Motivate Your Employees When Times Are Tough

If the struggling economy has you as a business owner down, think what it might be doing to your employees.

The potential for fear and anxiety can set in, with workers wondering if their jobs are in jeopardy due to the tough times. As more and more companies fight to get in the black and out of the red, what can you do to increase the morale of your employees on a daily basis?

Among the things to focus in on are:

• Provide a vision – If you have not already, giving your employees a vision is important. The key is to have all employees on the same page when it comes to the company’s mission and goals.
• Give feedback – While employees oftentimes hear about mistakes, do you encourage or congratulate them when they do something really positive?
• Develop your team – It is important for employees to see room for advancement with their employer. Whether it is added projects, providing courses for them through a local college or room for advancement, this will help keep employee motivated, wanting to strive for more.
• Keep an open door policy – If you have a closed door policy, employees will fear the worst. While certain financial or personal details understandably cannot be divulged, keep your employees in the loop at all times.

Given that good business owners do not grow on trees, it is important to realize what has made your business successful up to this point – the employees. Without them, you might not even have a company in the first place. Do not overlook that fact in both good and bad times.

When the economy is tough, remember that your employees look to you to provide motivation, guidance and a reassuring attitude.

Along with wanting the most out of your employees, this is also the time to review what you bring to the table and see if there are areas you can improve on. Review the following areas:

• What are my strengths and weaknesses as a business owner?
• Do I take the time to really listen to my employees or is it in one ear and out the other?
• Would I want to work for me if I were not the boss?
• What can I do to make my employees more successful?
• Do I compliment my employees enough when things go well or do I discourage them too often when things fail?

Running a company, especially in times where the economy is not your best friend, certainly can be difficult. It takes true leaders to navigate their companies through these tough times, but it certainly can and is done often.

As the business owner, take a few moments to review where your company is at, your employees and yourself. If things are not where you want them to be, you DO have the power to change things for the better.

Photo credit: blog.dreamfetcher.com