The Psychology of Team Member Motivation
They should, they can, will they?
Managers who actively support and motivate their team members feel closer to them. By showing a sincere interest in your team members, you build trust and inspire others to achieve higher performance. A good team is not just a healthy team, it is a team where team members are recognised for their achievements. A good manager understands that every time they speak to a team member, they can appraise and provide feedback, knowing that everyone needs to receive positive feedback to know that they are important, are a contributor, a team player and believe they are receiving an honest assessment of their performance.
Team Members fall into two Motivation Categories
1. Self-motivated. These people are self-directed and self-managing, they are the team members who have a set of internal personal and professional drivers that motivate them. They are (or can become) your star performers, which you are always at risk of losing if you do not continually provide them with appropriate autonomy, feedback, and empowerment to do their job. Self-Motivation - When we are driven to do something by a strong desire, a need to succeed or impress.
2. Externally motivated. These team members do not possess these same drivers as their self-motivated colleagues, yet strangely, team members who require external motivation can also be star performers but are more often not. External motivation consists of providing more regular support and encouragement, reinforcing the team members perception of themselves in their capability to do something. External Motivation – When we need another person’s opinion as to our capability.
The Role of the Manager
Great managers communicate high expectations to team members, inspiring them through either their Self or External motivation. Great managers also encourage team members to be creative and innovative and to challenge their beliefs in themselves, they are also curious about the inner motivations of their team members because it is one of the keys to high performance. Does your team member enjoy meeting new people? Mastering new skills? Bonding with a team? Working in the background? How much do you know about your team members strengths?
To master Self and External Motivation, you need only do three things:
1. Set high Standards.
The standards that you set for yourself are one of your biggest Self and External motivation tools. Working to the best of your abilities shows team members what you expect from them. They will only work as hard as you do, that is, to the standard that you are setting. That's why a manager who understands motivation will always push themselves to reach a higher standard. This simple act inspires others to do the same. Team members follow the lead, which creates highly motivated and productive teams. Give your team members tasks that capitalize on their strengths and take them out of their comfort zone. If they are resistive, reluctant, or hesitant, tell them that what you want is important is that they have a go, not what they achieve. 90% of the time, team members achieve the desired outcome the first time.
2. Give the right Feedback
Feedback is crucial to your team members’ motivation levels. Your team members need to know what they're doing well and what they could improve on. They need feedback and recognition of their efforts and successes. Unfortunately, 69% of managers don't feel comfortable talking to their team members, meaning they are disconnected from their team, and worse, the team members are disengaged. They can feel like their manager does not care, which means they don't or won’t care either.
Motivational managers go in the opposite direction. They often communicate with confidence. They articulate clearly, which helps their team members to understand the direction they need to go in. Providing direction is an essential team member motivation tool at your disposal. Use your feedback sessions to ensure your team members know what you need from them.
If you have difficulty talking with your team members, when you can (office, hallway, elevator) ask them two questions: 1. What are your top 3 issues at the moment? 2. What can I do to help? These questions show a sincere interest in their affairs and provide you with valuable feedback as well.
3. Listen to team members.
Every team member needs to know and feel that their manager ‘listens’ to what they are saying and respects their ideas. They want to be confident that some action may be taken based upon what they have said. Despite this, many managers don't listen to their team members. They may ask questions, but they do not hear the answers, believing that their ideas are the only ones that matter.
This tells team members that their opinions and ideas have little value and is a great way to demotivate them. This results in missing out on many great ideas and suggestions. Effective (or active listening as it is known) takes mental effort – practice if you must.
How to quickly Demotivate Team Members
· Do not give feedback or recognition.
· Micromanage them as against reviewing detail.
· Make decisions without consulting them.
· Allow team members to miss commitments without a negative consequence.
· Not making allowance for personal factors and the effects on their work.
Dealing with a team members Fear of Failure
There is a significant and insidious cause of demotivation and that's our self-defeating thoughts brought on by fear of not meeting expectations, the classic fear of failure that we all experience at some time. You can see it in a team members eye when you give them a task that they do not feel confident about, they will look down and not meet your gaze. In many unfortunate cases, team members have -learned that failure, not meeting what's expected, can have negative consequences or, in extreme cases, be punished. Failure should be celebrated as it is how we get better.
The fear of failure can be a major roadblock. Instead of letting it bring someone down, think of failure as a blessing as you get the feedback you need to improve. Tell team members that if they can embrace failures as a run of the mill experience, their expectations will be tempered, and the failure will provide an insight into their comfort zones. Failures teach us not what we did wrong, but what we must do right.
Fear of failure is probably one of the main reasons we prefer to numb ourselves through inaction rather than move forward. Sometimes we are so afraid of letting ourselves down or letting others down or disappointing them that the opinions of others dominate us to the point of paralysis. Other times it is a deep-seated feeling of unworthiness that makes us question our capabilities. Succeeding or failing is not the issue; what is the issue is 'having a go'. When used with people you are getting to know or to whom you are giving a complex task that they have no experience or knowledge of, the following technique works well. It is the 'hand technique’.
The Hand Technique
How to deal with fear of failure or giving a team member a stretch task that takes them outside of their comfort zone.
It works like this; explain the task, what you think the outcome may look like and then deliberately place your hand about 10 centimetres above your desk and say, "what's important here is having a go. I don't care if you only achieve this much (then raise your hand a bit higher) or you achieve this much; what I care about is you agree to have a go at this task please, I am only interested in your having a go, not the outcome.
The hand technique is very good at removing anxiety about their ability to do the task and your expectation of the outcome. Finish up by saying, "please come back at any time if you need help." Tell them it's your job to help. This technique is remarkably successful, especially as people get to know you and what you expect of them. Just having a go, giving it a try is what it's all about and most people succeed the first time.
Summary
1. Give effective recognition for a job well done by doing it in front of others. Be sparing in your praise; recognition must be deserved.
2. Look for opportunities to improve communication between team members by highlighting someone's strengths and by underpinning any shortcomings.
3. Every time you speak with one of your team members, it is an opportunity to provide feedback on their performance and offer support and motivation. Everyone needs to receive positive feedback so that they understand that they are important, are a contributor a team player and believe they receive an honest assessment of their performance.
4. Comment on a recent email or report you received.
5. Comment on customer feedback you received that concerns their area.
6. A comment that you think things are going well.
7. Equally, make 'observations', not criticisms about things you don't like. ("I noticed that last email you sent me was very long.”)
8. Implement programs to recognise the performance and efforts of all team members. (E.g., Employee of the month).
9. When you give someone a difficult task or one outside of their skillset, remove the fear of failure by telling them that what you expect is that they 'have a go,' not what they achieve, and offer to help.
10. Accept mistakes, but not when the same one is made three times.