6 ways to motivate your team to do better

How’s that team of yours looking? Not so hot? Like they all need to sit down and watch Remember the Titans together?

If that’s the case, we got you covered. Here are a few simple things you can do to easily motivate your staff.

Give them an incentive.

Not everyone is motivated by money. But then again, not everyone is motivated by a simple “please and thank you” either. However, if you want your team to be motivated to do more and to do it better, then you need to determine what would make them do this.

Your incentives might change from project to project and from department to department, but these incentives can remain relatively simple. You might be surprised to see just how much a little somethin’ somethin’ can alter your team’s collective mindset.

Offer a team lunch, half a day off, or a $20 gift card to the grocery store. These simple, inexpensive incentives can motivate your team to get things done quicker, to work together better, and to really get into what they’re doing.

Make it their project.

At the end of the day, a project is just a project. It’s a project for the company, not for the person or the team. But – and this is a big but – if you make it the team’s project, things might not be so “whatever happens happens.”

Give your team the ability to change things and alter the course of a project, and things will suddenly get personal for them. Your staff will feel like they have a real chance to make a difference in the company, and they should be motivated to do something great.

Expand their skillset.

Maybe they already have the mindset… they’re motivated and ready to go big. However, they’re lacking the proper skills to do anything with that mindset. So… give your team what it needs. Training. Knowledge. Insight.

Send your team to a conference, enroll them in an online course, or drop a few books off at their desks. Point them in the right direction, and let them go. They’ll come back with refined skills and even more motivation than they started off with.

Give a speech.

If all else fails, it’s time for a speech. Sit down, watch a few sports movies, and take detailed notes. If you decide to take this old-fashioned approach to motivating your team (and you do it in a genuine fashion), one thing will happen.

Your team will know you care.

Back off.

Very rarely does any human on this earth like to be micromanaged. It’s not fun, and it usually ends poorly. If you notice that yourself or any other managers within your company are micromanaging your staff unjustifiably, then you need to nip that in the bud. And quickly.

Back off from your team when they’re working on a project. You hired them for a reason, right? So let them do what they think is best. Handing over the reins and trusting in their abilities is enough motivation for any team.

Join in on the fun.

Whether you’re the CEO or a department manager, the average team likes to know that you aren’t afraid to get your hands dirty. If an executive or supervisor gets involved and joins in on a project (without micromanaging or taking over completely), it’s exciting.

Every now and then, take the opportunity to participate in something your team is working on. And keep in mind, you don’t have to be involved throughout the life of a project to participate. All it takes is sitting in on a group discussion or offering up your assistance for an hour or two. A little effort goes a long way.