Staff surveys are usually very helpful in establishing whether staff in your company are motivated and therefore performing to best effect. Aside from the information that questionnaires reveal, the process of involving and consulting with staff is hugely beneficial and motivational in its own right, (see the 'Hawthorne Effect'). Whilst your survey will be unique to your company, your staff issues, your industry and culture, some useful generic guidelines apply to most situations. Although not exhaustive, the following ten points may help you cover the relevant subject areas and help towards establishing facts rather than making assumptions about motivation when designing your own questionnaires on employee motivation.
ten tips for questionnaires on employee motivation
1. What is the 'primary aim' of your company?
Your employees may be more motivated if they understand the primary aim of your business. Ask questions to establish how clear they are about your company's principles, priorities and mission.
2. What obstacles stop employees performing to best effect?
Questionnaires on employee motivation should include questions about what employees are tolerating in their work and home lives. The company can eliminate practices that zap motivation.
3. What really motivates your staff?
It is often assumed that all people are motivated by the same things. Actually we are motivated by a whole range of factors. Include questions to elicit what really motivates employees, including learning about their values. Are they motivated by financial rewards, status, praise and acknowledgment, competition, job security, public recognition, fear, perfectionism, results...
4. Do employees feel empowered?
Do your employees feel they have job descriptions that give them some autonomy and allow them to find their own solutions or are they given a list of tasks to perform and simply told what to do?
5. Are there any recent changes in the company that might have affected motivation?
If your company has made redundancies, imposed a recruitment freeze or lost a number of key people this will have an effect on motivation. Collect information from employees about their fears, thoughts and concerns relating to these events. Even if they are unfounded, treat them with respect and honesty.
6. What are the patterns of motivation in your company?
Who is most motivated and why? What lessons can you learn from patches of high and low motivation in your company?
7. Are employee goals and company goals aligned?
First, the company needs to establish how it wants individuals to spend their time based on what is most valuable. Secondly this needs to be compared with how individuals actually spend their time. You may find employees are highly motivated but about the "wrong" priorities.
8. How do employees feel about the company?
Do they feel safe, loyal, valued and taken care of? Or do they feel taken advantage of, dispensable and invisible? Ask them what would improve their loyalty and commitment.
9. How involved are employees in company development?
Do they feel listened to and heard? Are they consulted? And, if they are consulted, are their opinions taken seriously? Are there regular opportunities for them to give feedback?
10. Is the company's internal image consistent with its external one?
Your company may present itself to the world as the 'caring airline', 'the forward thinking technology company' or the 'family hotel chain'. Your employees would have been influenced, and their expectations set, to this image when they joined your company. If you do not mirror this image within your company in the way you treat employees you may notice motivation problems. Find out what the disparity is between the employees image of the company from the outside and from the inside.
© Blaire Palmer 2004-7.
tips on structure, format and style of employee questionnaires
Use the questionnaire guidelines above when creating content and subject matter for your employee motivation and satisfaction questionnaires and surveys. Here are some additional tips about questionnaires and surveys structure, format and style:
Create a clear, readable 'inviting' structure. Use 'white-out' boxes for answers, scores, and for check-boxes, which clearly show the parts which need completing. Use a clear 11 or 12 point (font) typeface. 10 point is difficult to read for some people. Avoid italics and fancy graphics - they just make the document more difficult and more time-consuming to read. Look at the writing tips and techniques for other useful pointers in creating good printed communications. Apply the same principles if your survey questionnaire form is online (ie., screen-based).
Where possible try to use specific questions with multiple-choice answers, rather than general 'open-ended' questions. Specific questions improve clarity and consistency of understanding among respondents, and a multiple-choice format enables the answers to be converted into scores which can be loaded into a spreadsheet and very easily analysed. General or vague questions on the other hand tend to lead to varying interpretation (or confusion) among respondents; also, by inviting an open-ended answer you will generate lots of narrative-based and subjective opinions, which might be very interesting, but will be very time-consuming to read, and even more time-consuming to analyse, especially if you are surveying a large group of employees.
Here is an example:
Open-ended question: What do you think of the Performance Appraisal System? (This will produce varied narrative responses = difficult to analyse.)
Multiple-choice question: Rate the effectiveness of the Performance Appraisal System in providing you with clear and agreed training and development: Good/Okay/Not Good/Poor (By asking respondents to check boxes or delete as necessary the multiple-choice answers will produce extremely clear answers to a specific question that can be converted into scores and very easily analysed)
Use four options in multiple-choice questions rather than three or five. Three and five options typically offer a middle 'don't know' or 'average' selection. Using four, with no middle cop-out will ensure that everybody decides one way or the other: satisfactory or not, which is what you need to know. Mid-way 'average' non-committal answers are not helpful, so avoid giving respondents that option. If you go to the trouble of creating, managing and analysing a huge staff survey surely it's a good idea to produce as much meaningful data as possible.
Certain questions are suitable for numerical or percentage scoring by respondents, in which case use such a system (again ensure you avoid offering scores which equate to 'average' or 'don't know'). For example:
Score-based question: Score the extent to which you enjoy your work: 1-5 = don't enjoy, 6-10 = enjoy. (By providing a clear differentiation between do and don't, this 1-10 scoring system gives a wide range of choices, and at the same time a clear result.)
Check with a sample of respondents that they understand the draft questions in the way you intend, before you print and issue the questionnaire to all six hundred or however many staff. Designing questionnaires and communications in isolation can produce strange results - not just politicians get out of touch - so check you are actually on the same planet, in terms of your aims, language and meaning, as the people whose views you seek.
Make sure you explain to all staff beforehand that you'll be publishing the survey findings, and then afterwards ensure you do so. And then act on the findings. If your MD/CEO is not fully behind your initiative, then go work for a different company whose MD/CEO properly supports the concept of consulting the folk whose efforts underpin his success (not to mention his share options, second home and Porsche etc.)
Allow people to complete the survey questionnaires anonymously. If helpful to you and you have a purpose for doing so, you can ask people to identify which department/region/office they belong to, assuming such information is genuinely useful to you and you can handle the analysis.
KISS - Keep It Simple Stupid. Break complex questions into digestible parts. Keep the survey to a sensible length - probably 20 minutes to complete it is a sensible limit of most people's tolerance. You can always follow up later in the year with another survey, especially if people enjoy completing it, and they see that the feedback and analysis process is helpful to them as well as the employer (see the point about MD/CEO support above).
By all means at the end of the questionnaire invite and allow space for 'any other comments', or better still try to guide respondents towards a particular question.
On which point, wherever it is necessary to ask an open-ended question, use the words 'what' and 'how' rather than 'why', if you want to discover motives and reasons. What and How will focus respondents on the facts objectively, whereas 'why' tends to focus respondents on defending themselves.
Examples:
It's okay to ask: What factors could be changed to help staff enjoy their work more in the XYZ depot?
Whereas it's not very clever to ask: Why is there such a crap attitude among staff at XYZ depot?
The second example is daft of course, but you see the point.
managing (just), or leading?
In this excellent guide article by motivation expert Blaire Palmer, ten central points (for some, myths) of employee motivation are exposed and explained, many with real case study references and examples.
employee motivation principles - a short case study - sounds familiar?
When Michael started his own consultancy he employed top people; people he'd worked with in the past who had shown commitment, flair and loyalty and who seemed to share his values. But a few months down the line one of his team members started to struggle. Jo was putting in the hours but without enthusiasm. Her confidence was dropping; she was unfocused and not bringing in enough new business.
Michael explained to Jo the seriousness of the situation. Without new business he would lose the company and that would mean her job. He showed her the books to illustrate his point. He again ran through her job description and the procedures she was expected to follow. He told her that he was sure she was up to the job but he really needed her to bring in the new business or they would all be out on their ear.
Jo told Michael that she understood. She was doing her best but she'd try harder.
But a month later nothing had changed. After an initial burst of energy, Jo was back to her old ways.
No matter how experienced a leader you are, chances are at times you have struggled to motivate certain individuals. You've tried every trick in the book. You've sat down one-to-one with the individual concerned and explained the situation. You've outlined the big vision again in the hope of inspiring them. You've given them the bottom line: "Either you pull your finger out or your job is on the line". You've dangled a carrot in front of them: "If you make your targets you'll get a great bonus". And sometimes it works. But not every time. And there have been casualties. Ultimately if someone can't get the job done they have to go.
The granddaddy of motivation theory, Frederick Herzberg, called traditional motivation strategies 'KITA' (something similar to Kick In The Pants). He used the analogy of a dog. When the master wants his dog to move he either gives it a nudge from behind, in which case the dog moves because it doesn't have much choice, or he offers it a treat as an inducement, in which case it is not so much motivated by wanting to move as by wanting choc drops! KITA does the job (though arguably not sustainably) but it's hard work. It means every time you want the dog to move you have to kick it (metaphorically).
Wouldn't it be better if the dog wanted to move by itself?
Transferring this principle back in to the workplace, most motivation strategies are 'push' or 'pull' based. They are about keeping people moving either with a kick from behind (threats, fear, tough targets, complicated systems to check people follow a procedure) or by offering choc drops (bonuses, grand presentations of the vision, conferences, campaigns, initiatives, etc).
10 management motivation examples to illustrate that there are better ways to motivate employees
Blaire Palmer's experience has enabled her to work with a wide range of individuals and groups from a variety of backgrounds. Some of these people are highly motivated themselves, but struggle to extend this state of mind to the people they manage. Other people are at the receiving end of KITA motivation strategies that (obviously) aren't working on them. These people know they 'should' be more engaged with their work. Sometimes they fake it for a few months but it's not sustainable. In this paper Blaire identifies some common assumptions about motivation and presents some new paradigms that can help motivate more effectively.
By adding these coaching tools and motivation principles to your capabilities you should find the job of leading those around you, and/or helping others to do the same, more of a joyful and rewarding activity. Instead of spending all your time and energy pushing and cajoling (in the belief that your people's motivation must come from you) you will be able to focus on leading your team, and enabling them to achieve their full potential - themselves.
Ultimately, motivation must come from within each person. No leader is ever the single and continuing source of motivation for a person. While the leader's encouragement, support, inspiration, and example will at times motivate followers, the leader's greatest role in motivating is to recognise people for who they are, and to help them find their own way forward by making best use of their own strengths and abilities. In this way, achievement, development, and recognition will all come quite naturally to the person, and it is these things which are the true fuels of personal motivation.
By necessity these case studies initially include some negative references and examples, which I would urge you to see for what they are. How not to do things, and negative references, don't normally represent a great platform for learning and development.
In life it's so important always to try to accentuate the positive - to encourage positive visualisation - so, see the negatives for what they are; silly daft old ways that fail, and focus on the the positives in each of these examples. There are very many.
motivation example 1 - 'everyone is like me'
One of the most common assumptions we make is that the individuals who work for us are motivated by the same factors as us. Perhaps you are motivated by loyalty to the company, enjoying a challenge, proving yourself to others or making money. One great pitfall is to try to motivate others by focusing on what motivates you.
Marie, a director in her company, was being coached. She was a perfectionist. Every day she pushed herself to succeed and was rewarded with recognition from her peers. But she was unable to get the same standard of work from her team members. In the first few weeks of her coaching she would say, "If only people realised how important it was to put in 110% and how good it felt to get the acknowledgment, then they would start to feel more motivated".
But it wasn't working. Instead people were starting to become resentful towards Marie's approach. Acknowledgment was a prime motivator for Marie so to help her consider some other options, she was helped to brainstorm what else might motivate people in their work. Marie's list grew: 'learning new skills', 'accomplishing a goal as part of a team', 'creativity', 'achieving work-life balance', 'financial rewards' and 'the adrenaline rush of working to tight deadlines'. Marie began to see that perhaps her team were indeed motivated - it was simply that the team members were motivated in a different ways to her own.
If the leader can tap into and support the team members' own motivations then the leader begins to help people to realise their full potential.
motivation example 2 - 'no-one is like me'
Since the 1980's, research has shown that although we know that we are motivated by meaningful and satisfying work (which is supported by Herzberg's timeless theory on the subject, and virtually all sensible research ever since), we assume others are motivated mainly by financial rewards. Chip Heath, associate professor at Stanford University carried out research that found most people believe that others are motivated by 'extrinsic rewards', such as pay or job security, rather than 'intrinsic motivators', like a desire to learn new skills or to contribute to an organisation.
Numerous surveys show that most people are motivated by intrinsic factors, and in this respect we are mostly all the same.
Despite this, while many leaders recognise that their own motivation is driven by factors that have nothing to do with money, they make the mistake of assuming that their people are somehow different, and that money is central to their motivation.
If leaders assume that their team members only care about their pay packet, or their car, or their monthly bonus, this inevitably produces a faulty and unsustainable motivational approach.
Leaders must recognise that people are different only in so far as the different particular 'intrinsic' factor(s) which motivate each person, but in so far as we are all motivated by 'intrinsic' factors, we are all the same.
motivation example 3 - 'people don't listen to me'
When some people talk, nearly everyone listens: certain politicians, business leaders, entertainers; people we regard as high achievers. You probably know people a little like this too. You may not agree with what they say, but they have a presence, a tone of voice and a confidence that is unmistakable. Fundamentally these people are great sales-people. They can make an unmitigated disaster sound like an unqualified victory. But do you need to be like this to motivate and lead?
Certainly not. Many people make the mistake of thinking that the only people who can lead others to success and achieve true excellence, and are the high-profile, charismatic, 'alpha-male/female' types. This is not true.
James was a relatively successful salesman but he was never at the top of his team's league table. In coaching sessions he would wonder whether he would ever be as good as his more flamboyant and aggressive colleagues. James saw himself as a sensitive person and was concerned that he was too sensitive for the job.
James was encouraged to look at how he could use his sensitivity to make more sales and beat his teammates. He reworked his sales pitch and instead of focusing his approach on the product, he based his initial approach on building rapport and asking questions. He made no attempt to 'sell'. Instead he listened to the challenges facing the people he called and asked them what kind of solution they were looking for. When he had earned their trust and established what they needed he would then describe his product. A character like James is also typically able to establish highly reliable and dependable processes for self-management, and for organising activities and resources, all of which are attributes that are extremely useful and valued in modern business. When he began to work according to his natural strengths, his sales figures went through the roof.
Each of us has qualities that can be adapted to a leadership role and/or to achieve great success. Instead of acting the way we think others expect us to, we are more likely to get others behind us and to succeed if we tap in to our natural, authentic style of leadership and making things happen. The leader has a responsibility to facilitate this process.
motivation example 4 - 'some people can't be motivated'
While it's true that not everyone has the same motivational triggers, as already shown, the belief that some people cannot be motivated is what can lead to the unedifying 'pep-talk and sack them' cycle favoured by many X-Theory managers. Typically managers use conventional methods to inspire their teams, reminding them that they are 'all in this together' or that they are 'working for the greater good' or that the management has 'complete faith in you', but when all this fails to make an impact the manager simply sighs and hands the troublesome employee the termination letter.
The reality is that motivating some individuals does involve an investment of time.
When his manager left the company, Bob was asked by the site director, Frank, to take over some extra responsibility. As well as administrative work he would be more involved in people management and report directly to Frank. Frank saw this as a promotion for Bob and assumed that he would be flattered and take to his new role with gusto. Instead Bob did little but complain. He felt he had too much to do, he didn't trust the new administrator brought in to lighten his workload, and he felt resentful that his extra responsibility hadn't come with extra pay. Frank was a good manager and told Bob that he simply had to be a little more organised, and that he (Frank) had complete belief in Bob to be able to handle this new challenge. But Bob remained sullen.
So Frank took a different approach: He tried to see the situation from Bob's point of view. Bob enjoyed his social life, but was no longer able to leave the office at 5pm. Bob was dedicated to doing a good job, but was not particularly ambitious, so promotion meant little to him. Bob was also expected to work more closely now with a colleague with whom he clashed. Then Frank looked at how Bob might perceive him as his boss. He realised Bob probably thought Frank's hands-off management style meant he didn't care. To Bob it might look as if Frank took no direct interest except when he found fault. Finally, Frank looked at the situation Bob was in to see if there was anything bringing out the worst in him. He realised two weeks of every month were effectively 'down-time' for Bob, followed by two weeks where he was overloaded with work. Having set aside his assumptions about Bob and armed with a more complete picture from Bob's point of view, Frank arranged for the two of them to meet to discuss a way forward.
Now the two were able to look at the real situation, and to find a workable way forward.
While there is no guarantee that this approach will always work, 'seeking to understand', as Stephen Covey's 'Seven Habits of Highly Effective People' puts it, is generally a better first step than 'seeking to be understood'.
It's easier to help someone when you see things from their point of view.
motivation example 5 - 'but I am listening'
We are always told how valuable listening is as a leadership tool and encouraged to do more of it. So, when we remember, we listen really hard, trying to catch every detail of what is being said and maybe follow up with a question to show that we caught everything. This is certainly important. Checking your email, thinking about last night's big game and planning your weekend certainly stop you from hearing what is being said.
But there is another important aspect to listening and that is: Listening Without Judgement.
Often when an employee tells us why they are lacking motivation we are busy internally making notes about what is wrong with what they are saying. This is pre-judging. It is not listening properly.
Really listening properly means shutting off the voice in your head that is already planning your counter-argument, so that you can actually hear, understand and interpret what you are being told. See the principles of empathy.
This is not to say that 'the employee is always right', but only when you can really understand the other person's perception of the situation are you be able to help them develop a strategy that works for them.
Listening is about understanding how the other person feels - beyond merely the words that they say.
motivation example 6 - 'if they leave I've failed'
What happens if, at their meeting, Bob admits to Frank that he doesn't see his future with that company?
What if he says the main reason he is demotivated is that he isn't really suited to the company culture, and would be happier elsewhere? Has Frank failed?
Not necessarily. It's becoming more widely accepted that the right and sustainable approach is to help individual employees to tap in to their true motivators and understand their core values. Katherine Benziger's methodologies are rooted in this philosophy: Employees who 'falsify type' (ie., behave unnaturally in order to satisfy external rather than internal motives and drivers) are unhappy, stressed, and are unable to sustain good performance.
Effort should be focused on helping people to align company goals with individual aspirations. Look at Adam's Equity Theory to help understand the complexity of personal motivation and goals alignment. Motivation and goals cannot be imposed from outside by a boss - motivation and goals must be determined from within the person, mindful of internal needs, and external opportunities and rewards.
Sometimes the person and the company are simply unsuited. In a different culture, industry, role or team that individual would be energised and dedicated, whereas in the present environment the same person doesn't fit.
Sometimes 'success' doesn't look the way we expect it to. A successful outcome for an individual and for a company may be that a demotivated person, having identified what sort of work and environment would suit them better, leaves to find their ideal job elsewhere.
You succeed as a leader by helping and enabling people to reach their potential and to achieve fulfilment. If their needs and abilities could be of far greater value elsewhere, let them go; don't force them to stay out of loyalty. Helping them identify and find a more fitting role elsewhere not only benefits you and them - it also enables you to find a replacement who is really suited and dedicated to the job.
True leaders care about the other person's interests - not just your own interests and the interests of your organization.
motivation example 7 - 'the same factors that demotivate, motivate'
When asked what brought about lack of motivation at work, the majority of people in research carried out by Herzberg blamed 'hygiene factors' such as working conditions, salary and company policy. When asked what motivated them they gave answers such as 'the sense of achievement', 'recognition', 'the opportunity to grow and advance' and 'greater responsibility'.
Herzberg's findings about human motivation have been tested and proven time and gain. His theory, and others like it, tell us that the factors that demotivate do not necessarily motivate when reversed. The conventional solution to dissatisfaction over pay levels would be to increase pay in the belief that people would then work harder and be more motivated. However, this research shows that whilst increasing wages, improving job security and positive working relationships have a marginal impact, the main factors that characterise extreme satisfaction at work are: achievement, recognition, interesting work, responsibility, advancement and growth.
So it follows that leaders who focus on these aspects - people's true motivational needs and values - are the true leaders.
Help people to enrich their work and you will truly motivate.
motivation example 8 - 'people will rise to tough challenges'
Many managers hope to motivate by setting their people challenging targets. They believe that raising the bar higher and higher is what motivates.
Tracey was an effective and conscientious account manager. Her boss habitually set her increasingly tough objectives, which Tracey generally achieved. However, in achieving her targets last month Tracey worked several eighteen-hour days, travelled extensively overseas, and had not had a single weekend break. Sometimes Tracey would mention to her boss that the effort was taking its toll on her health and happiness.
When Tracey handed in her latest monthly report, her boss said, 'You see? It's worth all the hard work. So, don't complain about it again.'
Her boss's belief was that Tracey would get a sense of satisfaction from completing an almost impossible workload. He was relying on her sense of duty - which she had in bucket-loads - to get the job done.
But this is the KITA style of motivation. It doesn't really acknowledge a dedication to the job or a sense of pride. Its leverage or 'motivation' is simply a lack of choice.
Job enlargement is different to Job enhancement. Herzberg's research shows that improving the 'meaningfulness' of a job (see also motivation example 7) has the motivational impact, not simply increasing the amount of pressure or volume of the tasks.
Achievement for achievement's sake is no basis for motivation - a person's quality of life must benefit too.
motivation example 9 - 'I tried it and it didn't work'
When you try new things - new motivational ideas, especially which affect relationships and feelings - it is normal for things initially to get a little worse. Change can be a little unsettling at first. But keep the faith.
People are naturally sceptical of unconventional motivational approaches. They may wonder why you have suddenly taken such an interest in them. They may feel you are giving them too much responsibility or be concerned that changes in the way they work may lead to job losses. Herzberg's research is among other evidence, and modern experience, that after an initial drop in performance, people quickly adjust and respond to more progressive management and motivational attitudes.
Supporting and coaching people through this stage of early doubt is vital.
Encourage and help people to grow and develop, and performance improvement is inevitable.
motivation example 10 - 'this type of motivation takes too much time'
If you've absorbed the ideas above, you might wonder where you would find the time to motivate people using these approaches.
It is true that this style of leadership, sustainable motivation, commitment and focus is in the beginning more time consuming than 'KITA' methods; this is bound to be, since KITA methods require far less thought.
Engaging fully with your staff, understanding their wants, desires and values, getting to know them as individuals and developing strategies that achieve a continuous release of energy is more intensive and takes time to work.
But consider the advantages. This investment of time means you will eventually have less to do. Instead of constantly urging your people along and having to solve all the problems yourself, you'll be the leader of a group performing at a higher level of ability and productivity, giving you the chance to step back from fire-fighting and to consider the bigger picture.
Herzberg was not alone in identifying that leaders need invest in the development of their teams, and also of their own successors. See leadership theories. Douglas McGregor's X-Y Theory is central too. So is Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, from the individual growth perspective. And see also Bruce Tuckman's 'Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing' model. All of these renowned theories clearly demonstrate the need for teams, and the individuals within them, to be positively led and developed.
Your responsibility as leader is to develop your team so that it can take on more and more of your own responsibility. A mature team should be virtully self-managing, leaving you free to concentrate on all the job-enhancing strategic aspects that you yourself need in order to keep motivated and developing.
motivational theory
employee motivation theory - team building activities, workshops, inspirational quotes, and the power of positive experience
Alignment of aims, purpose and values between staff, teams and organization is the most fundamental aspect of motivation. The better the alignment and personal association with organizational aims, the better the platform for motivation.
Where people find it difficult to align and associate with the organizational aims, then most motivational ideas and activities will have a reduced level of success.
Motivation is a complex area. It's different for each person. See the personality materials for useful explanation about different motivational needs.
Erik Erikson's life stage theory is useful for understanding people's different motivational needs according to life stage. And the experiential learning section explains the difference between 'demotivational training', and 'motivational learning', and a guide to facilitating experiential learning activities.
Motivational receptiveness and potential in everyone changes from day to day, from situation to situation. Get the alignment and values right, and motivational methods work better. Motivational methods of any sort will not work if people and organisation are not aligned. People are motivated towards something they can relate to and something they can believe in. Times have changed. People want more. You should view the following motivational methods and ideas as structures, activities and building blocks, to be used when you have a solid foundation in place. The foundation is a cohesive alignment of people's needs and values with the aims and purpose of the organization. Refer to the Psychological Contract, and people-organization alignment and motivation.
motivational methods and theory - assuming people and organization are aligned
Motivational and inspirational quotes, poems, posters, motivational speakers and stories, team building games and activities, all develop employee motivation for sales and business staff in all kinds of organizations. Motivational and inspirational experiences improve employees' attitudes, confidence and performance.
Good leadership demands good people-motivation skills and the use of inspirational techniques. Motivational methods are wide-ranging, from inspirational quotes and poems, to team building games and activities, as ice-breakers, warm-ups and exercises for conferences, workshops, meetings and events, which in themselves can often be helpful for staff motivation too. See the motivation principles and template for staff motivation questionnaires and surveys. Motivation is an essential part of life coaching processes and techniques too. Motivated people perform better - see McGregor's XY Theory for example. People playing games or competing in teams learn about each other, they communicate better and see each other in a new light. Mutual respect grows. See the Johari Window theory for example. People often enjoy events which include new non-work activities, especially when bosses and superiors take part in the same teams as their junior staff, which also helps cohesiveness and 'can-do' culture. Inspirational quotes, stories and poems all help motivation too. Powerful positive imagery stimulates visualisation in the conscious and sub-conscious brain, which encourages self-motivation, developmental behaviour, confidence and belief. Playing games enables people to experience winning and achieving in a way that their normal work might not. People become motivated to achieve and do better when they have experienced the feelings of success and achievement, regardless of context. This is why fire-walking and outward-bound activities have such powerful motivational effect. All of these ideas, and more explained below, contribute to improving motivation, inspiration and performance.
Here is the theory of how team building games, activities like juggling develop motivation, positive images in quotes and stories, inspirational posters, quotations, motivational speakers, team workshops and brainstorming, etc., all help to strengthen relationships, build understanding, increase motivation and improve performance:
how games and other inspirational references and activities help motivation and motivational training
| | | [pic] Thanks to Jim Barker |
|Work and business-based training commonly | | |
|concentrates on process, rules, theory, | | |
|structure and logic, all of which tend to | | |
|develop and use the left-side of the | | |
|brain. However, modern successful | | |
|organizations rely just as heavily on | | |
|their people having well-developed 'soft' | | |
|skills and attributes, such as | | |
|self-motivation, confidence, initiative, | | |
|empathy and creativity, which all tend to | | |
|use the right-side of the brain. For more | | |
|information about brain type and bias see | | |
|the Benziger theory section, for example. | | |
|Using games and activities like juggling | | |
|helps to unleash right-side brain skills, | | |
|because these activities necessarily draw | | |
|on a person's intuitive, spatial and | | |
|'feeling' capabilities - found in the the | | |
|right-side of the brain. | | |
|See the section on Experiential Learning | | |
|and the guide to facilitating experiential| | |
|learning activities - it contains many of | | |
|the principles explained here. | | |
Also, using activities and references that take people out of their normal work environment creates new opportunities for them to experience winning, achievement, team-working, learning and personal development, in ways that are often not possible in their usual work context. Experiencing these positive feelings is vital for the conscious and sub-conscious visualisation of success and achievement, essential for broadening people's horizons, raising their sights, setting new personal standards and goals, and increasing motivation. The use of role playing games and role play exercises is an especially effective motivational and visualisation technique, despite people's normal aversion to the practice (see the role playing games and activities tips to see how to manage role-playing activities successfully).
Inspirational references, stories, quotes and examples also help the life coaching process.
ice-breakers and warm-ups for motivation
When a group or team of people assemble for a conference, or training course, there is always a feeling of uncertainty and discomfort. Even if people know each other, they feel uncomfortable in the new strange situation, because it is different. Mankind has evolved partly because of this awareness to potential threats and fear of the unknown. Games and team building activities relax people, so that they can fully concentrate on the main purpose of the day, whatever it is, rather than spending the morning still wondering what everyone else is thinking. See the stress theory section for examples. Activities and games are great levellers - they break down the barriers, and therefore help develop rapport and relationships.
building confidence for motivation
Learning something new and completely different liberates the mind. Facing a challenge, meeting it and mastering it helps build confidence.
motivational team building
When you break down barriers, misunderstandings, prejudices, insecurities, divisions, territories and hierarchies - you begin to build teams. Get a group of people in a room having fun with juggling balls or spinning plates and barriers are immediately removed. Teams unite and work together when they identify a common purpose - whether the aim is the tallest tower made out of newspapers, or a game of rounders on the park. Competition in teams or groups creates teams and ignites team effort.
motivational coaching and training motivation
Learning to juggle or some other new activity demonstrates how we learn, and how to coach others. Breaking new tasks down into stages, providing clear instructions, demonstration, practice, time and space to make mistakes, doing it one stage at a time..... all the essential training and coaching techniques can be shown, whether juggling is the vehicle or some other team-building idea, and the learning is clearer and more memorable because it is taken out of the work context, where previously people 'can't see the wood for the trees'. Games and activities provide a perfect vehicle for explaining the training and development process ('train the trainer' for example) to managers, team leaders and trainers.
personal motivation styles and learning motivation
Everyone is different. Taking part in new games and activities outside of the work situation illustrates people's different strengths and working style preferences. Mutual respect develops when people see skills and attributes in others that they didn't know existed. Also, people work and learn in different ways, see the Kolb learning style model and Benziger thinking styles model for examples.
continual development and motivation
Learning and taking part in a completely new activity or game like juggling demonstrates that learning is ongoing. The lessons never finish, unless people decide to stop learning. Juggling the basic 'three ball cascade' pattern doesn't end there - it's just a start - as with all learning and development. Master juggler Enrico Rastelli practiced all the daylight hours juggling ten balls. Introducing people, staff or employees to new experiences opens their minds to new avenues of personal development, and emphasises the opportunity for continuous learning that is available to us all.
improving empathy and communications for motivation
"Seek first to understand, and then to be understood." (Steven Covey). See the Seven Habits Of Highly Effective People summary and review.
To communicate we must understand the other person. Empathy and intuitive skills are right-side brain. Conventional classroom training or distance learning do nothing to address this vital area. Juggling and playing spontaneous or creative games definitely promote development and awareness in the right-side of the brain, which we use when we communicate and understand others. Team activities and games promote communications and better mutual understanding - essential for good organizational performance (see the Johari Window model and theory).
motivation and creativity
Creativity and initiative are crucial capabilities for modern organizational effectiveness. Juggling and other games activities dispel the notion that actions must be according to convention, and that response can only be to stimulus. Successful organizations have staff that initiate, create, innovate, and find new ways to do things better, without being told. Using mind and body together in a completely new way encourages pro-active thought and lateral thinking, which opens people's minds, and develops creative and initiative capabilities. See the brainstorming process, which integrates well with team building activities and workshops. See also the workshops process and ideas.
motivation for problem-solving and decision-making
Problem-solving is integral to decision-making - see the problem-solving and decision-making section. Learning to juggle or taking part in new challenging stimulating activities uses the intuitive brain to solve the problem, the same part that's vital for creatively solving work problems. People who can solve problems creatively can make decisions - and organizations need their staff and employees to have these abilities.
physical activity is motivational
Team building activities like juggling, construction exercises, or outdoor games, get the body moving, which is good for general health and for an energetic approach to work. A minute of juggling three balls is 200 throws, the equivalent of pumping over 20 kilos. Physical activity also provides significant stress relief, and stress management is part of every organisation's duty of care towards its employees. People concentrate and work better when they have had some light exercise and physical stimulus. Physical activity energises people and reduces stress and tension. See details on the stress section.
team building workshops are empowering and motivational
See the section on workshops. Workshops are good vehicles for team building games and activities, and also great for achieving team consensus, collective problem-solving, developing new direction and strategy, and to support the delegation and team development process (see the Tannenbaum and Schmidt Continuum for example).
team building games and activities are motivational
Learning new things - even simple skills like plate-spinning - help to build confidence, promote team-working and unleash creativity. Taking part in workshops and brainstorming sessions are empowering activities. Combine all three and it's even more effective for team building, development and motivation. See particularly the 'Hellespont Swim' case study and exercise.
If you think about it, all manner of left-side-brain conventional training and business skills can be integrated within an innovative, participative right-side-brain activity-based approach, to increase interest, participation, involvement, retention and motivation.
saying thanks is hugely motivational
Saying thanks and giving praise are the most commonly overlooked and under-estimated ways of motivating people. And it's so easy. Saying thanks is best said naturally and from the heart, so if your intentions are right you will not go far wrong. When you look someone in the eye and thank them sincerely it means a lot. In front of other people even more so. The key words are the ones which say thanks and well done for doing a great job, especially where the words recognise each person's own special ability, quality, contribution, effort, whatever. People always appreciate sincere thanks, and they appreciate being valued as an individual even more. When you next have the chance to thank your team or an individual team-member, take the time to find out a special thing that each person has done and make a point of mentioning these things. Doing this, the praise tends to carry even greater meaning and motivational effect.
motivational quotes - using inspirational quotations and sayings is motivational
Inspirational quotations, and amusing maxims and sayings are motivational when used in team building sessions, conferences, speeches and training courses. Inspirational quotes contribute to motivation because they provide examples and role models, and prompt visualization. Inspirational quotes stimulate images and feelings in the brain - both consciously and unconsciously. Powerful positive imagery found in motivational quotations and poems is genuinely motivational for people, individually and in teams, and can help to build confidence and belief. Inspirational examples motivate people in the same way that the simple 'power of positive thinking', and 'accentuate the positive' techniques do - people imagine and visualise themselves behaving in the way described in the quotation, saying, story or poem. Visualization is a powerful motivational tool - quotes, stories and poems provide a very effective method for inspiring and motivating people through visualization, imagination and association. See the stories section, and 'If', Rudyard Kipling's famous inspirational poem.
Here are a few motivational quotes, relating to different situations and roles, for example; achievement, management, leadership, etc. When using quote for motivation it's important to choose material that's relevant and appropriate. Motivational posters showing inspirational quotes or poems can be effective for staff and employee motivation, and in establishing organizational values. There are more quotations about inspiration and achievement on the quotes section. These quotes all make effective motivational posters (see the free posters page), and are excellent materials for motivational speakers:
motivational quotes
"We cannot solve our problems with the same level of thinking that created them." (Albert Einstein)
"It is amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit." (President Harry S Truman)
"In the midst of winter, I finally learned that within me there lay an invincible summer." (Albert Camus, 1913 - 1960, French author & philosopher)
"If you're not part of the solution you must be part of the problem." (the commonly paraphrased version of the original quote: "What we're saying today is that you're either part of the solution, or you're part of the problem" by Eldridge Cleaver 1935-98, founder member and information minister of the Black Panthers, American political activist group, in a speech in 1968 - thanks RVP)
"A dream is just a dream. A goal is a dream with a plan and a deadline." (Harvey Mackay - thanks Brad Hanson)
"I have learned that success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles overcome while trying to succeed." (Booker T Washington, 1856-1915, American Educator and African-American spokesman, thanks for quote M Kincaid, and for biography correction M Yates and A Chatterjee)
"Most people never run far enough on their first wind to find out they've got a second. Give your dreams all you've got and you'll be amazed at the energy that comes out of you." (William James, American Philosopher, 1842-1910 - thanks Jean Stevens)
"Whatever you can do - or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it." (Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, German writer, 1749-1832 - thanks Yvonne Bent)
"A dwarf standing on the shoulders of a giant may see farther than the giant himself." (Didacus Stella, circa AD60 - and, as a matter of interest, abridged on the edge of an English £2 coin)
"If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants." (Sir Isaac Newton, 1676.)
"The most important thing in life is not to capitalise on your successes - any fool can do that. The really important thing is to profit from your mistakes." (William Bolitho, from 'Twelve against the Gods')
"Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be,
For my unconquerable soul.
In the fell clutch of circumstance,
I have not winced nor cried aloud:
Under the bludgeonings of chance my head is bloody but unbowed . . . . .
It matters not how strait the gait, how charged with punishments the scroll,
I am the master of my fate: I am the captain of my soul."
(WE Henley, 1849-1903, from 'Invictus')
"Management means helping people to get the best out of themselves, not organising things." (Lauren Appley)
"It's not the critic who counts, not the one who points out how the strong man stumbled or how the doer of deeds might have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena; whose face is marred with the sweat and dust and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs and comes up short again and again; who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions and spends himself in a worthy cause and who, at best knows the triumph of high achievement and who at worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat." (Theodore Roosevelt, 23 April 1923.)
"The world is divided into people who do things, and people who get the credit. Try, if you can, to belong to the first class. There's far less competition." (Dwight Morrow, 1935.)
"What does not kill us makes us stronger." (attributed to Friedrich Nietzsche, probably based on his words: "Out of life's school of war: What does not destroy me, makes me stronger." from The Twilight of the Idols, 1899)
"A life spent in making mistakes is not only more honourable but more useful than a life spent doing nothing." (George Bernard Shaw, 1856-1950.)
"I praise loudly. I blame softly." (Catherine the Great, 1729-1796.)
More are on the inspirational quotes page, and a more varied selection including funny sayings are on the sayings and maxims page.
motivational ideas for sales managers for sales teams
(These principles are applicable to all job roles subject to the notes at the end of this item.)
Motivation of sales people commonly focuses on sales results, but nobody can actually 'do' a result. What matters in achieving results is people's attitude and activity and the areas of opportunity on which the attitude and activity is directed.
What sales people can do is to adopt a positive and creative attitude, and carry out more productive and efficient activity, directed on higher-yield strategic opportunities. By doing these things sales people and sales teams will improve their results.
However the tendency remains for sales managers, sales supervisors and team leaders (typically under pressure from above from executives who should know better) to simply direct people to 'meet the target', or to 'increase sales', or worse still, to pressurise customers into accelerating decision-making, which might work in the short-term but is extremely unhelpful in the medium-term (when business brought forward leaves gaps in the next months' forecasts), and damages the long-term (when as a result of supplier-driven sales pressure, the customer relationship is undermined or ruined).
Instead think about what really motivates and excites people, and focus on offering these opportunities to sales people and sales teams, on an ongoing basis. Don't wait until you find yourself 25% behind target with only half of the year remaining, and with targets set to increase as well in the final quarter.
People will not generally and sustainably improve their performance, or attitude when they are shouted at or given a kick up the backside. People will on the other hand generally improve their performance if empowered to develop their own strategic capability and responsibility within the organisation. Herzberg, Adams, Handy, Maslow, McGregor, and every other management and motivation expert confirmed all this long ago.
Sales teams generally comprise people who seek greater responsibility. They also seek recognition, achievement, self-development and advancement.
So if we know these things does it not make good sense to offer these opportunities to them, because we know that doing so will have a motivational effect on them, and also encourage them to work on opportunities that are likely to produce increasing returns on their efforts? Of course. So do it.
If you are managing a sales team try (gently and progressively) exploring with the team how they'd like to develop their experience, responsibilities, roles, status, value, contribution, within the business. Include yourself in this. Usually far more ideas and activity come from focusing on how the people would like to develop their roles and value (in terms of the scale and sophistication of the business that they are responsible for), rather than confining sales people to a role that is imposed on them and which is unlikely to offer sustainable interest and stimulation.
All businesses have many opportunities for new strategic growth available. Yours will be no different.
Most employees are capable of working at a far higher strategic level, developing ever greater returns on their own efforts.
Performance improvement is generally found through enabling people and teams to discover and refine more productive and strategic opportunities, which will lead to more productive and motivating activities.
For example: reactive sales people are generally able to be proactive account mangers; account managers are generally able to be major accounts developers; major accounts developers are generally able to be national accounts managers; national accounts mangers are generally able to be strategic partner and channel developers; strategic partner and channel managers are generally able to be new business sector/service developers, and so on...
Again include yourself in this.
If necessary (depending on your organisational culture and policies seek approval from your own management/executives for you to embark on this sort of exploration of strategic growth. (If you are unable to gain approval there are many other organisations out there who need people to manage sales teams in this way....)
Obviously part of the approach (and your agreement with your people - the 'psychological contract') necessarily includes maintaining and meeting existing basic business performance target levels. This is especially so since strategic growth takes time, and your business still needs the normal day-to-day business handled properly. But people can generally do this, ie., maintain and grow day-to-day performance while additionally developing new higher-level strategic areas, because genuinely motivated people are capable of dramatic achievements. The motivation and capacity to do will come quite naturally from the new responsibility and empowerment to operate at a higher level.
N.B. The principles described above generally apply to most other job roles. People are motivated by growth and extra responsibility, while at the same time the organisation benefits from having its people focus on higher strategic aims and activities. Be aware however that people in different roles will be motivated by different things, and particularly will require different types of support and guidelines when being encouraged to work at a higher strategic level. For example, engineers require more detail and clarification of expectations and process than sales people typically do; administrators are likely to require more reassurance and support in approaching change than sales people typically do.
For sure you should encourage and enable people to develop their roles, but make sure you give appropriate explanation, management and support for the types of people concerned.
Motivation techniques
Most of us want to be successful at something. Whether you wish for monetary success, or simply to lose weight, be a better parent or have a successful affiliate website, you have to be motivated and committed to succeed.
The power and ability to succeed is in all of us - all it takes is the motivation to get something happening. Because unless you take action, your dreams of success will remain just that - dreams. Jason Gracia in his well-known book The Motivated Mind gives you an instructional guide on how to turn your dreams into success.
Learning how to take action, get motivated and stay that way is the key that will drive you to succeed and these simple motivation techniques will help you get what you want out of life.
Plan to succeed
Successful people are goal oriented. They plan their goals, then work in incremental steps to achieve those goals. Your goals need to be specific, realistic and achievable. Visualize your goals so that they become real, then write them down and keep them somewhere as a daily reminder of what it is you're aiming for. • To stay motivated, you need to feel inspired and excited about what you are aiming to achieve. If you can't get excited about your success goals, you'll never find the inspiration and motivation you need to take action to change your life. • If your goals don't excite you, then you've chosen the wrong goals. Go back to the drawing board and think about what it is that inspires and excites you, then you'll have a goal you can work towards. • The longest journey begins with a single step, so plan on adding one new positive step to your daily routine each day to move you towards your goal. Adding one positive step each day will help you take control of your future and rid you of past negative habits. • Set aside 15 minutes each day to review your goals and the progress you have made. Measuring your progress will keep you inspired to achieve the results you want and help you recognize problem areas that may need work. Acknowledging your achievements is a way of patting yourself on the back for a job well done. • Believe in the possibilities. Don't allow your fears to stand in the way of your future success. Acknowledge the fact that everyone feels fear when they step outside their comfort zone. As the old adage says, "Feel the fear, then do it anyway!"
No matter what your goals, MyGoals can help you achieve them. From losing weight, to gaining focus in your career or getting your debt paid off, they can help you succeed with a step by step process towards achieving what you want out of life.
Thinking your way to success
Successful people believe in themselves and their ability to succeed, despite the setbacks, obstacles and failures they will have encountered along the way. The road to success is littered with those who fell at the first hurdle and didn't have what it takes to get up again.
Accept the fact that you will fail, maybe more than once, and in many different ways. Believing that you will achieve your goals without setbacks is unrealistic and a recipe for failure. Successful people turn the negative events that are sure to occur into learning experiences, then they adjust accordingly and move on.
To be motivated you have to be positive.
Sure, we all have days when even getting out of bed feels like a drag, but hitting the "Snooze" button on the alarm is not going to get you to where you want to go.
Being positive puts you in control of your own destiny, so when you understand that only YOU can control your future you also understand that only YOU can control the present.
On those days when it all seems too hard, simply focus on what it is you're aiming for and imagine how exciting it will be when you achieve your goals.
Let the excitement of realizing your dreams fuel your imagination, and from that you can power into your day. • Learn something new every day. The more you know, the closer you'll get to achieving your goal in the time you've set yourself. Information can help you gain confidence, dispel fear and give you the inspiration and motivation you need to lead a better, more fulfilling life.
• Get your life right Staying motivated and achieving your goals is a whole lot easier if you can keep your focus.
Aim to rid yourself of the clutter that prevents you from staying focused. Jason Gracia from Motivation123.com teaches you in a step-by-step process how to keep yourself focused in his best-selling book The Motivated Mind.
• Organize your workspace so that it creates a positive, stimulating environment. A cluttered workspace creates a cluttered mind, so take the time to clean up around you.
Make your workplace a happy place to be by pinning your favorite quotation to the wall where you can see it, or adding a vase of fresh flowers to a table nearby - whatever brings a smile to your face will keep you in a positive frame of mind and dispel any negative thoughts that may try to creep in.
• An active mind requires an active body and an active body requires a healthy lifestyle. You can't expect to operate at your peak if you don't have the physical stamina to maintain the momentum. That means eating a healthy diet, getting regular exercise and getting enough sleep. Feeling positive about your physical wellbeing has a tremendous impact on how you feel about achieving your goals.
Helping or hindering?
Surround yourself with people who inspire and motivate you to succeed. Ask yourself if the people in your life are helping or hindering you on your path to success, then make any changes necessary.
You don't have to go it alone - share the excitement of what you are aiming to achieve with those around you who will root for you every step of the way.
Take time out each day to relax. Switch off and spend time doing an activity you enjoy (other than work!) - go for a walk, take a bike ride or simply spend quality time with your family. Balancing work and play is an important part of staying healthy, happy and motivated.
Learn to live your life with passion. Appreciate all that you have around you and how great it feels simply to be alive at this particular moment in time.
Yes, it's important to keep your focus on the goals you wish to achieve, but the journey can be as exciting and stimulating as the destination. Keep your eyes open and enjoy the ride 