|
| |
|
Motivating Unmotivated
Employees |
|
|
|
|
|
If you walk around a Walt Disney
World resort or theme park, you are likely to witness something that in most
other settings would seem bizarre. Not the presence of a large animated
character, although you may witness that also. Rather, at any given moment,
a person in dress clothes will be walking from one destination to another
and will stop, pick up a piece of paper, a cup, or other piece of trash
someone dropped, and throw it in a trash can. Executives do it, front line
managers do it, hourly employees do it, everybody does it.
There is no special monetary compensation for this behavior. No point system
exists where $5 bonuses are given out for every fifteen pieces of trash that
someone picks up. There is also no special monitoring system in place which
watches for people who don't do it and then issues penalty points or
demerits. Yet, people are motivated to do it anyway.
Now, picking up trash may not be your top concern, but are there other
things in your department, division, or company that you would like your
employees to do? Are you looking for ways to motivate your people?
The answer is not pixie dust or magic. The key is being very good at
employing five essential motivation steps.
To some leaders these steps can seem intimidating. First time managers in
particular, who were promoted because of their individual skills are often
uncomfortable with these ideas. Many times they feel people should just do
what needs to be done "Because that is what they get paid for." Or they
believe the only way to motivate people is to give them more money.
Successful motivators don't think that way. They know that by following the
five steps, people can be motivated far beyond what they get paid for, and
far more effectively than when money is the only incentive.
Step #1 Clearly Articulate What Needs to be Accomplished and Why
Often the problem with getting people to accomplish things is not that they
are unmotivated, it is that they are uninformed. Leaders discuss goals with
their peers and superiors on a regular basis and are therefore intimately
familiar with them. Because of this familiarity, they mistakenly assume all
of their employees also know them. Usually this is not the case.
Take time to explain to all of your employees exactly what needs to be
accomplished and the reasons why. Don't forget the "Why?" Knowing that
enables people to make educated choices in their day to day decisions. For
example, the output from a team at a market research company whose goal is
to launch three new products, will vary greatly depending on if they know
that the "Why?" is because the company is losing market share to competitors
with products that can be downloaded from the Internet.
Goals should always include specific numeric objectives and timelines. A
goal of "Improve Customer Service" is nebulous and people won't know how
they are doing in their efforts to achieve it. However, "Decrease customer
wait times to 10 seconds by June 1st" is something people can visualize and
work toward.
Step #2 Involve People in Finding the Solutions
People are more motivated to succeed at something if they personally choose
to attempt it. Therefore, managers should involve their people in choosing
the goals the group needs to accomplish. If this is not possible, then
involving people in the creation of how to achieve the goals is the next
best thing. Their involvement will generate buy in and also opens up the
opportunity for an optimal solution.
Successful coaches use this technique on a regular basis. While it is true
they watch hours and hours of game films looking for weaknesses in their own
team as well as their competitors, they also involve their players in
finding the best way to win. They do it because no matter how much film they
watch, or how close they are to the game, they aren't in the game. The
perspectives of players or employees who are in the midst of the action can
be drastically different from a coach or a manager who is near the action.
If those perspectives aren't incorporated into the solution, two things will
happen. First, those in the midst of the action will feel that no-one is
listening to them, and they will become unmotivated. Second, decisions will
be made without incorporating all the relevant data. Both of these will
negatively impact progress toward the goals.
Step #3 Explain the Rules of the Game
Have you ever played a new sport or game against people who are experienced
players? In the early stages of learning how to play, every few minutes you
do something which you think is correct only to be told that it is illegal,
or against the rules. It can be exceptionally frustrating. This scenario
often plays out in the workplace. Employees are given a task, but are not
told all the parameters or rules. Weeks into a project they present their
work to someone only to be informed that they need to change direction
because of something they were never told about. This is particularly
demoralizing and should be avoided at all costs. People can find solutions
to almost any problem, but they need to know the rules of the game.
Step #4 Link People's Personal Goals with the Organizations Goals
There is a reason that each employee goes to work. Successful motivators
know what that reason is for every person who works for them. Each day they
help their employees fulfill those reasons. Really successful motivators
understand not only the reason, but how the reason ties into the person's
bigger life goals. When necessary, they help their people think about and
articulate those bigger life goals. When a person no longer thinks "I work
so that I can make money," and instead thinks "I work so that I can enable
my daughter to attend a school that will give her a chance to go do what she
wants in life," there is a significant mental and motivational shift that
occurs.
Understanding that someone comes to work because they thrive on personal
interaction, are trying to gain experience so they can run their own corner
deli, or whatever is their personal goal, enables a manager to talk in that
person's language. It also enables the manager to assign responsibilities in
that person's area of interest, and remind them of how what they are doing
is tied to their bigger goals.
Managers who enable people to fulfill their life goals through work, never
have to worry about how to motivate their people. The act of fulfilling
their life goals is enough to keep them motivated. All the manager has to do
is find the links between those goals, and the organization's needs, and
match the two up.
Step #5 Move Negative People off the Team
Nothing can halt progress like someone who is discontent simply for the sake
of being discontent. It is demoralizing to others and it draws energy and
time from the tasks being attempted. That doesn't mean you don't want good
"counter-point" people on your team. Someone who says "Look, I know what we
are all trying to do, and I think there is a better way," can be a valuable
resource to help make sure the team is on the right track. However, someone
who just regularly says "We'll never get there," will just hold everyone
back. Move them off the team, and bring in someone who will assist and
support the group's efforts.
Whether you are trying to motivate people to help create a clean environment
for guests, or something more pertinent to your organization, remember that
anyone can be a great motivator. All it takes is an understanding of the
appropriate steps to take and a willingness to do them. This article
contains the steps. The willingness is up to you.
About the Author
John Strelecky is the author of "The Why Are You Here Café", and a
nationally recognized speaker on the topic of "Creating The Perfect
Company". A graduate of Northwestern University's MBA program, he has served
as a business strategist for numerous Fortune 500 companies, and co-founded
the Business Philosophy practice at Morningstar Consulting Group LLC. He can
be reached through his Web site at
www.whycafe.com.
|
|
|
