How to Motivate Coworkers

Motivating coworkers can often be done in small steps.

Motivating coworkers often is suggested to be a notoriously difficult task, because different people will always be inspired by different things. However, there are methods that are often suggested to positively align with coworkers feeling more empowered and productive. These methods normally involve helping your coworkers to feel more appreciated and respected, along with allowing them to exercise their own choices and ideas within their day-to-day work life.

Instructions

1. Maintain a positive disposition. Optimism and friendliness go a long way toward improving the mood of people you're working alongside, and these qualities can enable them to feel more efficient throughout the day. Although complaints and frustrations are often a topic of conversation among coworkers, you should avoid consistent negativity because it sets a poor example.

2. Avoid always taking the spotlight. Often it's tempting to dominate the conversation or try to steer your peers a certain way -- instead, allow yourself to give fair time to opinions and ideas other than your own. Your coworkers will appreciate this, and they will feel additionally motivated if you give their ideas the same attention that they gave you.

3. Talk to your coworkers about starting an informal company sports team. This can boost communication between members of the organization and enable them to feel more motivated in the workplace by increasing the sense of "team spirit" throughout the company. This feeling can be especially reinforced if your team occasionally plays against a rival company.

4. Notice small details. Often when you interact with coworkers, you only notice when something goes wrong -- instead, make a considerable effort to appreciate the small details and useful qualities within your coworker's output that might be overlooked by others (for instance: neat and readable formatting of memos). By complimenting your coworker's attention to detail, you'll be reinforcing his motivation by letting him know that it's always worth going the extra effort within his professional output.

References

• Quality Digest: Motivating Your Employees and Co-Workers to Do What You Want