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How to Motivate a Team – 10 actions to take · Enhance.training

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_00: How to Motivate a Team.
• 0:02
  SPEAKER_00: In this podcast I go through 10 practical actions that you can take that will definitely increase your team's motivation and make your job as a manager easier.
• 0:12
  SPEAKER_00: My name is Jess Coles and I've led and managed teams for over 25 years in corporates and household names through to SMEs.
• 0:20
  SPEAKER_00: I've had to motivate teams through periods of high growth through to turning around failing businesses.
• 0:25
  SPEAKER_00: And I've also won best team prizes at national magazine level and at company level.
• 0:30
  SPEAKER_00: If you're new to this podcast, Enhanced.training provides online business courses to help professionals, managers and business owners improve their performance.
• 0:40
  SPEAKER_00: And if you like this podcast, please share it with friends and colleagues and visit us at enhance.training.
• 0:46
  SPEAKER_00: So let's start with the first action.
• 0:49
  SPEAKER_00: So action one is to set clear direction, goals and expectations.
• 0:55
  SPEAKER_00: As a manager, setting goals for the team to work towards is a must.
• 1:00
  SPEAKER_00: And if you don't, then each member of the team will work in the direction that they think is best.
• 1:05
  SPEAKER_00: And the chances are that you'll have everyone going in all directions.
• 1:10
  SPEAKER_00: Achieving much when this is happening is pretty hard.
• 1:14
  SPEAKER_00: Set a goal or a group of goals to give everyone a focus to aim at.
• 1:19
  SPEAKER_00: Each person can then prioritize their activities and projects to best support and meet the team goals.
• 1:25
  SPEAKER_00: The team will then move in a similar direction which will result in a lot more being achieved and the right things being achieved.
• 1:35
  SPEAKER_00: Work to clearly define the team goals and direction and then make sure the team understands the goals that you're trying to reach.
• 1:43
  SPEAKER_00: Ask them to explain the goals to you and how they and you will know when the goals are reached.
• 1:50
  SPEAKER_00: An even better approach is to get the team to help you define the goal and the milestones along the way.
• 1:56
  SPEAKER_00: This takes a little longer than you defining the goals.
• 1:59
  SPEAKER_00: The benefits that you get is a team that owns the goals alongside you rather than them being your goals imposed upon them.
• 2:07
  SPEAKER_00: And you may end up with better goals or a better plan to achieve the goals with all the extra input.
• 2:14
  SPEAKER_00: Once you have your goals in place, you can set expectations for each team member.
• 2:19
  SPEAKER_00: Personal goals or objectives for each person and a plan of how to get there are both really important in setting expectations.
• 2:28
  SPEAKER_00: Taking both steps makes it a lot easier to hold individuals to account if performance becomes a problem.
• 2:34
  SPEAKER_00: Creating plans can be a massive help for the individual to achieve the goals.
• 2:38
  SPEAKER_00: Judge what is needed for each individual.
• 2:41
  SPEAKER_00: And it kind of goes without saying is that if each individual team member meets their goals, then the overall team should definitely meet the team goals.
• 2:49
  SPEAKER_00: This is in your interests as a manager, and providing help when needed makes a lot of sense and shows you care.
• 2:57
  SPEAKER_00: Provide clear direction by setting goals and help plan how to get to the goals.
• 3:02
  SPEAKER_00: These steps make expectations clear for everyone.
• 3:06
  SPEAKER_00: And clarity and responsibility are both big motivational factors.
• 3:12
  SPEAKER_00: Action two, be consistent and be fair.
• 3:16
  SPEAKER_00: Consistency is important for motivating teams.
• 3:19
  SPEAKER_00: No one enjoys being treated worse than other members of the team or unfairly.
• 3:24
  SPEAKER_00: Over time an inconsistent approach undermines the team's respect for you, creating problems within the team and it makes your job as manager a lot harder.
• 3:34
  SPEAKER_00: It's much better to establish principles and then apply those principles consistently.
• 3:39
  SPEAKER_00: Just imagine a conversation without any consistency or principles going something like this Team member You allow David to submit his report two days late last week and Gemma to submit her report a day late.
• 3:53
  SPEAKER_00: Why can't I send my report in a day late?
• 3:56
  SPEAKER_00: Manager responds Uh because I'm asking you to submit it on time?
• 4:01
  SPEAKER_00: This response is inconsistent and gives the team member plenty of arguments to push, making your job harder.
• 4:08
  SPEAKER_00: Even if you convince them, they will probably feel unfairly treated, which stores up problems for the future.
• 4:14
  SPEAKER_00: Let's compare to a more principled approach which might go something like this.
• 4:19
  SPEAKER_00: Team member I would like to submit my report a day late as I'm really busy.
• 4:24
  SPEAKER_00: Is that okay?
• 4:26
  SPEAKER_00: Manager responds We all agreed as a team that one of our highest priorities was to submit our reports on time each week.
• 4:35
  SPEAKER_00: Do you remember being at that meeting?
• 4:37
  SPEAKER_00: Team member Yes Manager So you need to submit your report on time just like everyone else.
• 4:45
  SPEAKER_00: Team member Okay well.
• 4:48
  SPEAKER_00: The manager is upholding the principles agreed by the team.
• 4:52
  SPEAKER_00: The team member has peer pressure and the manager's request to contend with and doesn't really have an argument to push.
• 4:59
  SPEAKER_00: They are also being treated just the same way as everyone else.
• 5:03
  SPEAKER_00: Agreeing the principles and then sticking to them allows you as manager to be fair and consistent.
• 5:10
  SPEAKER_00: And as we all know, we're not going to have principles for everything.
• 5:13
  SPEAKER_00: So apply the 8020 rule and cover the important areas.
• 5:17
  SPEAKER_00: This will make yours and the team's life a lot easier, and both you and they will be a lot more motivated because of it.
• 5:26
  SPEAKER_00: Action three Be open and honest.
• 5:30
  SPEAKER_00: I have found time and time again that being open and honest and sharing as much information as sensible with the team that I am managing helps everyone.
• 5:40
  SPEAKER_00: Give the team members the reasons why certain decisions, actions or projects are happening.
• 5:45
  SPEAKER_00: Encourage them to ask questions and provide honest answers.
• 5:50
  SPEAKER_00: When team members understand why certain decisions have been made or project started or goals set, then they can adapt, firstly, what they're doing and their decisions they're going to take and the projects they're working on to support the overall team goals and activities, thus making it easier for the team or the company to reach their overall goals.
• 6:10
  SPEAKER_00: They are also much more likely to accept decisions if they understand why it is happening, even if they don't fully agree with it.
• 6:18
  SPEAKER_00: Probably even more important, being open and honest also extends your trust to the team or demonstrates your trust of the team.
• 6:27
  SPEAKER_00: Let me ask you a question.
• 6:29
  SPEAKER_00: How many people do you trust who don't trust you?
• 6:33
  SPEAKER_00: I imagine it's a pretty small number, or it may even be zero.
• 6:37
  SPEAKER_00: The same goes for your team.
• 6:39
  SPEAKER_00: If you don't trust them, you are not making it easy for them to trust you.
• 6:44
  SPEAKER_00: Team members are much more likely to be motivated working for a manager they like and trust than for someone they don't trust.
• 6:55
  SPEAKER_00: Action four, be supportive and help team members.
• 7:00
  SPEAKER_00: If the manager of the team and the team members are supportive to one another and help each other, the easier and nicer it is to work in that team.
• 7:09
  SPEAKER_00: The manager or leader of the team sets the rules and plays a big part in creating the team culture.
• 7:16
  SPEAKER_00: The more supportive the manager and the colleagues, the happier and the more motivated team members are likely to be.
• 7:23
  SPEAKER_00: I would hope most of us have experienced a positive and supportive team environment.
• 7:28
  SPEAKER_00: I was certainly a lot more motivated to deliver my work and achieve the team goals in this type of environment.
• 7:35
  SPEAKER_00: There are lots of ways to help team members and show and be supportive.
• 7:40
  SPEAKER_00: Some of these include show empathy to team members when they encounter problems, be flexible with holidays, time off for doctors and similar, where at all possible.
• 7:50
  SPEAKER_00: I've always found team members appreciate this flexibility and pay you back and then some.
• 7:56
  SPEAKER_00: Roll up your sleeves and help them solve the problems they have.
• 8:00
  SPEAKER_00: There are loads of ways to do this from telling them the answer through to coaching them to the answer.
• 8:05
  SPEAKER_00: The team members will develop better problem solving skills with a coaching approach, but just bear in mind that a coaching approach is not right for all situations.
• 8:15
  SPEAKER_00: Another option is to make sure you have the right resources available to the team.
• 8:20
  SPEAKER_00: Don't allow the work of ten to be undertaken by eight for too long, for instance.
• 8:24
  SPEAKER_00: Another option is to teach, mentor, and coach where possible as part of developing team members.
• 8:31
  SPEAKER_00: I've always found that being supportive and helpful makes it easier to be successful as a manager and allows the team to deliver more as the team members are motivated to deliver.
• 8:43
  SPEAKER_00: Action five, work hard to develop team members.
• 8:48
  SPEAKER_00: There are so many reasons why as a manager you want to develop your team members' skills and experience.
• 8:54
  SPEAKER_00: Here are just a few.
• 8:56
  SPEAKER_00: Firstly, a stronger team will achieve more, you know, more results, better results, more projects completed, etc.
• 9:03
  SPEAKER_00: Second, greater skills allow the team to do more, you know, different projects, a wider range of tasks and activities, etc.
• 9:12
  SPEAKER_00: Third, a better team means you can do more value add tasks as a manager.
• 9:18
  SPEAKER_00: Fourth, an improving team reflects well on the manager or leader.
• 9:22
  SPEAKER_00: Fifth, development is a strong retention tool for staff members.
• 9:27
  SPEAKER_00: Sixth, it is motivational to work for a manager looking to improve your skills.
• 9:33
  SPEAKER_00: There are so many ways to develop team members.
• 9:36
  SPEAKER_00: A few ideas include weekly one-to-ones in which you coach and mentor the individuals.
• 9:41
  SPEAKER_00: This is one of my personal favourites and I really know it works so well.
• 9:45
  SPEAKER_00: Another idea might be informal training programs.
• 9:48
  SPEAKER_00: You or other team members pass on your knowledge or skills to less skilled team members via lunchtime training sessions, for example.
• 9:57
  SPEAKER_00: You could set up a buddy system where a more experienced person teaches a less experienced person.
• 10:03
  SPEAKER_00: You could have formal classroom training or online courses to teach knowledge and skills.
• 10:09
  SPEAKER_00: Or you could set up coaching sessions via a third party so you've got personalised coaching for that member of the team.
• 10:16
  SPEAKER_00: Or you could ask team members to read books or watch YouTube videos that are relevant to what you do and the team does.
• 10:23
  SPEAKER_00: Take the time to put in place different ways to develop your individual team members' skills and knowledge.
• 10:29
  SPEAKER_00: They will firstly thank you for it, they'll be a lot more motivated, they'll do better work, and they'll stay longer in your team or the company.
• 10:39
  SPEAKER_00: Development creates a win-win-win situation for you, for them and the company.
• 10:45
  SPEAKER_00: Why wouldn't you invest the time?
• 10:49
  SPEAKER_00: Action six, protect your team.
• 10:52
  SPEAKER_00: Every team has many demands on it, from within the business and externally, you know, from customers, suppliers or other stakeholders.
• 11:00
  SPEAKER_00: One of the important jobs as a manager of a team is to manage stakeholders' expectations, to protect the team from the ups and downs of demands asked of it, and to challenge unreasonable demands.
• 11:12
  SPEAKER_00: If a team were to respond to each demand asked of it when it was asked, the team would probably be pulled from pillar to post.
• 11:20
  SPEAKER_00: The team would keep changing direction too often and not accomplish as much in terms of results, or maybe not very much at all.
• 11:28
  SPEAKER_00: Managing expectations of stakeholders external to the team is an important step to giving the team a realistic chance of delivering on the projects and activities being asked of it.
• 11:39
  SPEAKER_00: The manager or leader of the team must take the lion's share of the task of managing expectations.
• 11:47
  SPEAKER_00: Keep thinking about and planning out the team's workload and direction.
• 11:52
  SPEAKER_00: Keep the workload manageable by managing expectations and saying no when required.
• 11:57
  SPEAKER_00: Keep the team focused on the key goals that they need to achieve.
• 12:00
  SPEAKER_00: And of course, you'll need to be flexible to accommodate urgent and important tasks that pop out of the woodwork.
• 12:07
  SPEAKER_00: Do this without the team losing their general direction and focus on the key goals of that team.
• 12:14
  SPEAKER_00: If the team are overworked or pulled in all directions, the team motivation will drop.
• 12:19
  SPEAKER_00: If you're able to effectively protect the team from these issues while delivering to your key stakeholders, the team will be a lot more motivated as they will know that you have their back.
• 12:33
  SPEAKER_00: Action seven.
• 12:34
  SPEAKER_00: Learn to say no.
• 12:37
  SPEAKER_00: Learning to say no takes confidence and judgment.
• 12:40
  SPEAKER_00: For some requests you cannot say no because doing so would harm the team or the company.
• 12:45
  SPEAKER_00: Other requests you should say no to because they are unimportant or not urgent compared to the team's current workload.
• 12:53
  SPEAKER_00: Saying no is easier when you are confident about why you are saying no and about how to say no.
• 13:00
  SPEAKER_00: In my experience, you are rarely saying no, I or we are not going to do that.
• 13:05
  SPEAKER_00: When you're saying no, it's much more likely that it's going to be about delaying the delivery of a task.
• 13:12
  SPEAKER_00: For example, we're not able to deliver this project for next Friday because we have two other projects that are higher priorities.
• 13:19
  SPEAKER_00: We should be able to deliver this for you the following Friday in just over two weeks' time.
• 13:24
  SPEAKER_00: Would that work for you?
• 13:26
  SPEAKER_00: Another good way of saying no effectively is to ask for clarifying questions when you get a request in.
• 13:41
  SPEAKER_00: Or it might be what is the minimum you need from us for next week, and so on.
• 13:47
  SPEAKER_00: By asking questions you find out more about the request and its importance and its urgency.
• 13:53
  SPEAKER_00: This often means you can prioritize better and often delay delivering against these requests.
• 14:00
  SPEAKER_00: Learning to say no nicely is a critical skill for all workers to develop, and especially so for anyone managing or leading a team.
• 14:08
  SPEAKER_00: It is a motivating factor for a team with a manager or leader that can say no at the appropriate times and in the right way to ensure the team is not pulled off course or overworked.
• 14:21
  SPEAKER_00: Action eight.
• 14:23
  SPEAKER_00: Celebrating successes.
• 14:25
  SPEAKER_00: Everyone likes to be told they have done a good job.
• 14:29
  SPEAKER_00: Positive reinforcement works so much better than criticizing what has not gone well.
• 14:34
  SPEAKER_00: In fact, studies have shown that to keep a colleague or team member happy, you need to compliment at least three times as much as being critical.
• 14:42
  SPEAKER_00: Three times.
• 14:44
  SPEAKER_00: How many managers achieve this?
• 14:47
  SPEAKER_00: A surprisingly small number I would bet.
• 14:50
  SPEAKER_00: So make sure that when you celebrate successes you are specific and not general with your comments.
• 14:56
  SPEAKER_00: This makes them so much more valuable and appreciated.
• 15:00
  SPEAKER_00: Look out for opportunities to praise team members for work well done or demonstrating great behaviour.
• 15:06
  SPEAKER_00: There are lots of ways of celebrating successes.
• 15:09
  SPEAKER_00: You know, sending an email praising the work.
• 15:12
  SPEAKER_00: Or it could be when you're chatting by the water caller to compliment them about the work they've done.
• 15:16
  SPEAKER_00: Or it might be in your one-to-one meetings, you might praise the work they've done and ask them to go through it with you.
• 15:22
  SPEAKER_00: Or it could be in public, you know in front of other team members, you could be praising the work they've done or their great behaviour.
• 15:29
  SPEAKER_00: Or it might be in a much more formal setting like a team meeting where you're giving out prizes for great work or behaviour.
• 15:36
  SPEAKER_00: Use different ways to celebrate successes.
• 15:38
  SPEAKER_00: The more you do this, the more the team will feel appreciated and motivated to do more.
• 15:44
  SPEAKER_00: Compliment at least three times as much as being critical and be specific with your compliments.
• 15:52
  SPEAKER_00: Action nine, manage your negative emotions carefully.
• 15:57
  SPEAKER_00: We are all human and experience the full range of emotions, the positive and the negative.
• 16:03
  SPEAKER_00: To motivate a team and keep them motivated, as a manager, controlling your negative emotions is important.
• 16:11
  SPEAKER_00: You know, when you are, for instance, angry or disappointed, frustrated or annoyed or fearful, fed up, for instance, etc., you have to be careful about how you display these emotions.
• 16:23
  SPEAKER_00: Research on emotional management suggests that the leader's ability to manage his or her emotions will determine the team's morale and its motivation.
• 16:33
  SPEAKER_00: Emotional management doesn't mean that you suppress these negative emotions.
• 16:37
  SPEAKER_00: Suppression will likely harm your team members' motivation as they will register your lack of authenticity.
• 16:44
  SPEAKER_00: Reappraising and reframing your negative emotions will have a much more positive impact on the team.
• 16:52
  SPEAKER_00: For example, let's assume a decision has been made that impacts the team itself.
• 16:56
  SPEAKER_00: This decision has made you personally angry, and the chances are that many of your team members will be angry too.
• 17:03
  SPEAKER_00: Acknowledging your anger with the team creates empathy, and then discussing why the decision will help the company, although you're not your team, would help the other team members understand why the decision was made and the wider benefits involved.
• 17:18
  SPEAKER_00: To reframe your emotions, turn the problem into a challenge rather than a threat, which helps you concentrate on the task at hand and plan out the steps to success.
• 17:29
  SPEAKER_00: Don't suppress your emotions, reappraise or reframe your emotions to help the team stay motivated.
• 17:35
  SPEAKER_00: This will help you and the team manage negative emotions in a much more positive and constructive way.
• 17:44
  SPEAKER_00: Action ten promote from within where possible.
• 17:48
  SPEAKER_00: When considering how to motivate a team, promoting from within wherever possible sends a great positive message to the team.
• 17:56
  SPEAKER_00: Giving current employees the opportunity to progress their career without having to leave the company and go through the hassle of finding and winning a new job is a very positive message.
• 18:07
  SPEAKER_00: This creates a very positive ripple effect throughout the team and the business.
• 18:13
  SPEAKER_00: Combine promoting from within with development programmes, and you have a very powerful retention incentive for all employees.
• 18:21
  SPEAKER_00: So recognise potential and talent and develop it and promote where possible.
• 18:26
  SPEAKER_00: Promoting from within creates a lot of benefits to the company, the team, and of course the individual.
• 18:32
  SPEAKER_00: Some examples are less disruption and training time, less costs, exception all around the recruitment side of it.
• 18:39
  SPEAKER_00: There's also less risks as you know the person and their work, there's less staff turnover, which is less costly to the business, and you have a more robust workforce with less points of failure if key members of the team were to leave, because you have other team members who can step into their shoes.
• 18:55
  SPEAKER_00: There are many reasons to promote from within, so take a look at your team and work out which staff members could be developed over the next year or two and be ready for promotion and start the development program now.
• 19:06
  SPEAKER_00: Promoting from within plus development opportunities are both great ways to motivate a team.
• 19:13
  SPEAKER_00: So in summary, we've gone through ten actions that will help you with the how do I motivate a team question.
• 19:20
  SPEAKER_00: To recap, these are firstly set clear direction, goals and expectations.
• 19:26
  SPEAKER_00: Second, be fair and consistent.
• 19:28
  SPEAKER_00: Third, be open and honest.
• 19:30
  SPEAKER_00: Fourth, be supportive and help team members.
• 19:34
  SPEAKER_00: Fifth, work hard to develop team members.
• 19:37
  SPEAKER_00: Sixth, protect your team.
• 19:39
  SPEAKER_00: Seven learn to say no.
• 19:42
  SPEAKER_00: Eight, celebrate successes both publicly and privately.
• 19:46
  SPEAKER_00: Nine, manage your negative emotions carefully and ten.
• 19:49
  SPEAKER_00: Promote from within where possible.
• 19:52
  SPEAKER_00: This is not an exhaustive list, but it will give you a good start in keeping your team happy and motivated.
• 19:59
  SPEAKER_00: Enjoy managing and leading your team.
• 20:02
  SPEAKER_00: Do visit us at enhanced.training and take a look at the courses and resources to help you manage your team more effectively.
• 20:10
  SPEAKER_00: If you like this podcast, please share it with friends and colleagues and visit us at enhanced.training.
• 20:16
  SPEAKER_00: Thanks very much for listening, and I look forward to speaking to you again soon.