Hello, I’m Nicola from The People Mentor, and in today’s podcast, I want to talk about how to understand what motivates people.
What motivates your team to come to work every day and to do their job well?
As a manager who wants to create an engaged and high-performing team, you need to know what makes your people tick.
Of course, not everyone is engaged and enthusiastic 100% of the time, but your job is to create an environment where employees want to do well and go the extra mile.
The promise of a pay cheque is not enough.
Employee surveys have often shown that people don’t rate money as their main motivator when it comes to working. Instead, it’s things like job satisfaction, being appreciated, and having autonomy that come high up on the list.
Does this surprise you, that money is not a significant motivator for people?
Many businesses try to motivate employees to do well by offering them a pay raise, bonus, or promotion, but relying on these alone to motivate people often doesn’t work.
Think about it; you might offer someone a higher salary to give them the incentive to perform better, but what’s to stop them from leaving the business when they get offered a higher salary again from someone else?
Money and similar incentives to perform well are known as extrinsic motivators.
They do have their place, but the issue with them is that it can mean that your employees are only making an effort because of the incentive. They might not be so concerned with growth within the business and they may not care as much or enjoy the work.
I’m not saying that you shouldn’t offer employees competitive pay and attractive benefits, but the fact is, most people are motivated by things that go that bit deeper; intrinsic motivators.
Intrinsic motivation comes from within and it’s more closely linked to someone’s deeper needs and goals.
If the work that someone does meets their needs and expectations, and aligns with their values, they are much more likely to be happy and want to do well.
You’ll find that as a manager if you focus on intrinsic motivators rather than extrinsic ones, you’ll have happier, more motivated, and productive employees which in turn means better performance and profitability for the business.
There are several intrinsic motivators that motivate people to do well and some of the most common are:
The opportunity for learning and development-As humans, we have a natural curiosity and a desire to learn and develop. This is something you must harness as a manager or you risk losing good people. Be sure to provide your teams with ongoing training, learning, and development opportunities, and make sure that each employee has their own personal development plan.
A sense of meaning – Happy, engaged employees are employees who understand how their role contributes to the business and to the overall mission of the company. They want to know that they are valued and are part of something meaningful that’s bigger than themselves.
Autonomy is also a very important motivator. Employees tend to be much more engaged when they are given more responsibility and the freedom to work in their own way. They want to feel trusted, so even if you are a self-confessed micromanager, it might be a good time to let go of the reins a little and give your team some leeway. You might be pleasantly surprised at the effect that this has on engagement and motivation. There are far better ways to keep an eye on employee performance than making them feel like they are under constant surveillance!
Also up there on the list of intrinsic motivators is feedback. It’s important to give employees feedback but it should always be constructive and strengths-based; they shouldn’t only hear from you when something is wrong. You should also give them recognition for a job well done, and be specific. This creates a kind of positive reinforcement-the recognition makes it more likely that they’ll keep performing well.
Lastly, one of the biggest motivators for people is having goals that they can work towards. If these goals align with their personal values and your business objectives, you’ve hit the jackpot. Sit down regularly with your employees and help them set goals and realise their potential. Once they see the progress they’re making, they’ll want to keep it up.
When it comes to understanding what motivates people, knowledge is power. If you want to find out exactly what motivates individual employees, ask them. Open the lines of communication and be curious.
Ask what they enjoy about their jobs, what they find difficult, how they like to work, how they would like to be rewarded for a job well done, what their goals are and how you can support them to achieve them. Once you have this information, you can use it to create a happy, high-performing, and engaged team who will go the extra mile for the business.
What motivates your people?
Do you have a good business and team? What if they could be great?
Do you have some great ideas about how to take the business onward and upwards, but have no clue about where to start?
As the Supernanny for winning teams, I can help you identify what’s needed for the business to truly flourish.
My bespoke packages of training, workshops, and support will help you build and develop well-supported, engaged, and energised teams that will supercharge your business performance and profitability.
Book a call for a chat about exactly what’s possible.
I hope you enjoyed this podcast, and I’ll see you next time.
This is The People Mentor signing off.
Want to read more on motivation then this blog will help.
