hard work. Unfortunately, they don't often provide the motivation they're designed to. An annual bonus perceived as routine, disappointing, or unfair can even damage motivation in the workplace.
Your posture not only says a lot about your motivation levels—it can actually impact them. Amy Cuddy gave an outstanding TED presentation about what your own body language can tell you, and how it affects your mood, your work, and your interactions with others. Take a moment to think about your own posture, and the postures you're seeing around the workplace.
We're not talking about hiring a bouncer for your office (although you should make sure your employees feel safe at your workplace!). We’re talking about employees feeling secure enough to show their full selves at work. Psychological theory suggests that there is a hierarchy of basic needs that people require before they can be motivated to reach their full potential. Security falls right beneath physiological needs like food and water.
Autonomy and flexible work schedules are incredibly effective motivators. Giving employees more agency around when and how they get their work done can actually improve their efficiency, and help keep them motivated. The key here is that you're giving employees the freedom to work on their projects when their motivation is strongest, not just when they're in the workplace.
Although it's commonly stated that millennial employees are motivated by purposeful work, that's really true of most employees. We met with Imperative's Arthur Woods, who explained why purpose is a vital factor in employee motivation, and how to help share and express that purpose. Erica Dhawan echoed Arthur's advice in an article about motivation she wrote for The Muse.
It's easier to achieve success when you can envision it. Professionals of all types, from athletes to musicians and CEOs, all practice this technique to improve their motivation. Luckily, if you're providing a clear objective, you're already more than halfway there. Help the team understand what it would mean to achieve that objective.
In order to be motivated about your work, it’s crucial that you actually understand what your goals and objectives are. For many employees, that understanding starts with transparency in the workplace and ends with clarity. Without clarity, transparency begins to lose its effectiveness and motivational power. Make sure you're giving everyone a clear and concise mission they can get motivated about in the first place because it's nearly impossible to invest genuine motivation into something you're unaware of, or confused about.
Every relationship, including work relationships, is built on trust. Defaulting to transparency is one of the best ways to encourage an atmosphere of trust between you and your team and a team that trusts you will be more motivated and engaged with their work. Transparency also helps ensure that everyone is working with the same information.
A large part of understanding the purpose behind your work is seeing how it fits into the larger picture. You can help boost motivation in the workplace by ensuring your team understands how each of their efforts impacts the organization, customers, and the community. Completing a task usually provides a small sense of accomplishment, but knowing how that work helped others is the real antidote to disengagement.
This brings us to our next topic: staying healthy. As we learned in our interview with Button's Stephen Milbank, sharing is caring, but not if what you’re sharing is germs. When you’re ill, take a sick day! It's unlikely that you'll be getting any of your best work done when you can hardly hold your head up, and not taking the time to rest will only prolong your sickness and prevent your body from recovering. Make sure the policies you're instituting aren't keeping people from taking the time they need to stay healthy. Think about the way you approach time off, medical benefits, and employee wellness.
Banging your head against a problem for three hours is rarely productive. Stepping back and taking a moment to recalibrate isn't just helpful in staying motivated—it's also important to your health. Sitting all day isn't good for you, and neither is working nonstop. Taking a short break every hour or two can have a positive effect on both your mind and body, especially for remote workers. Don't forget to get up from your desk and grab some fresh air!
It's hard to stay focused and driven when you're hangry. That's why it's so important for everyone to stay fed, hydrated, and in some cases, caffeinated. Unfortunately, it's common for employees to become so busy that they can barely squeeze in time for lunch. That's not great for their health and even worse for their productivity. Not convinced? Read more on food's crucial role in employee well-being and engagement.
Let’s be real—we’re a little suspicious of people who are happy all the time. Negative emotions have their place, and some really good organizational changes can stem from having tough conversations. However, it's important to find ways to inject positive experiences into your team's interactions to create a net positive workplace.
Teamwork is one of the greatest motivators out there. Knowing that your colleagues have your back and are your cheerleaders is an amazing feeling. When your motivation dips, your teammates are right there with you, rooting for you as you complete your next project. In fact, 54% of employees say a strong sense of community (think: awesome coworkers, celebrating milestones, working toward a common mission) was a big reason they have stayed at an organization.
Part of what makes setting small and measurable goals so important is that it provides plenty of opportunities to celebrate your team’s hard work. This doesn't mean you need to give a standing ovation to every employee who made it to work on time—but it is crucial to let everyone know exactly how (and how much) each of their contributions moves the organization forward.
We've all had projects that just drag on and on, and seem to never end. It can be demoralizing to be stuck in a rut, which is why seeing how you've made visible progress feels so good. It's also a clear indicator that our work is making a difference. We met with Walter Chen, co-founder of iDoneThis, who shared some great insights into the importance of clear goal-setting and tracking progress. You can check out full the interview here.
One of the most important factors that contribute to employee motivation is how often their hard work gets recognized. 70% of employees say that motivation and morale would improve massively with increased recognition from managers. After all, if an employee produces exceptional results but their hard work isn't recognized, why would they continue to be a high-performing employee? Bonus points: there are other surprising benefits of employee recognition including improved working relationships, employee engagement, retention, and even empathy.
