The Entrepreneur’s Guide To Motivating Your Team


Managing a team of employees is both a rewarding and challenging experience. At the beginning of the process, you sifted through applications and conducted interviews, certain that you would find the right candidates. And you did! You now have a trained team that understands your business and what’s involved. However, the day will come when your team becomes complacent or bored with their current positions. Motivating your team is the key to continuously high-levels of productivity and longevity for your business.

As the owner, you are responsible for motivating your employees. After all, these are the people who have direct contact with your clients and customers. These are the people you chose to manage your finances and marketing efforts. When motivation decreases, mistakes increase, which will ultimately affect your business.

Your team wants to be appreciated and valued for the work they do. They deserve to be treated fairly and paid equally. Here are a few ways that you can inspire your team and provide them with what they need.

Fair Pay

As a small business, you might not be able to offer rates comparable with the more prominent firms in your industry. However, you can still be fair. If you need to start people off on minimum wage, do it. Offer rises when they work hard, or bonuses when you can. Pay certainly isn’t everything, and many employees would rather earn slightly less to work somewhere that they enjoy and are treated well. Yet, it’s still important. Pay what you can and be fair to your staff.

Loyalty

One thing that we ask for from our staff is loyalty. We don’t expect them to look for other work or sharing company secrets. We need to be able to rely on them. Well, this works both ways. If you are asking for their loyalty, you need to give them yours. Give them your time and encouragement and don’t go looking for replacements at the first sign of trouble.

Equality

Workplace equality has always been important, and in the current climate, it’s under more scrutiny than ever. Your staff has the right to expect equality in the workplace. This will help them to respect you but also cultivate a teamwork spirit in the workplace.

Incentives

Incentives are tough. On the one hand, you might think that they are unnecessary because you already pay your team. However, in reality, having an incentive structure for sales team can help to motivate and inspire them. The incentives don’t need to be massive, just something small that shows your appreciation and gives the team a fresh focus.

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Team Spirit

Equality, fairness, and incentives do a lot to promote team spirit. But, you could be doing even more. Good team spirit ensures that your staff is happy to work. That they enjoy coming in, that they help each other out and that they can rely on each other. A team works much better than a group of individuals working in the same place.

Arrange team nights out, daytime events, competitions, and parties. Encourage friendships by keeping the office open plan and having a well-stocked rest area in the workplace.

Be a Role Model

One of the best ways to motivate your staff is to lead by example. Get stuck in with the hard work. Do the dirty jobs that no one else wants. Be the first in the office and the last to leave and don’t ever ask anyone to do something that you wouldn’t be willing to do yourself. Your staff will respect you, work hard for you and be loyal to your business.

Give Them Clear Goals

Managers often have expectations of their staff. They punish their staff or hold back on their development because they aren’t meeting these expectations. However, more often than not, the employee had no idea what these expectations were in the first place. They can’t hit targets that they don’t know about.

Set your employees with clear and concise goals. From small daily targets, right up to more significant developmental milestones. Brief them on what you expect at the start of every shift, but also have appraisals to talk about where you both want them to go.

Offer Continuous Development

Staff often grow complacent and lose motivation merely because they are bored. They’ve been doing the same job for a long time, there’s nothing new to learn, and they are bored. Keep them interested and make them feel wanted with development and training. Teach them new things, help them to learn and grow and give them your time.

Make it a Great Place to Work

Perhaps the easiest way of motivating your team is by simply making it a wonderful place to work. Make sure your staff is happy, and they enjoy coming to work. Ask them what they want from you, give them the tools that they need to do their jobs and offer a fantastic workplace.

Reward hard work and achievements

Most of us respond positively to incentives and we work harder when we know that our commitment and dedication are valued. As an employer, it’s hugely beneficial to show your team that you appreciate the hours they put in and to celebrate milestones and accomplishments. You can organize a party, let people have an extra day off or look on sites like Hoppla for gifts. You could also look into financial bonuses or plan dinner at a restaurant or buy gift cards to let employees treat themselves. The options are endless and you don’t have to spend a fortune to show your employees that you are grateful to them. 

If employees feel undervalued and they never receive positive feedback or rewards of any kind, they may be inclined to look for opportunities elsewhere.

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