After the Christmas break, you might find that your employees are struggling to get motivated. We’re a few weeks into the new year now and whilst you might think that the end of year break would motivate people, it can actually have the opposite effect.
After a prolonged break, lots of people struggle to get back in the swing of things, so you might be finding that your team is in need of some additional motivation to get them through the rest of the year. If so, here are some top tips you can implement to motivate your team in 2022.
Communicate more clearly
A lot of employers are guilty of failing to communicate effectively with their employees, resulting in discontentment and a lack of productivity. In most workplaces, communication could be improved to some degree, so why not make 2022 the year that you vow to improve communication with your team?
You don’t need to implement huge changes to your business to communicate more clearly, you simply need to be more direct. This means committing to actively using more direct language, arranging more meetings with your team members, encouraging open conversation, and always making time to speak to your employees when they approach you.
Avoid micromanaging
Research shows that around 59% of employees have been micromanaged – that’s the majority of the workforce. Even if you don’t think you micromanage your team, if productivity and morale are low, it could be a possibility – whether you realize it or not. Your team won’t perform highly if they feel like their every move is being watched and judged.
To avoid micromanagement, trust your team. Provide leadership where necessary, but give them the opportunity to thrive alone. As long as they get their tasks for the day done and complete them to a high standard, you shouldn’t need to worry.
After all, the hallmark of a good manager is a team that can function without the manager present. If you micromanage, they won’t be able to do this and they’ll feel unmotivated as a result.
Implement greater perks and benefits
One of the best and easiest ways you can motivate your team is to properly reward them. This means re-assessing your benefits and perks packages and determining if you can be doing more to give back to your employees.
Humans respond well to positive praise, and that includes working adults. If you show your employees that you value them and the work they’re doing, they’re far more likely to up their performance and feel more motivated to do well. In contrast, if you give them the bare minimum, you’ll get the bare minimum back.
Perks and benefits can take many forms, including monetary incentives like paid bonuses, but they don’t always need to be money based. You can offer things like a gym membership, free snacks, staff nights out, the occasional free lunch, and additional time off for exceptional work.
You might also opt to give employees the choice to choose their own work schedule. This will be greatly valued and may even help you attract top talent because autonomy isn’t something many employers offer. The additional trust can be seen as a major benefit.
Summary
Motivating staff after the Christmas break can be hard, especially in a pandemic when it feels like there is so little to look forward to and there is still so much uncertainty. That being said, we hope these tips help you to boost your staff and get them back in the swing of things – allowing them to start their year as they mean to go on!
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