Motivation is the secret skill that helps you unlock three of the major problems that organizations are faced with during their operations: lateness, absenteeism and turnover. Every manager who runs a department, group or any form of organization has to find ways to motivate those that he works with. When we speak of motivation, of course, the first thing that comes to mind is money! But mark my words, money is not always the solution. If we throw money at every people problem we face in an organization, we will only make things worse on the long run. We ought to answer the question associated with the problem of money which is: can we ever get enough of it? The human being always wants more. If you work in an environment in which resources are scarce and most people do, you have to think of alternative ways to motivate the people in the organization. I had that experience in Ghana around 2003 when we offered workers in an organization extra money to come to work on a public holiday. They flatly refused stating that they wanted to rest!That was cultural shock for me. Since I was coming from a background where money was appreciated by a majority of people.
Career advancement is a rare in major organizations. If you can let an employee know that there are fair opportunities to advance his career within the organization, he would likely work hard to achieve those opportunities. Companies and organizations that have a laid down career path usually have dedicated staff who are always ready to go the extra mile to achieve their targets. Recognition among the crowd of workers for extraordinary or exceptional contributions also serves as a tool for motivation. Sundry arrangements at major staff events in which achievers are asked to stand up for recognition or take a bow can affect the way people do their jobs positively.
Most people who are active adults have one personal development need or the other that they would like to fulfill in their lives. Not everyone wants to go back to school, although some people would jump at the opportunity if the conditions are right; but in today's world there are numerous ways of developing ones skills and abilities; we can actually choose the route we wish to take in some cases: training classes, on the job training, reading books and research on the topics via the internet or other tools. We can also understudy masters in our craft and consistently seek expert advice. Meeting mentors or people of great significance can be a motivating factor. Often we find that having face to face discussions with people we admire and respect could impact positively on us. Sometimes we do not have to go out of our way to make sure our people meet exceptional personalities; outings, recreation, fun and adventure as well as leisure pursuits can serve as a major source of encouragement and inspiration. People should be allowed to bond away from the office and get to know each other in unofficial capacities. Such activity impacts positively on their jobs as they could return to work refreshed with new zeal.
Sometimes as managers we may have to go to the extent of conducting surveys or research about the people we manage and try to determine what there real interests are. If we go out of our way to do this we can find what personally satisfies them and approach them from that perspective. Strangely enough, achievement is a major source of inspiration for many people. Merely being able to refer to their achievements in their chosen line of work can do a lot to the morale of some groups of people. This, perhaps is where trophies, plaques and awards are useful.
The military have the advantage of being able to use the two extremes of reward and punishment as motivation. Although some people do not see punishment as motivation, any ploy that keeps a person or group in line, once they have intentionally strayed from their course or cause, can be regarded as motivation. Generally the big three motivational techniques that are the most common among men are Reward, Recognition and Reinforcement. The third one is a process of encouragement by speaking to the party concerned consistently about how well he has performed. It often works like magic!
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