Positive Psychology Archives - Page 6 of 8

Get Your People Motivated! get the right motivation…

Compassion, Leadership, Positive Psychology / My Holland

No question about it. The driving force that gets employees towards achieving their goal is motivation. Of course, we talk about motivation among company personnel, and the first thing that comes to mind is either money or promotion or both. Sure, that helps a whole lot. But, that’s just extrinsic motivation. That’s when you set goals, measure results and reward the achievers with various kinds of incentives. Obviously, those who didn’t perform too well will have to undergo moretraining. Or, it’s probably the right time for you to understand, appreciate and adopt intrinsic motivation as part of your company’s working policy. Intrinsic Motivation. While extrinsic motivation deals with those dangled rewards that could get employees to put in the extra mile, those who are intrinsically motivated won’t need them as much. These guys simply get turned on by the actual work they do. It’s the “high” or the “rush” they get from doing the tasks involved and the deep-down, self-fulfilled feeling when the job gets done, that truly motivate them. The experts say employees are more likely to be intrinsically motivated when a company’s vision is strongly compelling, when its objectives are specific and clear, and when the corporate culture is one that is friendly andsupportive of all its employees. The Downside Of Extrinsic Motivation The goal-setting and getting the employees motivated and rewarding them with different kinds of incentives for what they’ve done and achieved is one of the best examples of extrinsic motivation. What happens here though, is that little attention, if ever, goes to the other inputs such as hard work, collaboration, cooperation and teamwork. It’s a situation where the top performers are motivated and the average guys get de-motivated. The Best Solution: Combine Extrinsic and Intrinsic Motivation You can see it makes sense to get these two types of motivation in place in your company. Now, that may be easier said than done, but getting these two elements in, should lead to unprecedented productivity and realisation of those corporate goals. These two suggestions should help: Create a powerful, compelling corporate vision, map out a clear set of specific goals and develop a more employee-centered culture with improved working conditions. Recognize your employees for great outputs and achievement (extrinsic)and for their inputs like can-do attitude and close collaboration (intrinsic) that runs alongside your company values. As a good leader, you should understand and appreciate the difference between these two motivations and use them to get your people really moving. Forget your whip! These work better!

Get Your People Motivated! get the right motivation… Read More »

Are Employees Getting To Be Less Engaged?Are Jobs Getting To Be A Bore?

Compassion, Positive Psychology, Positivity / My Holland

Are Jobs Getting To Be A Bore? Are Employees Getting To Be Less Engaged? A lot of people are saying that jobs are getting worse. Many employees drag their feet going to work. This belief stems from the fact that in large corporations like supermarket chains or, a network of bank branches or fast food outlets, employees today or sometimes, even managers have less and less autonomy because almost every aspect of the work is prescribed and directed from the home office. These job holders are given very limited degree of discretion. As a result, these guys have become less engaged in doing their work and have altogether ceased to enjoy it. All that’s left for them is to strive to meet the targets and objectives that have been set for them. The manager’s job then redounds to no more than simply motivating or whip-lashing (depends on his perspective and style) his people to hit the numbers. The way this argument goes, jobs have become mindless and alienating because of a working system. Although when you take a real hard look at systematized procedures, it’ll seem to make sense. It’s funny. For years management experts have placed great importance on the need for jobs to be challenging and for the workers to have some degree of autonomy in the jobs they do. And yet, this home-office-directed set of here’s-what-to-do that almost makes robots out of employees seems to be emerging and growing fast in many companies. Soon, perhaps only a handful of workers will be allowed to think for themselves as all work will be governed by systems, procedures and targets. And yet surveys say 85-90% of employees enjoy their jobs! Why the discrepancy in viewpoints? Job engagement polls don’t lie. Recent ones have revealed that a large majority of the respondents enjoy their work and about 70% says they’d recommend their organization as a great place to work. Further, these people feel a strong sense of loyalty for their companies. The Real Reason Perhaps the reason some people think that jobs are getting worse is because they failed to take into consideration the many other factors that mould attitudes about work. For one thing, there’s the fun that employees get to experiencein their day to day relationship with their colleagues and peers. For another,there’s the awesome feeling of achieving difficult targets. There is also that sense of camaraderie and loyalty to one’s team .. that feeling of great satisfaction when efforts are recognized and appreciated by the higher-ups. No matter how rigid the specific criteria and how constrained the job may be, there is, almost always an opportunity for people to make a difference. In other words, it’s not just the job per se. It’s the context and the surroundings in which it is carried out. And that’s where the head honchos and the organisation itself, come in. They’re there to engage and motivate their people. Make no mistake about it. Enjoying and being engaged with one’s work depends a whole lot on the culture and environment in the workplace.

Are Employees Getting To Be Less Engaged?Are Jobs Getting To Be A Bore? Read More »

What Works Better, Recognition Or A Raise In Salary?

Compassion, Emotional Intelligence, Positive Psychology, Productivity / My Holland

So, the day after your company’s presentation to an important client, the head honcho from the top executive floor comes down to your office and says … “Hey John, that was a great job you did in our presentation. We just might get the account any day now. Thanks!” Wow! Isn’t that great? Doesn’t it make you feel you just drew a Royal Flush in a poker game? Of course it does! … because it says you’re a areal pro and have made a huge contribution to achieving your company’s goals. Sure, a $500 or a $1000 bonus can’t hurt either, but that’s just the gravy. The boss’ thanks is the real Kobe steak. What Surveys Say A consulting firm, polling more than 200,000 employees around the globe to make a list of the top ten factors that lead to happiness in the workplace, came up with the following (in order of importance) : Being appreciated for the work they do Good relations with co-workers Good balance between work and personal life Good relationships with the bosses Solid financial standing of the company Training and seminars for development of career Job security A good fixed salary An interesting, challenging job Good company values It’s worth citing that recognition, a good balance with work and personal life and great relationships with colleagues are what took the top spots. Salary ranked only 8th. There is this Human Resource theory that says a basic pay must meet a certain level of expectation. After such expectation is met, it’s power as a motivator is diminished. Why? Because in the end, people would much rather not struggle with salaries. It’s too sensitive, uncomfortable, and awkward. Not too many employees look forward to talking money with the boss. They’d much rather simply get paid for what they’re worth. It’s not complicated. They don’t have to worry about it and they can do their job without this added stress. And here’s the real clincher. The Real Clincher There are no guarantees that increasing your guys’ pay will increase their productivity. Somehow, high wages don’t correlate too well with high performance. However, the impact of cash rewards can make them excel on the short term. But these incentives can only go so far. Evidence is pretty strong to suggest, that if you pay a competitive salary and give employees recognition for their work, incredible things can happen.

What Works Better, Recognition Or A Raise In Salary? Read More »

Gratitude in the workplace

Compassion, Emotional Intelligence, Engagement, Leadership, Mindfulness, Positive Psychology, Productivity / My Holland

Gratitude in the workplace Everybody wants to feel appreciated. Gratitude is a crucial engagement factor in the workplace and often the biggest motivator, ahead of money. So how can you get this right as an employer and employee and what difference can it make? When ‘thanks’ in the workplace becomes solely the wage pack at the end of the month, employees can begin to feel undervalued and demotivated on a day-to-day basis. According to the John Templeton Foundation study of 2,000 respondents, people are less likely to feel or express gratitude at work than any other place. In turn, they did not rank their jobs as something they feel grateful for. Having said that, 93% of respondents agreed that a grateful employers makes a much more successful person to work for. Hearing praise makes somebody feel better. Positive psychology confirms that giving and receiving gratitude helps boost our self-worth, as well as our productivity. One study in Harvard Medical School by Wharton School (University of Pennsylvania) divided university fundraisers in two groups. Half were awarded gratitude and thanked for their efforts from the director, while the other half were not. Those who received gratitude produced more funds through fundraising than those who did not. A thank you costs nothing Gratitude does not involve the transaction of money, in the same way as a pay check does. Science Director Emiliana Simon-Thomas from the Greater Good Science Center conducted research that found that on days when someone gives or receives gratitude (or has experiences of gratitude), they feel happier. This is a cheap and effective way to improve workplace morale and productivity. Prolonged gratitude Dr Simon-Thomas also found that the people who prolonged their gratitude experiences were happier in their job, less stressed and reported better health. How to start giving and receiving more gratitude at work Gratitude works best from the ‘top down,’ in other words from hearing thanks from the boss. Those in a position of power have a greater impact in shifting workplace attitudes. A thank you needs to be clear, consistent and authentic Gratitude can be expressed in a number of ways, from throwing an office party or staff treat/gift, to complimenting the work somebody has done or built into performance reviews and appraisal meetings. Don’t take anybody for granted and remember those who, generally, do their job without looking for thanks. Sometimes these people tend to be at the bottom of the workplace pyramid and do jobs such as cleaning, filing or making a cup of tea. Make them feel valued. Quality, not quantity is key. If you say thank you, in a throwaway style, several times a day, it is less meaningful than a well thought-out expression of thanks that is justified and authentic. Cultivate a culture of gratitude in the workplace over time, so when an unsettled period arises or conflict, employees feel part of a team. Psychologist Robert Emmons says this process “builds up a psychological immune system.” Gratitude is a key word in the world of positive psychology and this article shows how developing it in the workplace will breed a culture of employees who feel valued and have higher self-esteem, therefore, work more efficiently and feel empowered by their jobs.

Gratitude in the workplace Read More »

Starting with Happiness at work

Emotional Intelligence, Positive Psychology / My Holland

Why do employers need to improve happiness in their workplace? Most employers are extremely focused and number of metrics within their business most of which include profitability and efficiency across a business. One metric that many employers don’t spend time looking into is the happinessof their employees. This is a focus that can actually have powerful and sustainable benefits to work environment and can drastically affect employee efficiency, profits and the success of a company. Years of the top advantages of an employer doing research into employee morale and taking steps to improve happiness in the workplace. Productivity: while monitoring happiness employers concede an increase of 31% productivity on average and better accuracy in tasks because employees are more interested in supporting the company as well as submitting great work. These statistics come from a meta-study examining 200 different studies conducted on 275,000 people worldwide from a team of psychologists (Lyubomirsky, King, Diener). Less sick days: better morale in the workplace also results in less time lost to sick days and absenteeism. When people are excited to come to work and excited to contribute to a company they are much more likely to show up as well as use less of their vacation time because the work environment is less stressful. This also increases the ability to get employees in for overtime, working on weekends and other extra touches that can really help your company thrive. Less turnover: when it comes to unlocking the most skills of each of your employees you also need to have a low turnover rate. Once you get skilled labor into your company you need to continuously invest time and effort training your employees; otherwise with a likely high turnaround rate this is time that you are simply investing in people that will be taking that training elsewhere. With more satisfied workers staying at your company they can increase their efficiency, their loyalty, their knowledge and start to go beyond their job requirements to commit themselves to developing your organisation. This is what you want! Donating just 1% of your earnings as a company to a social fund can also help you address low morale in the workplace.

Starting with Happiness at work Read More »

Positive Psychology

Get Your People Motivated! get the right motivation…

Are Employees Getting To Be Less Engaged?Are Jobs Getting To Be A Bore?

What Works Better, Recognition Or A Raise In Salary?

Gratitude in the workplace

Starting with Happiness at work

Contact Us