What makes good employees want to work for you? Don’t be fooled into thinking it’s the money. Employees grow accustomed to their wages very quickly, even after getting a raise. They see those wages as a fair trade for doing the basic job. So if you want to improve performance, don’t treat employees like employees.
As an employer, you want more than just the basic work effort from your people, anyway. You want their conviction, their passion, their heart, their mind, their creativity, and their loyalty. Did you notice that those attributes are not in the job description? They are human traits. Your employees have to volunteer them, so you have to earn them.
Your job as the manager is to get things done through other people. If money isn’t the prime motivator, how can you gain employees’ conviction, passion, heart, mind, creativity, and loyalty? Don’t treat employees like employees, treat them like volunteers to increase performance.
Just realize that motivation is easy – and free! Treat your employees like volunteers.
Here are some no-cost ways:
- Talk to your employees! Share your management challenges with them and get their advice. How do they think you are doing? What processes or procedures would they change? Could you create a more collaborative culture? How should you attract new employees?
- Listen to their ideas – and better yet, incorporate them.
- Illustrate the company mission to them every day – what are you trying to do and how do they fit into the picture?
- Let them manage their job as much as possible. Give them ownership and the right to be the expert in their area.
- Discuss conflicts openly and fairly. Train your employees and managers in communication and leadership skills. Professional development skills like these will enrich their entire lives, too. So, grow them as human beings while you add value to their career.
- Make their job fun. Bring levity to work, especially if their job is something that isn’t a joy to do. To find out how go back to the first bullet point above.
You’ll get the heart and soul out of people if you don’t treat employees like employees. Just focus on the part of their work that you don’t pay for. Treat them like volunteers. You haven’t peaked yet!