What motivates your employees?

Earlier this week, I spotted this question on LinkedIn:

What are those intrinsic factors that maintain the enthusiasm of an employee and ensure his motivation at work?

Imagine how powerful the answer could be – not only for you as an employer, but for your employee as well! Everyday, we help individuals drill down and define their motivators, what touches their core, what drives them to perform at a higher level. Through our Know Your Talents™ Behavioral System, we can quickly identify a list of unique motivators based on a person’s individual behaviors and talents. Through a Motivation Review, we can help an individual define and set goals based on these unique motivators.

So, to answer this question is easy, but the answer is different for each and every person. We are all motivated by different environments, rewards and opportunities. It is critical to an employee’s success to identify and confirm that your company will be able to provide opportunities that drive their unique motivators.

Imagine that you are hiring a new sales representative. The role will require a high percentage of out of town travel, long working days and the availability to be on call. You have two top candidates with great experience and both seem to be a great fit.

In going through a Motivation Review, you identify that Candidate #1’s top motivator is Family. He is motivated to provide for his family, spend time with them, help coach his son’s little league team and be at dinner with them every night. This is a great motivator, but NOT a great fit for your work environment. It won’t be long before Candidate #1 feels de-motivated and unhappy, traveling and working long hours. Something will break, he will turn over or won’t produce.

Then, in going though a Motivation Review, you identify that Candidate #2’s top motivators are opportunity and freedom from routine. He loves new challenges and experiencing new places. He will thrive with the opportunity to travel and promote his career. He will be a great fit for your company culture, you can easily provide an environment where Candidate #2 will be motivated!

So, what are the intrinsic factors that maintain the enthusiasm of an employee? There isn’t a blanket answer or factor that applies to your ‘employees’ in general. Each employee is motivated by something different, and as soon as you are able to identify and tap into that, imagine the power and performance you can expect from that motivated employee!