The best ways to motivate your employees

Savvy business owners understand that their staff is their great resource, when it comes to the long term success of their business. Successful business owners will take the time to show their employees that they are needed, and praise them, for a job well done. There is no denying the fact that the more motivated your workforce is, the more excited they are to do their job and the more productive they will be. Employees who are highly motivated will have a desire to be the best at their job, and they will want to win the respect and trust of both their managers and their co-workers. Employers can only benefit when they take the time to motivate their employees. Here are the best ways to motivate your employees-

- Offer praise and recognition-It is important that employers understand that their staff does not always need monetary compensation, when they are doing their job. Praise and recognition can go a long way toward motivating employees. You should keep in mind that only recognizing employees when they do something wrong creates an atmosphere of resentment and mistrust. You need to look for opportunities to let your employees know that they are doing a good job. If you have employees that are struggling in their jobs, then you should take the time to sit down with them and offer additional encouragement or training. This can go a long way toward motivating mediocre employees to become great employees.
- Examine employee workload-Too often in the day to day demands of running a business, employers do not notice how overworked or underworked their employees may be. Readjusting workloads can help to motivate employees who are at either end of the workload spectrum. If an employee is overworked, reassigning some of their duties can help them to act on a fresh start, and adding duties for underworked employees, can help encourage them to use their skills and creativity.
- Give clear instructions-Nothing will destroy employee motivation and morale faster, then if your employees don't know what you want them to do. If you are clear with your instructions, your employees will feel motivated to get going and accomplish what you need them to do. You do not want them to feel confused or frustrated, or worse yet, feel that they cannot seek you out, for future clarification. You want them to have a sense of pride in what they do and accomplish their goals, giving clear instructions can help with this process.
- Encourage teamwork-When you encourage employees to work together, you can strength the motivation and the morale, within your business. Employees who work together are found to be more productive, make fewer mistakes and have more positive attitude about their work. This can be a great way to encourage unity among your employees and motivate them to a better job.
- Offer feedback-You can be sure that your employees are feeling motivated, unless you let them know what you are thinking. You need to be able to offer feedback along the way, so that they know if they are on the right track. Many times employees may feel confused about their work, and if don't receive feedback, from their managers, the quickly lose motivation, to accomplish their work. You want to let your employees know when they are doing something correctly and when corrections need to be made.
- Offer formal recognition-You want to take the time to offer formal recognition, for employees who have gone above and beyond. Remember that this does not have to be an expensive gesture. A longer lunch hour or even treating them to lunch can go a long way toward letting your exemplary employees know that you appreciate their efforts.