Basic Principles of Motivation

I recently saw an AMA video on “how to motivate” employees. I always appreciate a chance to review this topic. While the video’s examples and descriptions were unique, I was glad to see that its conclusions were identical to my own--and these same principles are also reflected in research (Csikszentmihalyi, Maslow and others).

Here are those principles:

• Make the task clear and doable.
• Make the task meaningful.
• Make the task a vehicle for growth.
• Empower your workers to perform on their own.
• Provide recognition and rewards based on individual preferences.
• Keep recognition and rewards timely and specific.

© 2009 Laura Lewis-Barr all rights reserved