Employee Motivation - How to Motivate Employees, Create a Motivational Workplace
Every person is motivated. The challenge at work is
to create an environment in which people are motivated about work priorities. Too often, organizations
fail to pay attention to the employee relations, communication, recognition, and involvement issues that
are most important to people.
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The first step in creating a motivating work environment is to stop taking
actions that are guaranteed to demotivate people. Identify and take the actions that will motivate people.
Its a balancing act. Employers walk a fine line between meeting the needs of the organization and its
customers and meeting the needs of its internal staff. Do both well and thrive.
When you think of motivation, then, you first expect that every individual has motivation, the will
to become invested and involved to the point of action, in some aspect of life. Second the employer must provide
a work environment that fosters and enables motivation in people. You need to identify and tap into the
intrinsic motivation each person has. Third, motivation is often induced with
recognition and rewards that appeal to an individual. The key with recognition is to provide motivational
resources that match what motivates your employees. An unmotivated staff will cost you dearly.
An attention-getting Gallup Poll about disengaged employees was highlighted in a recent Wall Street
Journal. Gallup found 19 percent of 1,000 people interviewed "actively disengaged" at work. These
workers complain that they don't have the tools they need to do their jobs. They don't know what is
expected of them. Their bosses don't listen to them. Based on these interviews and survey data from its
consulting practice, Gallup says actively disengaged workers cost employers $292 billion to $355 billion
a year. Furthermore, Gallup concluded that disengaged workers miss more days of work and are less loyal
to employers.
