How to Motivate Your Slackers-Part 1

According to a recent survey, 70% of Americans are slackers: 20% are actively disengaged and 50% are not particularly committed. What turns a talented employee into a slacker? A lot of this disengagement comes from not receiving what they need from their employer. According to the Harvard Business Review, employees need the following:

  

Equity: To be respected and treated fairly in areas such as pay, benefits, and job security

Achievement: To be proud of one’s job, accomplishments, and employer

Camaraderie: To have good, productive relationships with fellow employees

In order to for your employees to maintain motivation, all of these must be present. Research has shown that employees that are missing at least one of these elements are three times less enthusiastic and motivated about their job. However, implementing these insights into action can be tricky. Here are some ways to turn your employees from slackers to machers:

Engage their families

No amount of job rewards can out-influence the significant other. If your employee comes home every night to their loved one asking, “When are you going to stop working for that jerk?” they will probably not be very motivated to work hard or be emotionally invested in your company. Conversely, if your employee has a bad day at work and comes home to, “you have a great job-tomorrow will be better”, they will be much more likely to be motivated to get back to work the next day. One of the best ways to do this is to make sure that new employees have a great first day. 85% of companies have a sharp decrease in employees’ morale after the first six months. One of the biggest reasons for this is because of the very slow start that many employees have at new jobs. Almost all new employees start with motivation and enthusiasm, but that quickly wanes when they are left in their office for the first week with nothing to do. Providing them with a quick start and a friendly environment can go a long way in securing the support of your spouse.

Change the focus from boss to customer

One of the best ways to ramp up the potential in your company is to unleash your employees.  Instead of keeping them focused on pleasing you, give them the responsibility of pleasing your customers. When you give your employees responsibility and let them create a relationship with the clients, they will be motivated to do everything they can to make your customers happy.

I will post the rest of the ways to motivate your employees later on this afternoon!

As always, I love to get your thoughts! Email me at JDanner@peoplelease.com