Money Won’t Motivate Your Team, But These Things Will
You have a huge project on the horizon. It’s going to take dedication, creativity, and a lot of manpower to accomplish. But as the weeks go by, you start to worry. The project is lagging, and the deadline is looking loftier every day. How can you motivate your team to buckle down and get the project done well — and on time?
I know the first solution that will come to your mind because I’ve thought of it many times before.
Money.
Well, I have some bad news. (Actually, get to the end of this article and you may realize it’s good news.) As wonderful as competitive salaries and quarterly bonuses are, they won’t motivate your team. And they won’t fulfill them, either.
Money is a Basic Necessity
We all want to earn a fair wage (and we’re all certainly excited to receive a raise), but money isn’t intrinsically motivating because it’s a necessity, not a perk. We need money to survive — to stay housed, fed, clothed, and comfortable. We need money to take care of our families and prepare for the future, but it doesn’t push us to be creative, innovative, or collaborative.
Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs is a psychological theory of human motivation. Essentially, Maslow offers a set of basic human needs we’re motivated to fulfill, with physiological needs (e.g., food and shelter) at the bottom of the pyramid. The fact is, we need money to solve some of our most basic physiological needs.
Maslow also hypothesizes that we don’t begin to feel motivated to meet the next level of needs until the ones before are met. For example, we aren’t motivated to meet our safety needs (Level 2) until our physiological needs are met.
This is why money may initially motivate people to look for work, but once they’re able to pay rent and buy groceries money is no longer a long-term motivator. Affording necessities will only motivate us to stay employed, not to do our best.
How Can We Motivate Our Teams?
Money may not be the “be-all-end-all” incentive you thought it was, but there are plenty of other motivators you can utilize. As you read through my favorite motivators below, remember that each member of your team is unique. What motivates one won’t motivate another. As a leader and a coach, you have to get to know your people and uncover what motivates them.
Recognition
Recognition is a common intrinsic motivator. We all know how great it feels to be valued and respected. Going the extra mile feels worth it when your work is appreciated. If ignored, that extra effort simply doesn’t seem worthwhile.
Leaders should always strive to recognize their team, even with a simple “thank you.” But, be sure to understand how each team member prefers to be recognized. Public or private, gestures or words, written or spoken — use your 1-on-1s to learn what is most meaningful to each of your team members. Then, be on the lookout for times to use your knowledge.
Growth
In Drive: the Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us, author Daniel Pink offers several motivating factors for creative thinkers, one of which is mastery, or the need to improve and grow. I’ve found this to be a huge motivator for people, especially those who feel a connection with our company’s mission.
Rote work may be acceptable when you’re just trying to survive, but if you pay your employees enough that they don’t have to worry (as you should), stagnation becomes unbearable. Fulfilling work makes us want to explore, innovate, and master our skills. Offering your team opportunities for growth is a huge intrinsic motivator
Challenge
Similar to growth, people love a challenge. When everything comes easy, we start to take things for granted. Life becomes monotonous, and you may find yourself wondering what your purpose is besides simply existing.
Challenges, on the other hand, keep our hearts pumping and our creativity flowing. At work, challenges give us the chance to explore, ask questions, and try new strategies. They are exhilarating — and motivating.
I’m not saying to put unreasonable expectations on your team. But if some of them are already rocking what they do, give them problems to solve and obstacles to overcome. It’s great for their career and their self-worth.
Being Part of Something Bigger
It’s human nature to strive for something more — to be a part of something greater than ourselves. Why else would people pursue passion projects or take jobs in fields like education and outreach? It’s certainly not for the money.
We want to feel good and to do good by those around us. Long ago, it’s how we were able to survive. Today, it’s how we find fulfillment.
This is why your mission as an organization is so vital. If you want loyal employees and customers, you have to give them something to identify with. Your company may sell a product or a service, but your mission — your why — has to be something greater than all of us. Each project your team completes needs to ladder up to your mission, and each individual must have a clear role in that path.
Progress
Like growth, progress is forward momentum toward something greater. But it’s about the work, not your individual skills. Just as people want personal and professional growth, they want to see progress in their output.
I’ve talked before about how Saturday Drive works on asynchronous schedules, and this is because we strive for progress over productivity. Productivity is staying busy and being constantly available. Productivity is why so many leaders still insist on co-located workspaces with synchronized schedules. But productivity doesn’t necessarily achieve results, and it certainly doesn’t motivate your team.
Have you ever had a job where you felt like you had to pretend? You got your work done, but if the boss stopped by and didn’t hear your keyboard clacking, you were in big trouble. It’s hard to think of anything less motivating.
Progress, on the other hand, is exciting. It’s the engineer who pulled an all-nighter knowing that their update is pushing your product far and above the competitor’s. It’s the HR director whose hours of research helped enact policies for a more inclusive and safe work environment.
Progress is seeing your ideas and efforts come to fruition — and that’s a hell of a motivator.
Belonging
One of my favorite authors, Brené Brown once said, “True belonging doesn’t require you to change who you are; it requires you to be who you are.”
I have found that belonging is as big a motivator as they come. Every company culture is different, but we all have memories of working somewhere where we didn’t quite fit. I certainly do. I don’t know about you, but when I can’t be authentic, I’m already looking for an exit strategy.
I never want any of my team members to feel like they don’t belong. I want them to feel empowered to contribute and be their unique selves. After all, a team made up of sameness wouldn’t make very much progress. We need unique strengths to be stronger as a whole.
Fostering a culture where everyone belongs is extremely motivating. Those who have to conform and fit in won’t have the courage to take risks and give it their all.
An integral part of every leader’s job is motivation, but it’s not always an easy task. Just know that money is nothing more than a carrot on a stick, and to motivate your team you must get to know them (and value them) as individuals.
What strategies have you used to motivate your team? Have you tried any of the above? Comment below and let us know!