There’s a myth that’s been perpetuated for years that people are all motivated by the same things. This is simply not reality.

 

Some people are solely motivated by money, while others are more driven by recognition. The key is to learn what it is exactly that motivates each of your team members. And how do you do that? Communicate.

 

In an era where email is the standard form of acceptable interaction, you’ll experience much better results in ‘getting to know’ the people of your team by having real conversations with them about things other than just their jobs. At lunch, in one-on-one meetings, at company outings, etc. Whenever you’re with one of them, make it a goal to learn at least one new thing about them. When you take this approach, you’ll be surprised at how quickly you learn what really drives your team members to give you their best effort.

 

Many years back I had a boss who used to open his Monday morning sales meetings with a “weekend in review” session. Each of us would rate our weekends on a 1-10 scale and describe what it was that we did to get to that rating. It was always a fun, laid-back way to learn some great information about the people on our team.

 

Once you’ve realized what drives each individual person on your team, then you’re ready to create a plan as to how to best reach and inspire them.

 

In situations where members of your team are driven by money, a bonus or cash incentive can often be enough to get them motivated. But what about the ones that aren’t just driven by money? They can be a little more challenging to reach; but once you know a little bit more about their personal likes/dislikes, family situation and life goals, you’ve got a great foundation as to how to reach them on their terms.

 

These may seem simple, but things like employee of the month awards, incentive vacations and extra personal days can be very motivating to a lot of people.

 

Motivation doesn’t always have to have a dollar value attached to it. In a market where businesses are more cost conscious than ever, offering lavish incentives may not even be feasible. That’s OK; there are plenty of ways to inspire the troops that have nothing to do with money.

 

For example, some people are basically hard workers but need the occasional firm reminder of their tasks and goals. And others are already pretty disciplined people and only require a little encouraging and accountability. It’s your job to discover what approach works best for each individual. This style of personalized leadership can have a huge impact on your teams overall attitude and performance! Why? Because you’ll be communicating with them on a level that they’re already comfortable with.

 

We all know there’s no I in team, but people still want to be treated with respect and as individuals. They want to feel like the company that they spend the better part of their lives at appreciates them for who they are (a real person); not just what they are (an employee). So invest the time and get to know them a little better as people and watch their performance soar because of your extra efforts!

 

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