Motivation & Work Performance

A happy worker often is more productive.

The happiness and morale of an employee is an important factor in determining his motivation. In addition, an employee's ability to motivate himself in times of unhappiness is an important skill to have, because increased motivation leads to increased productivity. That means projects are accomplished and deadlines are met with results that are complete and accurate.

Importance

Managers will be impressed by motivated employees.

Good motivation at work is important, as the ability to focus and concentrate on the task at hand and complete it to the best of your ability will produce results of a high quality. This will then attract the attention of your managers, who will be impressed with your attitude and results. This could open up options to advance your career and receive a promotion.

Sources

Unhappiness is a primary source of poor motivation.

Poor motivation can come from a number of sources. Unhappiness at work is the primary reason for poor motivation, and that can come from things such as weak career prospects, overwork, management conflicts or changes in company structure. Low self-esteem and poor self-confidence can also result in under-motivation, as the worker feels that she is not sufficiently experienced or adept at her job to carry out tasks efficiently.

Consequences

A heavy workload can sometimes lead to poor motivation.

As a result of poor motivation, your productivity slumps. This results in work not being completed on time or to a satisfactory standard, which can result in unhappy managers who lose respect for you and your credibility. This leads to a vicious cycle, whereby your workload increases as a result of not completing tasks in an efficient manner. This increases pressure on you, leading to further unhappiness and a decreased level of motivation.

Tips

Rewarding yourself can help with motivation.

Setting yourself deadlines within which to complete certain tasks is a good way of ensuring that your workload is managed effectively and that you work hard to achieve objectives within a reasonable time frame. Rewarding yourself upon the completion of tasks on time and to a good standard is also an effective way to boost motivation. It gives you something to aim for, and it is this focus that allows you to work hard and improve motivation.

Management Role

Managers should talk to employees to discuss sources of low motivation.

Managers have a responsibility to identify workers on their teams that are suffering from low motivation, and privately counsel them to discover the reason for it. The manager then needs to take action, such as taking steps to reduce the workload of the employee by delegating tasks to other people. He also may decide to take the team out on a team-building activity to boost morale and team spirit.

References

• The Happy Manager: Improving Motivation at Work
• Accel: Employee Motivation: Theory and Practice