Stop motivating your employees

Do you spend time and energy trying to motivate your employees? According to this article on Forbes.com, you’re doing it wrong. Instead of motivating your employees, you should be trying not to unmotivate them.

The article postulates that we are wired to work hard, but gradually lose motivation in certain work environments. Unmotivation occurs in work environments where employees lack direction, resources, or respect.

While I believe the article brings up some great points, I’d like to add one more unmotivating factor. Over the years, I’ve noticed employees lose motivation when they feel their work isn’t important. Leaders must let their employees know just how important their work is, and how much it’s appreciated.

For example, if one of your employees has done something that directly contributed to profit for the company, let them know. Even if their work isn’t quantifiable, let them know their hard work is appreciated. Everyone wants to feel like they are making a contribution. Everyone wants to feel proud of the work they do.

If you have any other ways to avoid unmotivation, I’d like to hear them.


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About the author: Joe Stangarone is president and founder of mrc, a global software company which created the award-winning web application development tool, m-Power. m-Power reduces web application development time, lowers development costs, and increases productivity.