Want to motivate people to work hard?
The answer doesn’t involve bonuses, raises, praise or rah-rah.
People are motivated by a sense of accomplishment and progress.
So if you want to motivate people to work hard, stop demotivating them.
What demotivates people? Bureaucracy, unclear goals, constantly shifting goals, micromanagement, punishment for delivering accurate by unwelcome status (to name a few).
In a recent survey we invited more than 600 managers from dozens of companies to rank the impact on employee motivation and emotions of five workplace factors commonly considered significant: recognition, incentives, interpersonal support, support for making progress, and clear goals. “Recognition for good work (either public or private)” came out number one.
Unfortunately, those managers are wrong.
On days when workers have the sense they’re making headway in their jobs, or when they receive support that helps them overcome obstacles, their emotions are most positive and their drive to succeed is at its peak. On days when they feel they are spinning their wheels or encountering roadblocks to meaningful accomplishment, their moods and motivation are lowest.
Read more at hbr.org
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