Twitter Facebook LinkedIn Flipboard 2 One of the problems many business owners and managers have is getting their team members motivated and productive. Many employees, or team members as I like to call them are simply not motivated. They either don’t like what they are doing, don’t feel appreciated, or aren’t getting paid enough. Those are just some of the reasons many team members aren’t as effective as they could be. Here are 4 strategies that you can implement immediately to help combat these problems. Place Them in Their Strengths One of the most common problems with unmotivated team members is that they simply aren’t operating in their strengths. Let’s take a look at how it works. Usually a business has a position it has to fill. They then do some outreach to fill that position. So more times than often, they are looking for a person to fit the position, rather than a position that will fit that person. This team member is then doing something every day, day in and day out, that they simply aren’t passionate about. Have you ever done something constantly that you weren’t passionate about? It sucks. You can combat this by not looking for people to fit your position, but by look for phenomenal people. When you do find phenomenal people, find out what they like, enjoy, and have areas of strength in. Now when you place that person in your organization, not only is someone more enthusiastic about what they are doing, but they will also produce better results because of that enthusiasm and strength. Fit positions to people, not people to positions. Reward Them With Recognition Many people think the biggest motivator is money. Sorry but it’s not. Want to know the biggest motivator for humans? Recognition. Yes, the one thing that rarely cost much money. Psychology shows that recognition is one of the best reinforcers of behavior. This starts all the way back to raising children. The best way to reinforce the behavior of a child is praise or recognition. The same applies to team members. More money is nice, but it isn’t a motivator. How often have we gotten a raise only to want another one? But how many times is one to forget a special dinner held just for them because they closed a big deal or hit the five year employment mark? Recognition goes a long way. You can recognize team members through titles, speeches, dinners, plaques, and perks. Use recognition to motivate your team members and you will start seeing a healthier culture. Build and Interdependent Culture Have you ever worked at a job where you were all alone? Picture this, working in a room where all day you didn’t have an opportunity to stimulate and engage with other people. That doesn’t sound too nice. Now imagine if you had to work with different people to accomplish different task that sometimes produced different results. Sounds much more rewarding right? This is why you must create a culture of interdependence so that not only will your team members be more productive, but they will enjoy what they do more. People will start to build relationships and start to look forward to coming to work not just because of the work, but because of the people. Many people are staying at jobs they simply don’t like because of the people. That tells us that people are important and that we should create a culture of interdependence so team members can get more out of what they do. Give Them a Purpose to Work for Deeper Than the Work Itself People do not like to “work.” Work simply isn’t fun. I’ll tell you what is fun. The idea behind the work. When people do work just to work or as a job, it’s so much easier for them to become detached and careless. When people actually feel they are making a difference and have a purpose, the work is just a vehicle to get to where they are headed, towards the idea. Give you team members a purpose to work beyond the work itself. Why are you doing the work you are doing? To help people? Businesses? Communities? Explain that to them and make sure they are excited about that. If they aren’t then it’ll just be another “job” that produces just another paycheck. Get your team members pumped up by inspiring them with an idea behind what they are doing. Well there you have it! By implementing these 4 strategies you will be well on your way to creating a culture of team members that will love what they do and produce better results. Use these strategies and motivate your team to push the idea behind your work and watch your profits soar. What are some strategies that have proven to be successful in motivating your team members? Twitter Tweet Facebook Share Email This article was written for Business 2 Community by Connor Brooke.Learn how to publish your content on B2C Author: Connor Brooke Connor is a Scottish financial expert, specialising in wealth management and equity investing. Based in Glasgow, Connor writes full-time for a wide selection of financial websites, whilst also providing startup consulting to small businesses. Holding a Bachelor’s degree in Finance, and a Master’s degree in Investment Fund Management, Connor has … View full profile ›More by this author:ACH Crypto Price Prediction 2022 – Is it a Buy?Lucky Block Partners with Dillian Whyte ahead of Heavyweight Showdown with Tyson FuryNFT Pixel Art – The Best NFT Collections for 2022