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On Motivation: Spark Creativity
Last Updated on Wednesday, 18 May 2011 02:52 Written by Daniel Gordon Wednesday, 18 May 2011 02:26
You owe it to your business to create an environment that incubates innovation.
THE products you offer and the experience you strive to create mean little without an empowered team that has a clear vision and the freedom needed to achieve successful results. So how do you create this kind of culture?
ASK Start with your employees. They are the ones who know what your customers are really thinking. Encourage them to offer criticism, and accept that some of it may be hard for you to hear.
Once you create this type of feedback loop, you can implement ideas that can have a major impact on your company’s bottom line.
When team members’ ideas are taken seriously, they take your company seriously. Make it clear that you cannot use every idea, but that you will genuinely consider every aspect of their input.
DISCUSS Meetings are an essential evil, but adding purpose and structure can make them a far more productive enterprise.
Have a purpose, and get to the point as quickly as possible. Leave time for questions and encourage team participation, but make it brief, and make your goals clear.
Once the meeting is over, make one person responsible for assigning the action steps and following up to make sure they are achieved.
At the start of your next meeting, take five minutes to tell everyone what was accomplished.
REWARD As anyone who has read Daniel Pink’s Drive knows, money is not the primary motivator for today’s workforce. Sure, it’s important, but not as much as a sense of accomplishment, self-empowerment and being challenged.
In the long run, people get more from completing challenging tasks than they do from financial rewards. When looking to motivate your staff, know that a little encouragement and a big challenge can go a lot further than any kind of compensation.
Get your staff’s feedback, get them on the same page, and get them motivated toward your mutual success. It is a far better recipe for growth than throwing money at your problems.
Daniel Gordon is a fourth generation jeweler and president of Samuel Gordon Jewelers in Oklahoma City, OK.
This story is from the June 2011 edition of INSTORE
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