A third of your life is spent at work. For business owners, that percentage is likely even higher. With that much of a time commitment, it’s crucial that you and your team feel empowered in the workplace.
Let’s be honest; we’ve all checked out at some point in our careers. When we feel unappreciated or unheard, we check out sometimes without even realizing it. Maybe we stop putting in as much effort, or perhaps we act out in ways that don’t align with our company’s objectives. These silent aversions manifest in ways where productivity tanks, team morale becomes blurred, and ultimately, people start to feel disdain for their work.
Great leaders prioritize the well-being of their team and, in doing so, prevent these checkouts altogether. In my decades of managing, I’ve learned three basic principles that have helped bring out the best in my team members:
1. Genuine and transparent communication
When we discuss workplace motivation, communication is usually where it is lost. Although a buzzword touted in many business coaching workshops, communication is a tool few actually utilize effectively. To understand how to motivate your team, you first need to get to know them. Unfortunately, many workplace conversations are limited to disingenuous office small talk. “Did you get that email,” “What time are you leaving for lunch,” and “Did you finish this?” Those all have their purpose, but if it makes up a majority of daily interactions, your team will never feel connected.
People don’t want to be badgered on performance all the time, nor do they want to feel like a means to an end. A genuine interest in the lives of your team members goes a long way. Something as simple as a newsletter that recognizes their accomplishments – professionally or personally, like welcoming a new family member or getting married– can do wonders for creating bonds.
The other side to communication is transparency. In business, this can feel like walking a tightrope because there are some exceptions, such as income. I once made the mistake of announcing overall sales from the previous year in front of a team of 170 people. A quarter of them, although well-meaning, believed that’s what we earned in profit and wanted a raise afterwards. I eventually had to go back and explain. So while it’s vital to be clear, direct, and transparent, there does need to be a line in the sand.
2. Build trust through actions
To be a great leader, you have to go out there and touch them. Not just with words, but you have to show your team that they can trust you through your actions. My group has developed a strategy that allows this philosophy to flourish. Our “Team Trust” meetings give me, the owner, an opportunity to directly connect with the team members and offer a safe space where they can truthfully express their concerns. When we conduct these meetings, we have two objectives: 1) everything said in the room is sacred, and 2) we commit to listening to everything that our team believes needs to be fixed in order to make it a better place to work – but that doesn’t mean we will always do it.
The trust is built by making a fine distinction between “valid” and “realistic.” Our team members’ thoughts and concerns will always be valid, but my role as a leader and owner is to navigate the business in a realistic way. The team must trust me that while certain things are great ideas, they might not be best for the company. The juice might not be worth the squeeze, so to speak.
When somebody believes that you’re listening and that you have their best interest in heart, in many ways, it’s more important than giving a $1/hour raise. After our “Team Trust” meetings, we have a follow-up meeting 30 days later. The guarantee is that we’re going to get results. Whatever we commit to and say we’re going to get done, we do. In these meetings, we have learned incredible things that may not have come to light otherwise. And based on reactions I’ve received from team members, they are truly grateful for having a space where they can express their concerns.
3. Inspire through competition
The bottom ring on the motivation scale is financial. It’s not everything, but there are a few factors that, most people would agree, make a job worthwhile: autonomy, complexity, and a connection between effort and reward. Sometimes those rewards can be recognition or praise, and other times it’s financial. While not the most important factor, the results of financial incentives cannot be ignored.
In the automotive industry, competition drives results. However, the biggest problem I see when it comes to competition and financial rewards is the lack of creativity. I see many managers trying to motivate their team with the same boring spiffs that didn’t drive results last time. Being creative doesn’t mean you have to give out a ton of money, but it means you have to know what motivates your team.
Another consideration: what is important to you as an owner? Incentivize people on things that will drive your company’s objectives, whether volume, gross, warranties, etc. And lastly, change by season so there is always something new. At the end of the day, it’s not about the bonus, but how you present it.
Financial incentives will harness results. But ultimately, it’s not about how much money we make between nine and five that makes us happy. It’s if our work fulfills us. No amount of money can outpace an environment that doesn’t fulfill your team.
