What gets them going in your office? This time of year can more difficult than others to keep employees motivated with all of the distractions of the holidays and fallout fears with the economic climate.

If your idea of motivating employees is making sure there are enough highly-caffeinated beverages to go around, then you need to re-think your strategy. But you are not alone. Companies everywhere struggle with the concept of workforce motivation, realizing it must go beyond an inspirational speech and cannot be just a one-time thing.

As motivational expert Zig Ziglar suggests, “People often say that motivation doesn’t last. Well, neither does bathing—that’s why we recommend it daily.”

The question then becomes how you go about it. Whips to the backs may get immediate results, but it leaves deeps scars, wears people down and creates an incredibly negative atmosphere. Carrots on strings will move someone forward, but only so long as they have an appetite or fail to realize it is a fruitless pursuit. Encouraging words, either spoken or framed on the wall beneath an accompanying image can ring true for some, but hollow to others. Of course, the adage “money talks” is a motivational language everybody speaks, but in this economy, most company budgets are barely whispering, leaving little to go around as bonuses and raises.

What works for one may not work for another, but an effort must be made to keep your team focused and your company profitable. In this two-part series, we’ll look at different basic techniques that can be used to motivate both employees individually and the team as a whole, helping to build a culture of success within your organization.

5 Tips for Inspiring an Employee

Get Personal
Get to know your employees well enough so you know what makes them tick—spend time meeting one-on-one or over lunch to learn more about their personality. Observe the individual’s reactions and performances on certain tasks, determine their strengths and weaknesses, and decide what does or does not work for giving the regular push they need. If having a tangible quota or deadline is what propels them, utilize those pressures to get them going. If they are incited by positive reinforcement, write an encouraging note or e-mail. Overall, make motivation unique.

Communicate Appropriately
American poet William Carlos Williams is credited with coining the phrase, “It is not what you say that matters, but the manner in which you say it.” The advice is something most fault others for not following, but rarely recognize it with themselves. Therefore, be very careful about the words you choose, the tone that expresses them and the body language displayed when sharing the message. Backing up your communications with positive appearances and deliveries that exude confidence in individuals will further help them rise to the occasion. 

Create Ownership
In a recent Entrepreneur.com article, Paul Levesque writes about the ease of distinguishing between employees and owners of neighborhood businesses based on their differing approaches with “owning” the customer experience. It is just human nature to work harder for success if you have a personal stake in the matter. Create a sense of ownership for employees by having them develop and oversee a particular project—especially one that is tailored specifically to talents they have exhibited but have not yet had the opportunity to fully leverage. Also, give opportunities for building sweat equity, sharing some fruits of their labor in some type of monetary or tangible fashion once success is met.

Tie Individual to Corporate Success
“In motivating people, you’ve got to engage their minds and their hearts. I motivate people, I hope, by example—and perhaps by excitement, by having productive ideas to make others feel involved,” explains media-mogul Rupert Murdoch.  Incorporate your ideas into reachable goals for individuals and explain regularly how what they do matters to the company achieving success. If an individual feels as though they are a contributing factor towards making the company’s bottom line appear in black ink instead of just pushing pencils and picking up paychecks, you are empowering their initiative.

Recognize
When someone performs a job well done, say so publicly. And not just to those on your immediate team, but upward and outward so that other departments and even upper management will hear. Some companies distribute certificates of appreciation while others provide tokens such as gift or dining cards. The desire for “atta-boy” comments and accolades can become contagious when a leader starts spreading them around, motivating the peers of the lauded individual to seek out their own words of affirmation or prizes. Whether it is on paper, pecuniary or public, make sure credit is given when credit is due.