10 things managers can't do to avoid killing team members' motivation
In recent years, more and more companies have recognized the power of employees’ intrinsic motivation - to make employees actively work hard because they love the work itself, rather than passively doing things just to get rewards or avoid punishment.
The motivation of employees is not high, and many times the problem lies with the managers. Here are 10 things managers can’t do to avoid stifling their team’s motivation:
01
Careful management
Employees need space to develop their talents, pursue new ideas, and make informed decisions in the moment.
Some managers hire talented employees to help with things they don’t have time to do or are not proficient in, but they manage every detail so that employees wonder if they are doing things themselves.
If employees feel that they are useless and have no right to speak, it will seriously stifle the enthusiasm of employees.
Managers need to remember why these employees were hired in the first place, and employees need a certain amount of space to develop their talents and pursue new ideas.
02
hold on to mistakes
No one wants to be surrounded by negativity, try to stay positive and create a positive environment in the office.
The way employees are evaluated should be more flexible, real-time and personalized, and the focus should be on promoting future performance rather than evaluating the past.
It’s normal for people to make mistakes, and you need to learn to forgive.
Instead of clinging to mistakes, try to focus on the success of your team (no matter how small), which will ensure they maintain a positive work ethic.
03
Ignore employee suggestions and ideas
It is important to listen to the voices of frontline workers, even if their views are at odds with those of senior management.
Employees are regularly recognized for their contributions in a clear and meaningful way.
Reassure employees that they can make a difference in the company’s decisions and make them feel part of the company.
Every idea is worth listening to, even if not every one will be implemented.
04
hold pointless meetings
Peter Drucker believes that there are only two types of meetings in the world - and if there is no way to be productive, meetings are a waste of time.
A flood of inefficient meetings can interfere with employees’ work schedules, and employees can feel that managers don’t take their time as time.
The more layers in a company, the slower the flow of information and the slower the speed of decision-making, so leaders need to focus on meeting efficiency while streamlining their organization.
05
Write a “blank check”
The so-called “blank promise” refers to the things that managers promise employees smoothly, but in fact they can’t do it.
There’s nothing more annoying than making promises and destroying them.
Promises are sacred, and if you make a promise to your employees, keep it.
06
tell inappropriate jokes
It’s certainly relaxing to have a boss who loves to tell jokes, but in serious professional situations, you need to think before you tell a joke.
Aggressive negative jokes are better left alone. It is possible for employees to interpret it as ridicule and sarcasm.
07
unbelievable
This is the most rude practice and can quickly destroy employee motivation.
The key to building employee presence is to build trust between the company and its employees. A stable employment relationship cannot continue without trust.
08
Wrong performance measurement mechanism
For example, some bosses measure the productivity of software developers by looking at the push notifications they receive on GitHub for bugs.
Explain to readers who have no concept of GitHub that it is like measuring quality by looking at the word count of a paper.
Motivation takes a hit when employees know they are being measured incorrectly for productivity.
Managers need to establish a fairer performance appraisal mechanism to accurately assess individual employee performance.
09
Unreasonable Deadline
Don’t try to give your employees a sense of urgency and motivate them to be more productive with a Deadline that’s ahead of its time.
Don’t be superstitious that “deadline is the primary productive force”, only some people can do this.
If an unrealistic deadline is set, some employees will slow down because they feel that it is impossible to achieve the goal.
Managers can break up large and complex tasks into easier steps, at least making it appear that they can be completed within a specified time.
10
Treat employees differently
This certainly motivates your favored employees, but it’s obviously a blow to the motivation of others.
You don’t need to be biased, everyone should be your bias.