Keeping employees motivated and happy is the key to success for many small businesses. The problem is, many business owners don’t know how to achieve a content workforce while also maintaining high productivity. The answer may lie in the small details.
A post on OpenForum highlights the office of Dixon Schwabl, who tacks handwritten notes on employee’s cubicles to compliment them on their specific successes. She also implements ice cream Thursdays and gathers employees for bring-your-own-lunch Wednesdays to keep morale high. Below are a few creative ways you can keep employees content and motivated.
1. Hire the right people. It’s crucial to hire employees who exhibit high levels of self-motivation and positivity during the interview. This way, you’re getting employees who will stay upbeat and motivated right off the bat.
2. Focus on the little things. Make sure your office atmosphere is positive overall, and employees won’t dread getting out of bed to come to work in the morning. Try things like ice cream socials, or have employees vote for each other and award funny office superlatives. Think “Most Addicted to Starbucks” or other office inside jokes. Always be sure to award employees when they stand out, do consistently good work, or go above and beyond what’s required of them.
3. Involve employees in the decision-making process. Employees like to know that their ideas are valued–no one likes to feel like a worker bee. Give your employees a forum to share their ideas, like with weekly brainstorming sessions. Try drawing in employees from different departments to brainstorm together–the best ideas are often conjured when people with differing perspectives are brought together.
More of Dixon’s tips for motivating employees include sharing goals and communicating well. You can read about them here.
What are some tactics you’ve employed to keep happy employees? Or, what are some motivation tactics you’d like to see your office implement? Let us know in a comment below.
