Creating Self-Motivated People
In last week’s entry (Why you need self-motivated people), I wrote about the necessity of surrounding yourself with self-motivated self-starters. Now that we know we need them, here are some ideas on how you can install the self-starting generator in your people.
=> Treat Your People Like Customers : If you want to be able to deliver extraordinary quality, service, convenience and value to your external customer, you must first service your internal customer.
It stands to reason, if you treat the people who report to you (your internal customers) as you would like them to treat your clients and customers, your level of service and therefore your business, will increase.
=> Probe for Needs : In every Sales 101 class, we are told that if we probe for our clients wants and needs, find them and fill them on a consistent every day basis, we will develop long-term, loyal clients. It seems to me, if we do the same thing for our internal clients we have a good chance of developing long-term loyal employees or staff.
Most people are not self-motivated because they themselves don’t know what motivates them. They have no goals or plans for their lives or careers. Therefore, they’re working to help make you more successful, not themselves. A very demotivating force.
I’ve often had managers, business owners or executives say to me, "If I could only find the right button to push on this person." The problem is: It’s impossible to find the right button on someone who has no buttons.
One of your most important jobs as a leader is to help your people "find their buttons." You need to sit down with each of your people, individually, and help them put together a set of goals and plans detailing what it is they want to achieve out of their lives and careers, much like you do for your company, business or department.
Once this is done, the next step is to show them what they need to on the job in order to achieve their goals. Once people see how they can use their jobs as a vehicle toward getting them what they want, now they are, in essence, working for themselves. They’re working harder and coming in every day with a great attitude, because they understand that every day they come to work and do well, they’re getting that much closer to what they want.
=> "Just give them more money, that will motivate them ": I’ll say this one more time; money is not a motivator. No one ever wakes up in the morning and says, "I can’t wait to get to work today, because they pay me well." Money is not something that makes you love your job; it’s only something that might stop you from hating your job. Money is only a vehicle: it is a vehicle that allows you to live the type of life style you choose to live.
What’s really needed is for you to help your people define, "How they want their lives to look." Once they do that, they can figure out how much money they need to support that life style. Then it’s up to you, as the leader, to show them what they have to do to earn that amount of money. Now they’re not working for the money, but the defined life style the money will bring.
Now you have created a self-motivated, self-starter.
Tomorrow we’ll look at 8 communication keys you can start using immediately that will help to create the kind of work environment that breeds success.