Like it or not, large numbers of unmotivated employees are working within your sector.

This can a tricky situation for any business leader. When your employees aren't motivated to do their best or they simply have no desire to drive better business results—everyone, including your company loses out.

Based on a recent report by the Dale Carnegie Institute, less than 25% of non-management employees admit they're fully motivated and engaged by their work. This means over three quarters of non-management employees are disengaged or bored with their jobs. Obviously, this is a matter that needs to be tackled as it's directly related to employee engagement rates, retention, and work culture. 

So what can you do about it? The solution is to build easy but efficient motivational factors within your corporate culture. Compared to their non-engaged peers, highly motivated workers tend to be more efficient, better educated, and more likely to develop and learn. In the following article, you'll find 5 easy ways to motivate your employees to do their best.

1. Set goals and recognize success

Your employees want a challenge—it's human nature. It's easy to become unmotivated if you wake up every day with the same menial things to work on and no target in sight. Setting realistic targets for your employees help them strive towards something tangible. Additionally, as a business leader it'll also give you something to assess your team members' success. 

When targets are met, make sure to celebrate or at least acknowledge these as accomplishments. It doesn't have to be an expensive celebration, but a simple opportunity to appreciate success, such as a team lunch or internal email, goes a long way in building up your employees—helping them feel valued and working towards their next objectives.

2. Offer space for growth

Especially if your business is expanding rapidly, it's a huge motivator to offer your employees space to develop within the business. The potential for more money from a dangling carrot is enticing, sure. But there's also a positive psychological impact of feeling trusted and valued for their work.

For example, if you have one employee who’s particularly good at a certain set of skills, consider having them to take over a department that allows them to make use of those particular skills. When you offer development opportunities to your best workers, it shifts their thinking from "this is just a job" to "this could be a full-fledged career."

3. Listening is key

Feeling like their desires and needs are understood at work is one of the most important motivating factors for employees. This doesn't mean every request should be approved, but it's increasingly important that you, as a leader, hear what your employees have to say. If an employee has an idea for a new method or ways to improve their job, just listen. No matter how impractical the ideas might be, it's important to listen with an empathic ear. 

People need to have their voices heard. This is no different for your employees. If your employees feel like no one's listening to them, they'll reach a point where they won’t care about your company anymore. Why would they care, especially when they feel like the company doesn't care about them.

If you're concerned your leaders are unable to hear-out and actively listen, bring in help. There are few companies, like ours, that focus on making sure your employees feel heard and understood.

4. Offer the possibility of a flexible schedule

Technology has changed the way businesses operate today. And the way we work, or the way we should work, has also changed. Employees are now able (and expected) to check work emails on their phones or complete tasks at home on their computers. As such, it seems only fair for employers to provide similar flexibility when it comes to employee schedules. 

According to a Forbes survey, 46 percent of respondents said that versatility is the most significant aspect when it comes to job hunting. And employers seem to be paying more and more attention to this: on Forbes 2014 "Best Companies to Work For", 86 percent of companies offered some sort of flexible schedule and this number seems to only be increasing over time. So, whether it's a work-from-home opportunity or flexible time, if you want to be known as a progressive, empathic employer and retain your top talent, consider offering different scheduling options.

5. Create an awesome culture

Ensure that your company is a great place to be by investing in your company culture. Not only should your employees have livable wages and benefits, but they should also enjoy working at your company. Why would employees work hard if they don't like what they're doing, how things get done, or the people they're with?

You don't have to have free beer every day of the week or a professional barista in-house. Simply introduce basic benefits or perks such as team lunches, intentional team building activities, happy hours or social events. Show your employees you truly care about their well-being as people, more than just workers. Surprisingly, a little downtime often leads to increased productivity. 

6. Treat employees with respect 

Sure, it seems like it's a given to treat people with respect. Like looking both ways before you cross the street, or brushing your teeth in the morning. But, sometimes we have to remember that the employees we see every day are real people. People with lives outside the workplace. And they deserve the same respect that every day we, ourselves wish to have. This should be the Golden Rule of any business.

Make it a priority to listen to and treat each person in your workplace with respect. Especially when you're having a "bad day" or when deadlines are looming. Focusing on respectful and appreciative behaviors will keep tensions down while promote a relaxed productive environment . When individuals feel valued and have the intrinsic gratification of a job well done, their desire to do good work increases. Remember, positive strengthening consistently outperforms negative strengthening.

Bottom Line

Your employees, now more than ever, need more psychological support from their leadership team and higher management. They need to feel like they are contributing to a greater mutual vision and mission for your company. As a result, you'll see an increase in job satisfaction and inner motivation.

Companies' overall success primarily relate to employee creativity, teamwork, problem-solving, efficiency, and loyalty. Thus, it's crucial to identify the motivating approaches that work best for your employees. This will ensure the most valuable assets in your company—your people—achieve their full talent potential.

Looking to add more motivated employees to your team? We can help!