Are you finding it difficult to keep your team motivated and focused, especially if they are working remotely? This is more common than you think. After all, you do not have the benefit of all the face to face social interactions and informal conversation that can give you a sense for how the team is feeling. You may feel a bit out of touch with what they are doing and thinking aside from Zoom calls or Slack chats. And frankly, what remote employees need less of is ever more calendar invites and meetings.
It is also not enough just to give your employees praise. Praise is always welcome, of course, but not nearly enough to keep people motivated.
Here are three tips that dig deeper and will have a more lasting effect on your employee motivation:
Hire Motivated People
This may sound obvious, but the best way to have employees who stay motivated through thick and thin, is to select them in the first place. Motivation is mostly a matter of attitude, which is part of an individual’s personality and can be drawn out in the interview process. Ask them for examples of how they tackled challenges and overcame obstacles in previous jobs or in their personal life.
Also trust your gut. Ask yourself, how do I feel after talking to this person? Am I energized and excited, or feeling down and tired?
Challenge Them
Often a team member who seems to have lost their motivation is “stuck in a rut.” Doing the same thing over and over, even at a high level, can dull the senses. Some need new things to do in order to motivate them to be their best.
Give them new responsibilities, give them a new challenge, assign them to work with different team members. Let them make mistakes, learn, and master new skills.
The Bigger Picture
As a leader of the organization, one of your most important roles is to communicate the bigger picture, the “why” of why we are all working. Beyond earning a profit, and employees’ earning a paycheck, what is the larger reason and purpose of their work?
The most motivated teams are focused on a bigger goal – it could be to be the biggest, the best, the most customer friendly, the most efficient or beneficial to society – you choose, and let them know it often. Celebrate success!
Hiring motivated people, challenging them with new responsibilities that allow them to grow, and reminding them of the bigger picture will have a lasting and positive effect on your team’s motivation.
Need support and tools to help manage your team? Schedule a call and let’s talk about your goals.