Astrological and metaphysical-minded types have been feeling the effects of Venus in retrogrademanifesting in the form of dissension and disharmony, not only in personal life situations but business relationships as well. This got me thinking on the impact of positive and negative motivation on productivity and reminded me of all the lessons learned the hard way on how to not treat team members if you value long term outcomes.
It is common knowledge that the same thing does not motivate everyone even though money can be universally found on most lists. What isn’t common knowledge is that almost everyone is demotivated by the same list of behaviors.
For the last 20+ years of my career, I’ve tried to have fun and learn something everyday. Unfortunately, too many of those daily lessons were of situations and/or responses that I would like to avoid at all costs in the future. Being on the receiving end of an “A” type personality ranting or a passive aggressive type politically maneuvering or an ego-maniac taking ownership and sole credit has uncovered more ways to demotivate than I care to recall. A cool blog at NFIB.com called “8 Surefire Ways to Demotivate Your Employees” which offers the following list:
- Public criticism
- Failing to provide praise
- Not following up
- Give unachievable goals and deadlines
- Not explaining your actions or sharing company data
- Implied threats
- Not honoring creative thinking and problem solving
- Micromanagement
Soooo, if you desire to be one of those who thrive on creating an environment where motivation and personal pride is at the center of your management style and corporate culture, then avoid these at all cost. More importantly, start with an established corporate culture along with rewards for exemplary behavior and penalties for the opposite. Your team will deliver in excess of expectation when you lead by example.
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