Are You A Motivator?

The first key to moti­vat­ing anyone is to under­stand WHAT motivates him or her. Too often, well-intentioned leaders attempt moti­vat­ing their team with what works for them, not nec­es­sar­ily what works for others. Almost everyone has different moti­va­tors, and in my expe­ri­ence, most people combine them.

In an About.com HR article, Susan M. Heath­field states:
“Employee moti­va­tion is the com­bi­na­tion of ful­fill­ing the employee’s needs and expec­ta­tions from work and the workplace factors that enable employee moti­va­tion — or not.”

Ignoring The “Me” Motivator
Not everyone thinks like you. Learn what motivates the team, not what motivates you or what you “think” motivates them. Once this is deter­mined, make these incen­tives available if possible. In a previous position, I once told the president of the company I was more motivated by recog­ni­tion and a feeling of accom­plish­ment than by money. Rather than use this infor­ma­tion to his advantage in moti­vat­ing me, he took away all bonuses. He was primarily money motivated and expected others to be the same.

The Money Motivator
Don’t assume everyone is motivated by money. Managers are fre­quently surprised when added financial incen­tives (bonuses, etc.) don’t motivate employees to accom­plish more. Money may limit de-motivation, but it’s often not the best incentive. In a Forbes post, Money Is Not The Best Motivator, Jon R. Katzen­bach and Zia Khan explain how, “less costly kinds of encour­age­ment can be far more effective.”

Nothing To Motivate But Fear Itself
Fear is probably not as effective as many believe it to be. Unfor­tu­nately, moti­va­tion through fear may bring results, but if used repeat­edly, it may destroy the envi­ron­ment that allows teammates to become self-driven, and will certainly lose effectiveness.

To quote Carter McNamara, MBA, PhD.:
“Fear is a great motivator — for a very short time. That’s why a lot of yelling from the boss won’t seem to ‘light a spark under employees’ for a very long time.”

Give Your Team Direction
Direction often motivates employees, and it can be a more positive approach. Written policies and pro­ce­dures, company goals, visions, missions, and ethics policies all define the orga­ni­za­tion and give employees a framework to work within. Don’t mis­un­der­stand direction with micro-managing. In my opinion, people need room to be creative and the oppor­tu­nity to be entre­pre­neur­ial. Also, effec­tively executed indi­vid­ual and team goals may inspire and motivate — espe­cially if they align with indi­vid­ual life goals.

The Evolving Moti­va­tors
Staying informed of what motivates your team is fluid, as goals change over time. For example, an unmarried employee’s moti­va­tion may change if they wed, and will likely change again if they have children. Keep in mind, an employee’s moti­va­tion may change at any time. It’s an ongoing process.

This survey (PDF) may promote con­ver­sa­tions with your team about moti­va­tion. Continue the con­ver­sa­tion, listen, and make it available within your organization’s culture.