8 Ways to Inspire, Motivate and Challenge Your Team

By Jezabel Southard

Posted on March 31, 2017

Boredom kills productivity. To keep your team alert, engaged and on the cutting edge of new ideas, it’s vital to inspire, motivate and challenge them.

Here are eight ways to encourage your team to greatness:

  1. Ask them what they need – then listen. What does your team need to succeed? Ask them and listen to their answers. Then, find ways to provide the ingredients for their success.
  2. Learn to let go. Micromanagement is for managers. Leaders focus on creating a framework for success and defining goals, then stepping back and allowing their staff to do their jobs. Doing so fosters trust, as well as ownership of the results.
  3. Set a good example. Are you in the habit of being away from your office all morning or taking multi-hour lunch breaks? If so, don’t be surprised when your employees follow suit. Set the bar, then hold yourself to it  and hold your employees accountable, too.
  4. Clarify the purpose. Setting goals and meeting them provides a sense of accomplishment, but without a clear purpose, it can also feel like “progress for progress’ sake.” Show your team how every task, project and goal meets a larger purpose, such as outstanding customer support or solving real-world problems.
  5. Encourage your team to take risks. “Try it and see what happens.” When you encourage calculated risk-taking, you inspire your team to think outside the box, expand their own limits, improve their skills and discover new ways to tackle old problems. You also foster trust and respect.
  6. Be willing to admit you don’t know. The most inspiring leaders are clearly human. They make mistakes. They have feelings and they admit when they don’t know the answer. When you don’t know, use the problem as a chance to model and teach effective problem-solving.
  7. Create leadership opportunities. Help foster tomorrow’s leaders by creating opportunities for staff to take the lead on projects. Then, step back. Remain available to answer questions, but see who takes responsibility and how well they do.
  8. Provide recommendations. Pointing out mistakes can help team members see where they’ve gone wrong – but if you don’t provide guidance toward a correct solution, you’re setting team members up for frustration. Explain not only what went wrong, but how team members can avoid that mistake in the future.

Keeping your team motivated will position your company to reach your goals.

At TERRA Staffing Group, our recruiters can help you build a great team and inspire them to new heights of productivity, creativity, and growth.

Contact us today to learn more about our staffing services in Phoenix, Portland and Seattle.

Categories: Employee Engagement Ideas, HR and Management Advice

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